Re: [linux-audio-dev] What about debian tasks? [was: Audio distribution revisited]

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Subject: Re: [linux-audio-dev] What about debian tasks? [was: Audio distribution revisited]
From: Richard Smith (ras2_AT_tant.com)
Date: Sat Sep 16 2000 - 20:19:15 EEST


On Sat, 16 Sep 2000 04:12:10 -0700 (PDT), Patrick Shirkey wrote:

>Which would be easier? Making one distro or porting to all the available ones so far?
>

Well its not really a "port" unless you cross over to other
architectures since all you are really doing is setting up a place
where all the packages are available, and adding some dependency info
in the native package format.

You don't have to support all as most are for very specific markets.
Supporting redhats style gets you 60% of them anyway. Debian covers
many more..

You could cover 90% of the dists with about 5 different setups. It
would be a reasonable ammount of work but I think it is far less than
what you are looking at for a complete distribution.

>It could become the computer musicians tool instead of headache. All they would have to do is learn where things are kept(the xterm), some basic Linux commands and how to use the relevant programs. If the right software is provided at the start then they may never need to install anything until the next distribution.(Although I doubt I could stop myself)
>

I guess I don't understand your target... Seems to me that the linux
newbie you want to cater to is only going to have one PC and probally
wants to do more with that PC than just audio.

>I think this would be easier to maintain and more widely useful than a whole lot of seperate packages for each distribution.

I guess here we agree to disagree.

>How old is Debian? They still haven't really provided for the linux music community yet.

Release .01 was in 1993.

>Same goes for all of the distributions as far as I can tell. Nothing that even comes >close to a professional quality music workstation. But graphics on the other hand....

Well I don't look at it that way... I don't expect my distribution to
"provide" for me. I expect my distributions to give me:

1) quality methods for installing, maintaining and upgrading, my
system
2) provide a base system.
3) and then allow me to add to that system as I see fit by providing
a repository of
        as many pre-compiled packages as possible.

If the distributions so far haven't provided for the linux community
then I think thats more of a reflection on the state of linux audio
software than a failing of the distros. Linux is almost totally
demand drivien, given enough demand things happen. But its a catch
22 deal.. No demand because of no apps, no apps because of no demand.
Thats where LAD comes in. Like david and benno say what we really
need is more apps and less talk.

On that note I will shut up. and since this topic begining to smolder
so this will be my last post on the subject.

Summary: m-station = good;
                "tasks" for other dists = good;
                Squelching either effort = bad;
                more developement on apps = good++;

nuf said.

--
Richard A. Smith    ras2_AT_tant.com 
"I'd hang out with science kids - they can blow things up!
 I mean, what's cooler than that?"
                                                   - Tori Amos


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