From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 From: Len Brown Subject: generic ACPI video and hotkey drivers vs. platform-specific drivers Date: 03 Mar 2005 16:08:45 -0500 Message-ID: <1109884125.2102.781.camel@d845pe> References: <200502230953.j1N9rPLp020723@shell0.pdx.osdl.net> <1109790760.2097.587.camel@d845pe> <20050302205324.GA5486@deep-space-9.dsnet> <1109839245.4866.10.camel@nouse.net> <20050303093949.GB3346@crusoe.alcove-fr> <1109844371.4866.31.camel@nouse.net> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In-Reply-To: <1109844371.4866.31.camel-dCxI//HcOdFeoWH0uzbU5w@public.gmane.org> Sender: acpi-devel-admin-5NWGOfrQmneRv+LV9MX5uipxlwaOVQ5f@public.gmane.org Errors-To: acpi-devel-admin-5NWGOfrQmneRv+LV9MX5uipxlwaOVQ5f@public.gmane.org List-Unsubscribe: , List-Post: List-Help: List-Subscribe: , List-Archive: To: Timo Hoenig , Karol Kozimor , Luming Yu , toshiba_acpi-7wiBuN1tZDdg9hUCZPvPmw@public.gmane.org, vojtech-IBi9RG/b67k@public.gmane.org Cc: Stelian Pop , ACPI Developers List-Id: linux-acpi@vger.kernel.org It is great that programmers -- sometimes with little or no vendor support -- have come up with platform specific drivers to make things work on their boxes. But this is only a stepping stone to where we need to be, for building special drivers for every platform is not a solution of first choice, it is a solution of last resort. The total number of systems already deployed and those in the pipeline is very large when you account for all the models from all the vendors -- and this number is increasing, not decreasing. If we lead the distros down this path they will get crushed in a support mess. As I've said before, it is fine with me for exotic drivers to handle exotic hardware -- nobody wants to muck-up generic code for a few exotics. But we need a design where standard systems we've never heard of "just work"; and we need to make the use, administration, and support of exotic systems as much like standard sytems as possible. I believe that Bruno's generic video driver (in tree) is a step in this direction. I believe that Luming's generic hot key driver (on list, but not yet in tree) is a step in this direction. Are either of these "final"? heck no, but I'm confident that they're heading us in the right direction. I plan to pull Luming's hot-key driver into the ACPI patch soon -- the only reason we didnt' do it earlyer is because the previous version would have immediately broken the existing platform specific drivers... We also need to think about the kernel<->user interface we've currently got. We need to think through the suggestion that hot keys should appear to Linux like other keyboard keys -- and wind their way throught the input layer. I think the important thing will be what the user or administrator has to do in order to map which keys to which functions; and if this can work automatically without a call to 1-800-distro. Hopefully we can leverage the stuff people use for keyboard special keys already. thanks for your support, -Len ------------------------------------------------------- SF email is sponsored by - The IT Product Guide Read honest & candid reviews on hundreds of IT Products from real users. Discover which products truly live up to the hype. Start reading now. http://ads.osdn.com/?ad_id=6595&alloc_id=14396&op=click