[cgl_discussion] [Announce:] Creation of Open Source Device Drivers Information Site

[Craig Thomas]

In August 2005 at the Linux World Expo in San Francisco, OSDL hosted
an open forum to discuss issues relating to providing drivers for
Linux. One of the issues that came out of that meeting was a desire
for OSDL to provide a central, public repository for documents and
training materials that are being produced. In an effort to begin to
satisfy this need, OSDL has developed a web site dedicated to the
dispersal of public information on this topic.

This email is to announce the introduction of the Open Source Device
Drivers project. The intent of this project is to create a repository
of information pertaining to open source device drivers that complement
other wiki's and web sites.

The site is located here: http://developer.osdl.org/dev/opendrivers

This site will initially focus on drivers for systems used as
desktops, data center servers, carrier grade systems, and mobile
devices. These drivers include (but are not limited to) the following:

- storage
- network
- printer
- video
- sound

The site currently has a documentation index page pointing to
information
that already exists on the internet. It is hoped that the site will
grow
to contain sections on:

- providing test scenarios and sample test plans for drivers
- providing test matricies of drivers that have been tested under
various kernel and system configurations
- providing links to driver test suites
- providing a good set of training material for new Linux driver
developers
- improved documentation section for man pages and specifications of
developed driver utilities

We need the community's support to make this successful. It is starting
out small, but it can grow into a large repository that can be used by
many developers writing drivers for Linux. If you have suggestions for
improving this site, send information and comments to
***@lists.osdl.org

[Till Kamppeter]

Is this site meant for kernel drivers only? Or for drivers in general? I
ask because I am maintaining linuxprinting.org, which is the principal
information source about printer drivers. So if the site intends to list
also printers, I think we should somehow cooperate. I think it is a good
idea, to have one site to get compatibility and driver info for all
types of hardware.

Till

Post by Craig Thomas
The site is located here: http://developer.osdl.org/dev/opendrivers
This site will initially focus on drivers for systems used as
desktops, data center servers, carrier grade systems, and mobile
- storage
- network
- printer
- video
- sound

[Timothy D. Witham]

Post by Till Kamppeter
Is this site meant for kernel drivers only? Or for drivers in general? I
ask because I am maintaining linuxprinting.org, which is the principal
information source about printer drivers. So if the site intends to list
also printers, I think we should somehow cooperate. I think it is a good
idea, to have one site to get compatibility and driver info for all
types of hardware.

I think that being inclusive is a good thing. My logic is that
new folks don't know if something is in kernel or not so we should
make it easy for them to find and one meta site is a simple way
of doing it.

Tim

Post by Till Kamppeter

Post by Craig Thomas
The site is located here: http://developer.osdl.org/dev/opendrivers
This site will initially focus on drivers for systems used as
desktops, data center servers, carrier grade systems, and mobile
- storage
- network
- printer
- video
- sound

_______________________________________________
os_drivers mailing list
https://lists.osdl.org/mailman/listinfo/os_drivers

[Mary Edie Meredith]

Post by Till Kamppeter
Is this site meant for kernel drivers only? Or for drivers in general? I
ask because I am maintaining linuxprinting.org, which is the principal
information source about printer drivers. So if the site intends to list
also printers, I think we should somehow cooperate. I think it is a good
idea, to have one site to get compatibility and driver info for all
types of hardware.

Since we want to make this a one-stop shopping place, if nothing else,
we should point to the linuxprinting.org site. I can change the
"missing drivers" wiki page to point to any list you have of missing
printer drivers on Linux.

Beyond that, what other kinds of coordination would be needed?

Of course, I think _we will concentrate on developing kernel driver
information. But if we find user-space driver information, I see no
reason why we should ignore it. Seems like this would be very helpful
to the desktop folks...

Post by Till Kamppeter
Till

Post by Craig Thomas
The site is located here: http://developer.osdl.org/dev/opendrivers
This site will initially focus on drivers for systems used as
desktops, data center servers, carrier grade systems, and mobile
- storage
- network
- printer
- video
- sound

_______________________________________________
os_drivers mailing list
https://lists.osdl.org/mailman/listinfo/os_drivers

[Craig Thomas]

Post by Till Kamppeter
Is this site meant for kernel drivers only? Or for drivers in general? I
ask because I am maintaining linuxprinting.org, which is the principal
information source about printer drivers. So if the site intends to list
also printers, I think we should somehow cooperate. I think it is a good
idea, to have one site to get compatibility and driver info for all
types of hardware.
Till

The site is intended to be an information portal, so to speak. The
original request made at the August 9, 2005 Open Source Drivers
Meeting (held at LWE) is as follows:

We need a central, public repository for the documents and
training materials we are beginning to produce.

The "we" refers to the attendees that represented driver writers
and kernel developers. This site is not intended to supersede
any existing site. Rather, it provides a list of links to other
sites and articles to give driver writers as much information as
possible.

