[linux-audio-dev] Re: image problem [was Re: [Alsa-devel] help for a levelmeter]

[Steve Harris]

On Fri, Oct 18, 2002 at 02:55:28 +0100, Richard Bown wrote:
> > I see your point. But feel that the problem is not that it is too
> > difficult or ugly for the majority of people but that we have not
> > done a good enough job of showing how worthwhile it is to spend long
> > hours on figuring out how to get the stuff working.
> 
> People want it simple - they want to buy it in a box and for it to work 
> and then probably to discard it or forget about it. Anything above that 
> is pure geekiness.  This isn't to say there's not a place for geekiness  
> - it's just that most people don't want it.

Yes. It has been my intention to pull in a few favours once I consider
Linux audio to be competetive with other platforms. A friend writes for
the German "Keyboards" magazine, and he has promised to cover Linux in an
indepth article when its viable, and a friend-of-a-friend-of-a... writes
for Sound On Sound (a respected UK publication) so I could proably get
him to do something.

Notice the future tense. I dont think its a good idea now, better to wait
'til we have a nice bunch of jack'd (+ alsa midi/whatever), stable,
documented apps, all playing well together than put people off with the
kind of stuff we're prepared to use.

Something I think is important is mouse launched applications - no
"app_foo -Zdr7 alsa_pcm:in_23 alsa_..." I know most of us will want to run
that this way anyway (well, I will ;), but windows and mac users aren't
going to be too impressed. Yes, I am guilty of this.

Things like jack have to be graphically wrappered or hidden too, no
scrolling text windows of xruns. The occasionaly discussed jack session
saving gizmo would be a knock dead feature.

That said, I think Patrick is right to start thinking about this now.

- Steve