[Ardour-Users] OSX vs Linux

[Rob Quin]

On Sunday 23 August 2009 19:32, you wrote:
> On Sun, Aug 23, 2009 at 6:45 AM, Rob Quin <robquin at uklinux.net> wrote:
> > I agree with all the points made so far but I would like to add my own
> > thoughts.
> >
> > Linux is a DIY operating system. The price we pay is that we engage with
> > the
> > process of its development by tinkering with it and feeding our
> > experiences back into that process. That all takes time but that is a
> > price that I'm happy to pay to be in control of my system. I have
> > experimented with some of
> > the "Out of the Box" Linuxs struggled with them as I try to undo the
> > assumptions that they make about how I want things. I always come back to
> > plain old Debian and set it up the way that I want.
>
> 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, otherwise we would all run LFS.
>
> Just because that is the current state of things for professional audio
> NOW, doesn't mean that it has to remain that way.  That is incorrect
> thinking on what a distribution should be doing IMO.
>
> Heck look at the general Desktop usage.  I have previously, on multiple
> occasions, set up desktops for people, and because those desktops just did
> the expected things, never had to touch them again, and the only
> customization I had to do out of the box is the same customization I would
> have had to do on any OS, namely integrate it into a Lab environment for
> instance by setting up Samba, VNC, or similar.
>
> It isn't perfect, but it is much better than our current standing in
> professional audio situations and constantly improving.  And there is no
> reason that our current standing in professional audio situations with
> particular distributions couldn't also improve to this point.
>
>        Seablade



I feel a little misunderstood  here. I do not advocate that we all use LFS. I 
have seen massive improvements in Linux in the 10 years that I've been using 
it and I welcome them wholeheartedly. My point is that most of those 
improvements have been achieved by us (the Linux community) patiently putting 
our time into our OS. If Linux is to continue to improve then we are going to 
have to continue to put our time in and I think it is realistic for us to 
expect to do so.

Maybe it is the my use of the term DIY that is causing confusion. If this term 
carries a connotation of second rate for you then that was not my intention 
at all. I am a trained luthier so when I do DIY around my house I am aiming 
at a standard that is consistently higher than I would expect if I paid a 
tradesman to do the job. So too with Linux. It is better than the OSes 
produced by the mercenaries because we love it and nurture it. Just that 
loving and nurturing takes quality time rather than money.

Regards, Rob