[linux-audio-dev] Re: Akai's MPC4000 Sampler/Workstation Open Source Project

On 7/28/06, Gene Heskett <gene.heskett@verizon.net> wrote:
> On Thursday 27 July 2006 19:34, Renich Bon Ćirić wrote:
> [...]
> >>
> >> From my viewpoint, Akai's legal dept., who is obviously controlling
> >> what Renich can say, will see to it that the product fails. Its up to
> >> Akai to make a liar out of me. If they would join the open source camp
> >> by supporting the coders with all the info, publicly available to any
> >> and all, that they will need to write the drivers this device will
> >> need, distribute this OS under the GPL with a server that lets *anyone*
> >> download it for free, or on a mailable cd for a couple of bucks
> >> american, while selling the hardware for $1000 to $1500, and watch the
> >> hardware sales blossum like our wild flowers along the interstate.
> >> Thats because the unshackled coders will write stuff that stretches the
> >> limits of what the hardware can do, just to see if they can. Its
> >> rather like climbing Mt. Everest, because its there. :)
> >
> >Well, I think we are getting a bit... carried away. I am not from akai,
> >in fact, my purpose is to ask akai to help us help them because there OS
> >sucks. It has too many bugs... that's the purpose of all this. If they
> >refuse, then I am willing to start an OS myself. That's all.
>
> First one has to open an effective channel of communications in order to
> get close enough to somebody who would know what an NDA is, something I've
> tried several times over the decades with only one success, usually you
> find somebody co-operative who makes you think you might have a chance at
> getting some assistance, but 3 days later you call back to confirm a
> detail and that person has been fired or transferred out of that dept.,
> primarily one suspects for the simple act of getting too close to the
> customer.
>
> However, Renish, if you are not representing Akai in this, then why the
> secrecy?
>
> Akai is going to want to know why you want to know all this stuff, and just
> to play cma, I wouldn't even try to put a coat of varnish on it. Tell
> them straight up that the hardware is great but the OS sucks and you want
> to fix it, writing it from scratch in a clean room scenario, meaning you
> will never see a copy of their src, just the specs that writing to such
> and such an address writes to what register, and what every bit or byte
> written makes it do what. AIUI, then you can GPL it, or if no GPL'd
> libraries or anything like that is used, you could make it proprietary.
> But we both know you'll get a lot more help if its open and GPL'd.
>
> And, just to get some stability, for every register you write to using
> their specs for whats written vs whats supposed to happen, I'd take the
> time to verify that the results you get and their specs agree. I've found
> more than one bug, a couple of them fairly serious, in the hardware using
> that exersize it all technique.
>
> I expect you will do whatever and however you want in any event, so I'll go
> away and see if my rocking chair still rocks, or something. :)
>

rock on!

..... sorry i just had to! ;)

Loki
Received on Fri Jul 28 12:15:07 2006