Mail Archives: djgpp/1999/03/30/13:51:09
Ok, Xwindows (or just 'x') is the term that describes a lot of
different xservers, which are all in there own right xwindowing
systems. One of these implementations is Xfree86, designed for
intel computers. Although it is not gpl'd, it is totally free
software. I seem to remember that the developers disagreed about
the restrictions imposed by the gpl, so they made a licence which
is essentially the same as DJGPP's. (You can do whatever you like
with it).
Before describing what Gnome is, I better put a note in
saying what a windows manager is. It runs ontop of x, and defines
how everything looks, and manages the windows. Because of this,
all menus, and nearly everything in X looks different with a
different windows manager, hence gnomes niche:
Gnome is a front end Xwindows, and provides an interface
that is the same across all windows managers, and implementations
of X. If we stick fairly rigidly to the sources of XFree86 then
gnome should compile 'out of the box' and run correctly.
Hope that clarifys things
Peter Allen
Adam Schrotenboer wrote:
>
> If I may make another suggestion, I hear references to a port of X windows
> (Is this just a part of XFree 86, or essentially the same thing???). I was
> thinking that a port of GNOME may be a bit better. XFree86 is Open Source,
> but not GPL, while GNOME is.
>
> DJ Delorie wrote:
>
> > Don't panic!
> >
> > I've been doing some thinking lately about where DJGPP is going. I've
> > concluded to myself that it really isn't *going* anywhere, it's
> > *there*. The core code is pretty stable and feature-full. GNU ports
> > come out often enough, and we're becoming "just another unix platform"
> > for a lot of people. The web pages have pretty much everything I can
> > think to add to them (although we can always use more documentation :)
> > The big focus these days is on third-party additions (like Allegro)
> > and applications.
> >
> > Cool.
> >
> > The big question I have for you all is this: What's next?
> >
> > I don't mean "Let's write application XYZ", I mean for the DJGPP
> > project itself. Think BIG. I don't see too many people installing
> > DOS these days, and Cygwin is shaping up to be almost as good as DJGPP
> > (hey, I can boast - I'm on both teams) so the Win32 systems will see
> > less demand for DJGPP over time (I expect, at least). Plus, a lot of
> > DJGPP users are switching to Linux or WinNT/Cygwin.
> >
> > So what are our choices?
> >
> > Well, we can try to saturate the DOS market. I don't know how to do
> > that, unless we spend a fortune on ads in PC magazines :-( Perhaps an
> > effort to "spread the word" in other forums (nicely, please) would
> > "enlighten the uninformed", but it's for diminishing returns.
> >
> > We could try to make DJGPP a Windows-native system. I don't think
> > this is a good idea because 90% of the value in DJGPP is the way it
> > hides DOS, and we'd have to throw it all away and start from scratch
> > if we switched to the Win32 API. Plus, Cygwin already does Win32, and
> > legally I can't promote such a project because that's what I already
> > do for Cygnus. If you like this option, join the cygwin team - you'll
> > be much happier, and we can always use more help.
> >
> > For the same reason, DJGPP for Linux is a bad idea. Heck, DJGPP is a
> > port of the Linux tools themselves!
> >
> > We could overhaul DJGPP again for ELF support and a few other
> > fundamental design changes, but why mess with a good thing? Sure,
> > we've got a list of bugs to fix (like C++ templates in COFF) but
> > they'll get fixed eventually. Such redesigns would have little real
> > effect on the project.
> >
> > So, I'm at a loss as to where we should be focusing our energy at this
> > time. Mailing list traffic doubled every year from 1993 to 1997, but
> > *dropped* 10% in 1998 (1999 isn't looking too good, either), and
> > delorie.com's web server has had a pretty steady load for the last two
> > years, even though I've got plenty of spare resources. I think our
> > period of growth is over unless we start something new, but what?
> >
> > So my task for you, my loyal fans, devoted followers, silent lurkers,
> > and the occasional tax collector (hiss!) is to help shape the future!
> > Let's get those ideas flowing and figure out what the Next Big Thing
> > for us will be!
> >
> > Considerations (but not limitations):
> >
> > * GPL. We've come a long way with it, no reason to change now.
> >
> > * Should give something to the community. DJGPP was built by the
> > community, the benefits should go to the community.
> >
> > * Traffic to my web server means money for us, which I turn into more
> > servers, bigger disks, faster net connections, time to write CGIs,
> > etc. The main DJGPP server is a P166 with 27Gb of disk and a 1Mb/s
> > link, but if you folks want to chip in for a PII/450 I'll get one
> > ;-) Current traffic just about covers ISP, electric bills, and
> > upkeep (about $9,000/year).
> >
> > * Should be long term and highly visible, so we'll all get rich and
> > famous (we hope) through contracts and such.
> >
> > * Should be something that can grow on its own. For example, if
> > personal labor is involved (like consulting), you're limited by how
> > much you can do, but a web page, computer program, or software
> > package can grow and multiply without needing more people-hours.
> > This also frees us up to do other projects when we're done :-)
> >
> > So crank up those brains, think carefully, and let's hear your
> > suggesions. No flames please! You may send me private mail if you
> > don't want your ideas public, else send them to the djgpp forum.
> >
> > DJ
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