* [9fans] Generic Plan 9 to Linux video api shim.
@ 2004-09-20 11:30 Vester Thacker
2004-09-20 13:01 ` Nigel Roles
0 siblings, 1 reply; 6+ messages in thread
From: Vester Thacker @ 2004-09-20 11:30 UTC (permalink / raw)
To: Fans of the OS Plan 9 from Bell Labs
Hi Everyone,
A friend of mine wrote asking "Why doesn't somebody write a generic
Plan9-to-Linux-video-api shim? It would be inefficient as all getout,
I suppose, but anybody who can't live without playing Doom on Plan 9
is perverted enough that a quick call to hyaku-to-ban is in order."
Being a Plan 9 advocate, I'm sure that I'll get this asked this question again.
I don't have an answer for him. Anyone care to comment?
--Vester "Vic" Thacker
p.s. Hyaku-to-ban is japanese for police station.
^ permalink raw reply [flat|nested] 6+ messages in thread
* Re: [9fans] Generic Plan 9 to Linux video api shim.
2004-09-20 11:30 [9fans] Generic Plan 9 to Linux video api shim Vester Thacker
@ 2004-09-20 13:01 ` Nigel Roles
2004-09-20 13:45 ` Vester Thacker
0 siblings, 1 reply; 6+ messages in thread
From: Nigel Roles @ 2004-09-20 13:01 UTC (permalink / raw)
To: Vester Thacker, Fans of the OS Plan 9 from Bell Labs
Vester Thacker wrote:
>Hi Everyone,
>
>A friend of mine wrote asking "Why doesn't somebody write a generic
>Plan9-to-Linux-video-api shim? It would be inefficient as all getout,
>I suppose, but anybody who can't live without playing Doom on Plan 9
>is perverted enough that a quick call to hyaku-to-ban is in order."
>
>Being a Plan 9 advocate, I'm sure that I'll get this asked this question again.
>I don't have an answer for him. Anyone care to comment?
>
>--Vester "Vic" Thacker
>
>p.s. Hyaku-to-ban is japanese for police station.
>
>
>
Not sure what you are proposing. Do you mean incorporate Linux drivers into
Plan 9? I think you are referring to graphics drivers, but you might
mean video
(as in video for linux). Whatever way up it is, it's not a shim. Drivers
are not
standalone objects in any operating system; they rely on a whole environment
provided by other parts of the operating system.
If you want graphics drivers, then you probably actually want a 'shim' to
XFree86 as that is where Linux gets most of its graphics drivers from.
Alternatively, you could work with the framebuffer device drivers; there
are less of them, but more than there are for Plan 9!
Is this what you had in mind?
^ permalink raw reply [flat|nested] 6+ messages in thread
* Re: [9fans] Generic Plan 9 to Linux video api shim.
2004-09-20 13:01 ` Nigel Roles
@ 2004-09-20 13:45 ` Vester Thacker
2004-09-20 14:03 ` Nigel Roles
0 siblings, 1 reply; 6+ messages in thread
From: Vester Thacker @ 2004-09-20 13:45 UTC (permalink / raw)
To: Fans of the OS Plan 9 from Bell Labs
I believe my friend was refering along the lines of creating an
abstraction layer that would allow for linux graphic drivers to be
used with Plan 9. I could be mistaken.
If so, I'm not necessarily advocating that idea. It is apparent that
Plan 9 lacks support for many video cards. I suppose what my friend is
really saying to me is that there has to be an easier way to provide
graphic driver support.
My friend is an Economist, so his thinking might go along the lines of
doing something with the least effort and producing maximum gain. I
apologize if this obfuscates the earlier question.
--Vester "Vic" Thacker
^ permalink raw reply [flat|nested] 6+ messages in thread
* Re: [9fans] Generic Plan 9 to Linux video api shim.
2004-09-20 13:45 ` Vester Thacker
@ 2004-09-20 14:03 ` Nigel Roles
0 siblings, 0 replies; 6+ messages in thread
From: Nigel Roles @ 2004-09-20 14:03 UTC (permalink / raw)
To: Vester Thacker, Fans of the OS Plan 9 from Bell Labs
Vester Thacker wrote:
>I believe my friend was refering along the lines of creating an
>abstraction layer that would allow for linux graphic drivers to be
>used with Plan 9. I could be mistaken.
>
>If so, I'm not necessarily advocating that idea. It is apparent that
>Plan 9 lacks support for many video cards. I suppose what my friend is
> really saying to me is that there has to be an easier way to provide
>graphic driver support.
>
>My friend is an Economist, so his thinking might go along the lines of
>doing something with the least effort and producing maximum gain. I
>apologize if this obfuscates the earlier question.
>
>--Vester "Vic" Thacker
>
>
>
Well, then my answer was reasonably accurate. The only pure Linux drivers
for video cards are those that are part of the framebuffer driver. These
have
better coverage than Plan 9 but, interestingly, exhibit the same issues
as Plan 9
drivers: they tend only to work for the cards that the developers had to
hand,
as vga documentation is either unavailable, or moderately misleading. As
soon
as the manufacturers obselete one card, and introduce another, the driver is
close to useless.
I'm told that the linux-fb matrox drivers are not too bad, but then
again that's true for
Plan 9, because the manufacturer provides goodish documentation.
So in reality Linux users use XFree86/X.Org drivers which are not part of
Linux, as they work a lot better.
Writing a 'shim' for XFree86 is a major undertaking. I've considered it, and
I expect other have too.
^ permalink raw reply [flat|nested] 6+ messages in thread
* Re: [9fans] Generic Plan 9 to Linux video api shim.
2004-09-20 14:16 Caerwyn B Jones
@ 2004-09-20 15:04 ` Nigel Roles
0 siblings, 0 replies; 6+ messages in thread
From: Nigel Roles @ 2004-09-20 15:04 UTC (permalink / raw)
To: Fans of the OS Plan 9 from Bell Labs
Caerwyn B Jones wrote:
>
>
>
>
>>I believe my friend was refering along the lines of creating an
>>abstraction layer that would allow for linux graphic drivers to be
>>used with Plan 9. I could be mistaken.
>>
>>
>
>This has already been done for Inferno. The "shim" is called Linux ;)
>
>
>
>
>
Quite. VMware is another example.
^ permalink raw reply [flat|nested] 6+ messages in thread
* Re: [9fans] Generic Plan 9 to Linux video api shim.
@ 2004-09-20 14:16 Caerwyn B Jones
2004-09-20 15:04 ` Nigel Roles
0 siblings, 1 reply; 6+ messages in thread
From: Caerwyn B Jones @ 2004-09-20 14:16 UTC (permalink / raw)
To: Vester Thacker, Fans of the OS Plan 9 from Bell Labs
> I believe my friend was refering along the lines of creating an
> abstraction layer that would allow for linux graphic drivers to be
> used with Plan 9. I could be mistaken.
This has already been done for Inferno. The "shim" is called Linux ;)
^ permalink raw reply [flat|nested] 6+ messages in thread
end of thread, other threads:[~2004-09-20 15:04 UTC | newest]
Thread overview: 6+ messages (download: mbox.gz / follow: Atom feed)
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2004-09-20 11:30 [9fans] Generic Plan 9 to Linux video api shim Vester Thacker
2004-09-20 13:01 ` Nigel Roles
2004-09-20 13:45 ` Vester Thacker
2004-09-20 14:03 ` Nigel Roles
2004-09-20 14:16 Caerwyn B Jones
2004-09-20 15:04 ` Nigel Roles
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