+ *
+ * FIXME: In future, we should probable split the device number into
+ * major/minor, and transfer the two parts as 32-bit ints. That gives
+ * you somewhat more of a chance that they'll come from a big machine
+ * to a little one in a useful way.
+ *
+ * FIXME: Really we need an unsigned type, and we perhaps ought to
+ * cope with platforms on which this is an unsigned int or even a
+ * struct. Later.