[Ardour-Users] OSX vs Linu

[John Emmas]

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Thomas Vecchione"
>
> For the record, I strongly disagree with the concept that any distribution
> of Linux needs to be a DIY system.  That defeats one of the main purposes
> of distributions
>
Whether Linux "needs to be" a DIY OS is of course debatable but I'd have to
say that I'm with Rob on this one.  I described Linux earlier as "high
maintenance" but whichever way you dress it up, at this point in time, Linux
is not an OS that the average Joe can install with ease.  Things are
definitely getting better but there's still a long road ahead.

My personal view is that driver installtion & configuration remains the
greatest bugbear with Linux.  Apple has solved this neatly by heavily
restricting the user's choice of hardware but Microsoft has the same problem
on almost the same scale as Linux.  Microsoft's approach has been to unify
hardware and software manufacturers with its MSI installation strategy (the
ubiquitous "setup.exe" file).  Well configured MSI installers have
completely removed the pain of installing both drivers and apps under
Windows - in particular, eliminating the old problem of "DLL hell" that used
to plague Windows users in the days when every manufacturer had its own
preferred installation strategy.

With the increased usage of package managers, installing applications under
Linux has become similarly painless.  Unfortunately, the same cannot be said
for installing drivers.  There are probably as many different strategies as
there are driver writers, which is a great letdown.  Somebody needs to come
up with a solution that unifies them because as long as this problem
persists Linux, IMHO, will never be able to shed its 'DIY' image.  By hook
or by crook, drivers need to become as easy to install as applications have
become in recent years.

John