Strawman: remove vendor-specific configuration tools from default install

[Mackenzie Morgan]

On Thursday 05 March 2009 4:15:39 pm Daniel T Chen wrote:
> On Thu, 5 Mar 2009, Mackenzie Morgan wrote:
> 
> > could sync with Ubuntu.  Wouldn't the appropriate way to address this be 
to
> > have a PDA-syncing application that could work with their Nokia, Apple,
> > Google, RIM, and yes, Palm, devices?  Having a Palm-only syncing 
application
> > included by default still leaves the majority of PDA & smartphone users 
stuck
> > trying to find a way to make their device work.
> 
> Okay, I'll take up your strawman. Supposing there is an equivalently
> featureful, unbranded sync app, then your proposal makes sense.
> 
> Have you checked whether opensync has incorporated the support?

Ah, OpenSync, that's the name of the multiple-device one. Thanks.  Since 
OpenSync's wiki is broken (lots of 404s and "broken module" errors), I'm 
looking at OpenSUSE's very extensive OpenSync documentation[1].  However, 
since I don't own 10 PDAs, I can't say how accurate it is.  

Nokia (using gnokii or syncml)
Motorola (uing moto-sync)
Palm (using palm-sync)
IrMC (many Sony-Ericcson and Siemens devices, uses irmc-sync)
Windows Mobile (using synce)

Are listed.  Opie and GPE (GNU/Linux based replacement firmwares for PDAs) are 
also listed.

> 
> > HP printers can be configured just fine with the included printer 
configuration
> > tool, though I admit the included one cannot show ink levels.  Why not 
just
> > add that to the default one?  If Brother put out a tool like this for 
their
> > printers, would we include both, just HP's, or neither?
> 
> Resource constraints prevent many projects from going forward. Are you
> volunteering to port the functionality?

When Karmic opens, I can make an attempt.

> > How many vendor-specific apps will we acquire (and delegate CD space to) 
before
> > we realize it makes sense to just have one that handles all devices of 
that
> > type?
> 
> Regressions are bad. I should know.

Now that I think about it, the HPLIP Toolbox doesn't even work out of the box 
on a default Ubuntu install because it's a Qt app and we don't include the Qt 
libraries it needs to run.  How would making the user install hplip from 
Synaptic be worse than having them hunt down the right Qt library in Synaptic?  
Though this may have changed in recent releases.  Can someone that's done a 
fresh install instead of an upgrade comment?

[1] http://en.opensuse.org/OpenSync
-- 
Mackenzie Morgan
http://ubuntulinuxtipstricks.blogspot.com
apt-get moo
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