Hardy and Alsa

[Steve Lee]

On 18/05/2008, Kenny Hitt <kenny at hittsjunk.net> wrote:
>  The lack of documentation doesn't bother me since I run Linux full time.  I'm on several mailing lists and google will always find information.  The change to pulseaudio was discussed in the Hardy release notes.

Hmm, out of date documentation is worse that *no* documentation and
Google will often throw up so many pages at various stages of
staleness that it can be very hard to work out which to follow. This
is more of a problem with OSS as the software evolves at a greater
pass that proprietary stuff.

>  My new attitude is: if they break it because they can't read and learn, they deserve it.  Besides, they've already said Windows is better.

IMHO as Linux  becomes even more popular with desktop users (and that
is what I want to see) then the user demographics are changing to
include more of those who want the system to *just work* so they can
get on with their tasks and for it it be easy to make changes without
fear of breaking the system. We can expect this to apply to all users,
including those who use accessibility features we provide. We also
want to make it as easy as possible for people to migrate to Linux.

My view is we that should embrace these users and make life as easy as
possible for them as we can within reason. Even if that seems like
extra work for us who are more than happy to 'read and learn' and
experiment. Perhaps the solution is to find people who are motivated
enough to want to maintain this sort of information.

My 2 C's :-)

--
Steve Lee
--
Open Source Assistive Technology Software
web: fullmeasure.co.uk
blog: eduspaces.net/stevelee/weblog

On 18/05/2008, Kenny Hitt <kenny at hittsjunk.net> wrote:
> Hi.  Pulseaudio isn't a replacement for alsa.  Instead of me trying to explain, you might want to visit
>
>  pulseaudio.org.
>  Any player that uses gstreamer will work with pulseaudio.  Rhythmbox and totem both use gstreamer.  I believe the ubuntu developers have patched mplayer and the xine engine as well.
>  The lack of documentation doesn't bother me since I run Linux full time.  I'm on several mailing lists and google will always find information.  The change to pulseaudio was discussed in the Hardy release notes.
>  I used to support new users coming to Linux and do my best to correct wrong information.  Lately, I've stopped doing that.  I've had it with Windows users posting messages on Linux mailing lists slamming Linux and telling me how Windows is so much better.  I don't post mail to Windows lists saying how much
>  better Linux is than Windows.  The fact they can't show me the same courtesy, is insulting.
>  My new attitude is: if they break it because they can't read and learn, they deserve it.  Besides, they've already said Windows is better.
>
>  Voxin, ttsynth, or what ever they call Viavoce should be avoided.  They are 10 year old binaries with several nasty bugs.  The people who sell them don't tell the full story about there product, and they don't seem to support it.
>
>
>           Kenny
>
> On Sat, May 17, 2008 at 08:58:15PM -0700, Deborah Norling wrote:
>  > Thanks Kenny for the heads up on PulseAudio! I clearly broke my system by
>  > making those changes from the FAQ. I'd edit the FAQ if I knew more. Maybe
>  > someone who does, should.
>  >
>  > So with PulseAudio, am I supposed to be able to get multiple sound channels
>  > -- like listening to internet radio and software speech simultaneously? I
>  > know I have a multi-channel sound card on this machine. Which media players
>  > are compatible with this new-fangled thing?
>  >
>  > Several years ago, Alsa replaced Oss, and I never completely understood why.
>  > I did understand for some apps you had to run Oss emulation.
>  >
>  > Is Pulse-Audio now a new replacement for Alsa? So where is there user level
>  > documentation on PulseAudio? What makes it better? Do I now have to find
>  > Alsa emulation for PulseAudio?
>  >
>  > What else does this break? Would voxin or ttsynth for example still work?
>  > Any pointers to reading material would be appreciated.
>  >
>  > I have this love-hate relationship with Linux, and I think the thing I hate
>  > the most is the abundance of out-of-date and downright dangerous
>  > documentation. Not to mention the general lack of clear docs. I keep vowing
>  > to write some, but I always seem to be behind, and by the time I understand
>  > something thoroughly enough to document it, the thing I understand is
>  > depricated.
>  >
>  > I think I'm going to wear a t-shirt that says:
>  >       Everything I know is now depricated!
>  >
>  > --Debee
>  >
>  >
>  > --
>  > Ubuntu-accessibility mailing list
>  > Ubuntu-accessibility at lists.ubuntu.com
>  > https://lists.ubuntu.com/mailman/listinfo/ubuntu-accessibility
>
>  --
>  Ubuntu-accessibility mailing list
>  Ubuntu-accessibility at lists.ubuntu.com
>  https://lists.ubuntu.com/mailman/listinfo/ubuntu-accessibility
>


-- 
Steve Lee
--
Open Source Assistive Technology Software
web: fullmeasure.co.uk
blog: eduspaces.net/stevelee/weblog