We plan to include training materials (slides, white papers, etc)
that are centered toward program managers in addition to developers.
We also desire to have information pointing to test suites and
tools that OSDL and others have developed. Where appropriate, OSDL
will contribute material to other sites (to avoid redundancy).

But for now, we are just trying to get this page off the ground and
looking for contributions.

We would like to coordinate information with you. I've added a link
to linuxprinting.org on our open drivers site. Now that we have this
link, we would like to be able to contribute printer driver content
to your site, so it can be maintained easier (without redundancy).

Post by Till Kamppeter

Post by Craig Thomas
The site is located here: http://developer.osdl.org/dev/opendrivers
This site will initially focus on drivers for systems used as
desktops, data center servers, carrier grade systems, and mobile
- storage
- network
- printer
- video
- sound

_______________________________________________
cgl_discussion mailing list
https://lists.osdl.org/mailman/listinfo/cgl_discussion

[Timothy D. Witham]

Post by Till Kamppeter
Is this site meant for kernel drivers only? Or for drivers in general? I
ask because I am maintaining linuxprinting.org, which is the principal
information source about printer drivers. So if the site intends to list
also printers, I think we should somehow cooperate. I think it is a good
idea, to have one site to get compatibility and driver info for all
types of hardware.

I think that being inclusive is a good thing. My logic is that
new folks don't know if something is in kernel or not so we should
make it easy for them to find and one meta site is a simple way
of doing it.

Tim

Post by Till Kamppeter

Post by Craig Thomas
The site is located here: http://developer.osdl.org/dev/opendrivers
This site will initially focus on drivers for systems used as
desktops, data center servers, carrier grade systems, and mobile
- storage
- network
- printer
- video
- sound

_______________________________________________
os_drivers mailing list
https://lists.osdl.org/mailman/listinfo/os_drivers

[Mary Edie Meredith]

Post by Till Kamppeter
Is this site meant for kernel drivers only? Or for drivers in general? I
ask because I am maintaining linuxprinting.org, which is the principal
information source about printer drivers. So if the site intends to list
also printers, I think we should somehow cooperate. I think it is a good
idea, to have one site to get compatibility and driver info for all
types of hardware.

Since we want to make this a one-stop shopping place, if nothing else,
we should point to the linuxprinting.org site. I can change the
"missing drivers" wiki page to point to any list you have of missing
printer drivers on Linux.

Beyond that, what other kinds of coordination would be needed?

Of course, I think _we will concentrate on developing kernel driver
information. But if we find user-space driver information, I see no
reason why we should ignore it. Seems like this would be very helpful
to the desktop folks...

Post by Till Kamppeter
Till

Post by Craig Thomas
The site is located here: http://developer.osdl.org/dev/opendrivers
This site will initially focus on drivers for systems used as
desktops, data center servers, carrier grade systems, and mobile
- storage
- network
- printer
- video
- sound

_______________________________________________
os_drivers mailing list
https://lists.osdl.org/mailman/listinfo/os_drivers

[Craig Thomas]

Post by Till Kamppeter
Is this site meant for kernel drivers only? Or for drivers in general? I
ask because I am maintaining linuxprinting.org, which is the principal
information source about printer drivers. So if the site intends to list
also printers, I think we should somehow cooperate. I think it is a good
idea, to have one site to get compatibility and driver info for all
types of hardware.
Till

The site is intended to be an information portal, so to speak. The
original request made at the August 9, 2005 Open Source Drivers
Meeting (held at LWE) is as follows:

We need a central, public repository for the documents and
training materials we are beginning to produce.

The "we" refers to the attendees that represented driver writers
and kernel developers. This site is not intended to supersede
any existing site. Rather, it provides a list of links to other
sites and articles to give driver writers as much information as
possible.

We plan to include training materials (slides, white papers, etc)
that are centered toward program managers in addition to developers.
We also desire to have information pointing to test suites and
tools that OSDL and others have developed. Where appropriate, OSDL
will contribute material to other sites (to avoid redundancy).

But for now, we are just trying to get this page off the ground and
looking for contributions.

We would like to coordinate information with you. I've added a link
to linuxprinting.org on our open drivers site. Now that we have this
link, we would like to be able to contribute printer driver content
to your site, so it can be maintained easier (without redundancy).

Post by Till Kamppeter

Post by Craig Thomas
The site is located here: http://developer.osdl.org/dev/opendrivers
This site will initially focus on drivers for systems used as
desktops, data center servers, carrier grade systems, and mobile
- storage
- network
- printer
- video
- sound

_______________________________________________
cgl_discussion mailing list
https://lists.osdl.org/mailman/listinfo/cgl_discussion

[Gerrit Huizenga]

Post by Till Kamppeter
Is this site meant for kernel drivers only? Or for drivers in general? I
ask because I am maintaining linuxprinting.org, which is the principal
information source about printer drivers. So if the site intends to list
also printers, I think we should somehow cooperate. I think it is a good
idea, to have one site to get compatibility and driver info for all
types of hardware.
Till

Post by Craig Thomas
The site is located here: http://developer.osdl.org/dev/opendrivers
This site will initially focus on drivers for systems used as
desktops, data center servers, carrier grade systems, and mobile
- storage
- network
- printer
- video
- sound

I agree with others that have posted - I think the site would
benefit from being broader than just kernel if there is some
committment to keep the relevent pointers/appropriate information
up to date. One stop shopping from multiple perspectives is usually
a good thing. Even if the OSDL site only provides a link, that is
forward progress.

