Re: ARMHF - Mediaplayer software?
I never expected that my request for advice regarding a mediaplayer could have
such.. .explosive results.
I agree fully with Luke in so far as the marketing of the Raspberry Pi is ...
Mis-Selling.
Then again I know from personal experience that many companies selling
computer components don't have a clue what the stuff they sell actually do.
Traditional joke here is that a Pentium 4 makes ones surfing experience faster.
Even my Amiga back in 2001 was overtaxing my 33k modem with ease, no Pentium 4
would have made filetransfers faster or a text on the net appear faster on my
screen than my 50MHz 68060 did.
Or remember AMD's "The first 64Bit PC" joke? Somehow, SGI's O² were also
personal computers, standing at the individual workplace, and they were 64Bit
untis, too.
So, I never would have thought that mis-selling is considered a fraudulent
act, and accordingly, though understanding Luke's reaction, I didn't expect it
and it felt ... Scary. Positively, so, but still, scary.
After going over the layout and informations of the cubieboard I
wholeheartedly agree that it has a LOT more value for education, permitting
easy access both on software side ( Linux ) as well as the hardware side (
clear access to various signals and buses ) thus providing more value for
education on the proframming side by reinforcing it through support for
education on the hardware side ( electronics, soldering, signal interfacing ,
... ) .
I got my cubieboard yesterday, but I didn't manage to get a debian system
running on it. Yet. It's Hardware is really great and the documented pinout
has me drooling.
When the Cubieboard has no negative legalities attached, then Paul might wish
to add it to his list at http://wiki.debian.org/RaspberryPi
Personally I think that "problematic" Hardware should be mentioned, stating
exactly why it is problematic. It helps makign an educated decision to buy.
When the Raspberry Pi would be sold as cheap, Linux compatible computing
platform there would be nothing I would complain about. I would in that case
have bought only one to act as server module, not two, though.
A product not properly documented IS a problem - but when the company adhered
strictly to some existing and well documented open standards, the product
might be recommendable despite the companies policy being not.
As an operating system, Debian makes a lot of otherwise "unusable devices"
usable, so I think that uncomfortable hardware will often appear in the debian
lists. It's sad that uncomfortable hardware exists.. but I'd rate it very
positive that Linux and Debian support them, though.
Recently I got a Tablet for example - Wacom doesn't support Linux officially,
but their tablets are the best-supported ones. I got a Walport, and they had a
download area for Linux ( thus giving obvious some kind of support at least
) but the particular tablet just gives me 3 left mousebuttons with its stylus.
Hard for me to judge which would have been the better way to go.
I'm mostly what you might call a "normal end user" of Linux.
But building a lot of electronics modules and tinkering in general I need
access to functions and capabilites which I expected of the Raspberry Pi ( and
now found in plenty on the cubieboard ) and which either only work with Linux
anyway or are a lot safer, simpler and more reliably to implement in Linux.
Aside of the fact that a lot of the hardware I use is incompatible with
Windows anyway and thus, even if I wanted to, would have to stick with Linux
and Debian in particular ( thanks to many supported architectures ).
> a) i'll learn by example and by doing so effing well learn to
> communicate effectively
You communicated VERY effectively. Just maybe the M16 style of approach is not
the most, call it, favourable one.
> b) the people who felt like they were being shat on won't feel that way
That's a human nature issue. Understanding WHY you reacted as you did,
learning about the reasons and background informations, helps a lot.
> c) the people who perhaps should have been paying closer attention
> will know to do so in future and have a template to work from should
> something similar arise.
As a Layman in regards to the various fine points of "Free Beer" vs "Free
Speech" respectively the corporate attitudes and manners which express
themselves in their products , I'll have to watch more closely, but still
expect a lot of details to slip my scrutiny.
> d) we get to resolve and clarify something that's bugging a lot of people
> [*1]
>
> thoughts anyone?
>
> l.
>
> [*1] there's quite a few people who don't like the situation wrt
> software freedom that the rbpi brings up: they just don't talk about
> it publicly because they might get shouted down as haters-of-education
> or something ridiculous by those people who don't understand the
> importance or implications of software freedom.
Thanking you all for a .. very.. educational thread,
I remain
with kind regards
--
Rüdiger Leibrandt
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