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Newsgroups: comp.os.386bsd.questions Path: sserve!newshost.anu.edu.au!munnari.oz.au!news.Hawaii.Edu!ames!haven.umd.edu!darwin.sura.net!europa.eng.gtefsd.com!uunet!virtech!dwex From: dwex@aib.com (David E. Wexelblat) Subject: Re: X-Windows support for VGA boards Message-ID: <CFL7t4.HJ@aib.com> Organization: AIB Software, Inc. References: <MARK_WEAVER.93Oct26070023@excelsior.cis.brown.edu> <hastyCFJ08y.LBJ@netcom.com> <CFK83z.Gw5@usenet.ucs.indiana.edu> Date: Thu, 28 Oct 1993 03:17:28 GMT Lines: 107 In article <CFK83z.Gw5@usenet.ucs.indiana.edu> pitts@bigbang.astro.indiana.edu (Jim Pitts) writes: >In article <hastyCFJ08y.LBJ@netcom.com> hasty@netcom.com (Amancio Hasty Jr) writes: >>I can't speak for XFree86 -- but I can tell you that I don't support >>Diamond Products. > >I am not nuts about Diamond's idea of support as well, but the fact of >the matter is that many Xfree86 users -do- have them. The -only- ones >hurt by our bad attitutes towards Diamond are these users, not Diamond. > >Yes, I know that Diamond's research showed that our 'embargo' did have a >noted effect on their sales ... but really folks. I called them and spoke >with them on the phone and honstly they just don't care. Wow! Late breaking news! No shit, sherlock. Over a year ago I did a net poll to find out how many lost sales Diamond was having. In a month of survey, I documented about 10000 lost sales. And I communicated this to Diamond in writing, and discussed it with one of their representantives. Their position at that time was "Big deal". They would have allowed us to do binary releases, but not source. Since that time, XFree86 has maintained a "We do not and will not support Diamond" policy, and have made no bones about it. > >Now, all dogma aside. If you ignore the super-secret-dot-clock scam, the >card is an all around good product. I have used it for quite a while and >am very happy with it. People I consult for use them (they are stuck in >Gateway machines from the shelf) all over. I have had -no- problems getting >support for applications under dos/windows. > >Of course I can't stand dos or windows. ;) > Bully for you. There's all KINDs of hardware you can use under DOS/Windows that can't be used on Unix boxes. >All-in-all it is a good product. There are better, there are -many- which are >worse. > Uh huh. The problem is that most of us FreeWare types consider Diamond's policy a massive strike against them, regardless of technical issues. Add on top that the fact that you can get hardware as good or better, for the same or lower prices, with friendly and helpful customer relations, Diamond isn't even in the program. >The only exception to this is this dot-clock mess which I can now get around >using the external clock setting program. I run XFree86 with -0- problems. >All resolutions, full support, no problems. > Now wait. Think about this for a second. Why do you think we put that feature in? Whether you like it or not, all of these external clock-setting programs are at best ethically questionable and at worst illegal. We have no desire to be involved in any such activities. >Funny, the only place I am not supported now is XFree86. I sure hope that >this can change in the future. It will change as soon as Diamond stops claiming trade-secret status on the information. Maybe you don't think there's anything wrong with disassembling the BIOS to obtain information the vendor considers proprietary, but I do. And as long as I'm one of the primary decision makers, the decision stands. I'll let you in on a little secret. I know how to program the clocks on the Diamond boards. Without disassembling the BIOS. I still won't use that information. Ethics seem to be the first thing to fall by the wayside in FreeWare. Not in any I am involved in. > >There have been many postings asking people to not fight about the variety >of *BSD systems out there. The claim is that this fighting only makes us >weeaker in the long run. > >Isn't this really the same thing? I mean really? > Who's fighting? You are. We made a policy decision a year ago. We have stuck to that policy, and gone out of our way to add support for your questionable tactics (we spent a couple of weeks getting the external clock program stuff working right on all platforms). But people like you keep trying to get us to change our minds, when the input conditions to the decision still haven't changed. > Jim Pitts > A -happy- SpeedStar 24 Graphics card owner Who wouldn't be happy if we hadn't gone out of our way to allow your ethically-questionable tactics to work. And I still contend that an Orchid ProDesigner IIS is a better card than the SpeedStar 24. -- David Wexelblat <dwex@aib.com> (703) 430-9247 Fax: (703) 450-4560 AIB Software, Inc., 46030 Manekin Plaza, Suite 160, Dulles, VA 20166 Formerly Virtual Technologies, Inc. Mail regarding XFree86 should be sent to <xfree86@physics.su.oz.au> "If you don't expect too much from me, you might not be let down." -- Gin Blossoms, "Hey Jealousy"