[LAU] PulseAudio and Alsa

[Stephen Doonan]

I recently installed Fedora 9, then Ubuntu Hardy Heron and the 
UbuntuStudio packages. In both cases, a new soundserver (new to me), 
PulseAudio, was installed by default and has caused me some confusion 
and frustration.

What is the feeling among Linux audio users about PulseAudio?

Is it a good development? Will it eventually replace ALSA, or does it 
instead simply add an additional level or layer of abstraction and 
indirection to audio in Linux. Will the simplicity it seems to aim for 
add yet more complexity to the issues surrounding configuration and 
troubleshooting of audio in Linux, especially for those who use the 
specialized audio applications that many Linux-audio-users use?

How are users responding to the development of PulseAudio and its 
inclusion in Linux distribution installations? Remove it afterward and 
revert to pure ALSA, disabling Gnome and KDE specific soundservers? 
Learning to live with PulseAudio and how to make it work well with 
Ardour, Jamin, Rosegarden, Muse, Qtractor, Qjackctl, etc.? :-)

-Steve
(Steve Doonan, Portales, New Mexico US)