<p>Yes, call it what it is. monotonic or monotonic_time, because that's why I'm using it. No flags. </p>
<p>I've followed this thread throughout, and I'm still not sure if "steady" gives the real guarantees it claims. It's trying to be too much. Existing bugs complain about backward jumps and demand a clock that doesn't do this. The function should guarantee monotonicity only, and not get overcomplicated. </p>