ATI video comes out of the closet

[Les Mikesell]

Dave Ihnat wrote:

>> But I would say that "things are easier on a Mac" where things also 
>> don't require source and do work across the relevant CPU lines.
> 
> The Mac shouldn't even be compared to Linux or Windows; it's a totally
> different world.

While I agree that there is a potential for cases you can't compare, 
there is a large overlap that you can: the case where all the components 
are designed to operate together and the OS is aware of them.

> Everything comes from Apple or is blessed by Apple.

And how does that differ conceptually from buying a system integrated by 
Dell, HP, etc. and pre-loaded with an OS?

> Given that Apple has absolute and total control over the source and
> hardware, of course Macs don't have the hardware problems inherent in
> the PC platforms.

The issue is why an end user should encounter any such problem.  The 
fact that you _can_ build a windows or linux box out of an experimental, 
never-tried-before combination of parts and software doesn't mean it is 
a good idea if you aren't a design engineer looking for a new problem to 
solve.

> Both Linux and Windows work on platforms that have, literally,
> thousands of vendors manufacturing a tremendous range of equipment,
> most of which has to have a properly working device driver.

Yes, and my experience over the last 5 years has been that the Windows 
versions are more dependable than the fedora versions.  I'm sure there 
are individual exceptions to that, but I just don't see fedora as a 
bastion of stability here - or in a position to claim that they have the 
only approach to drivers that can work.

 > Much as
> they'd like to, Microsoft can't control all these vendors; the original
> PC was wide open--they even published schematics and the source to the
> BIOS--and that legacy is embedded in the attitude of the vendors today.
> (MS's attempt to lock down the driver interface with Vista is meeting
> with a lot of resistance.)


The Vista approach deserves to fail for the same reasons DRM does, but 
the driving force has to be consumer reaction.  If something is 
difficult to use, don't use it.

--
   Les Mikesell
     lesmikesell at gmail.com