If it includes a few of the items that Mary indicated (such as a list
of missing printer drivers) then we can possibly add some vendor
awareness to that list and maybe help improve the overall availability
of all types of drivers (kernel device drivers, printer drivers, etc.)
for Linux.

Of course, efforts should always be applied to the biggest pain points
first. ;-)

gerrit

[Michael Sweet]

Post by Gerrit Huizenga
...
I agree with others that have posted - I think the site would
benefit from being broader than just kernel if there is some
committment to keep the relevent pointers/appropriate information
up to date. One stop shopping from multiple perspectives is usually
a good thing. Even if the OSDL site only provides a link, that is
forward progress.

Agreed.

FWIW, the CUPS web site also includes a driver page; it currently
does not list as many drivers as the linuxprinting.org site, but
the focus on the CUPS site is on "native" CUPS printer drivers that
do not require Foomatic (which is what you get on linuxprinting.org).

So, please include a link to:

http://www.cups.org/ppd.php

[Michael Sweet]

Post by Gerrit Huizenga
...
I agree with others that have posted - I think the site would
benefit from being broader than just kernel if there is some
committment to keep the relevent pointers/appropriate information
up to date. One stop shopping from multiple perspectives is usually
a good thing. Even if the OSDL site only provides a link, that is
forward progress.

Agreed.

FWIW, the CUPS web site also includes a driver page; it currently
does not list as many drivers as the linuxprinting.org site, but
the focus on the CUPS site is on "native" CUPS printer drivers that
do not require Foomatic (which is what you get on linuxprinting.org).

So, please include a link to:

http://www.cups.org/ppd.php

[Craig Thomas]

In August 2005 at the Linux World Expo in San Francisco, OSDL hosted
an open forum to discuss issues relating to providing drivers for
Linux. One of the issues that came out of that meeting was a desire
for OSDL to provide a central, public repository for documents and
training materials that are being produced. In an effort to begin to
satisfy this need, OSDL has developed a web site dedicated to the
dispersal of public information on this topic.

This email is to announce the introduction of the Open Source Device
Drivers project. The intent of this project is to create a repository
of information pertaining to open source device drivers that complement
other wiki's and web sites.

The site is located here: http://developer.osdl.org/dev/opendrivers

This site will initially focus on drivers for systems used as
desktops, data center servers, carrier grade systems, and mobile
devices. These drivers include (but are not limited to) the following:

- storage
- network
- printer
- video
- sound

The site currently has a documentation index page pointing to
information
that already exists on the internet. It is hoped that the site will
grow
to contain sections on:

- providing test scenarios and sample test plans for drivers
- providing test matricies of drivers that have been tested under
various kernel and system configurations
- providing links to driver test suites
- providing a good set of training material for new Linux driver
developers
- improved documentation section for man pages and specifications of
developed driver utilities

We need the community's support to make this successful. It is starting
out small, but it can grow into a large repository that can be used by
many developers writing drivers for Linux. If you have suggestions for
improving this site, send information and comments to
***@lists.osdl.org

[Till Kamppeter]

Is this site meant for kernel drivers only? Or for drivers in general? I
ask because I am maintaining linuxprinting.org, which is the principal
information source about printer drivers. So if the site intends to list
also printers, I think we should somehow cooperate. I think it is a good
idea, to have one site to get compatibility and driver info for all
types of hardware.

Till

Post by Craig Thomas
The site is located here: http://developer.osdl.org/dev/opendrivers
This site will initially focus on drivers for systems used as
desktops, data center servers, carrier grade systems, and mobile
- storage
- network
- printer
- video
- sound

[Gerrit Huizenga]

Post by Till Kamppeter
Is this site meant for kernel drivers only? Or for drivers in general? I
ask because I am maintaining linuxprinting.org, which is the principal
information source about printer drivers. So if the site intends to list
also printers, I think we should somehow cooperate. I think it is a good
idea, to have one site to get compatibility and driver info for all
types of hardware.
Till

Post by Craig Thomas
The site is located here: http://developer.osdl.org/dev/opendrivers
This site will initially focus on drivers for systems used as
desktops, data center servers, carrier grade systems, and mobile
- storage
- network
- printer
- video
- sound

I agree with others that have posted - I think the site would
benefit from being broader than just kernel if there is some
committment to keep the relevent pointers/appropriate information
up to date. One stop shopping from multiple perspectives is usually
a good thing. Even if the OSDL site only provides a link, that is
forward progress.

If it includes a few of the items that Mary indicated (such as a list
of missing printer drivers) then we can possibly add some vendor
awareness to that list and maybe help improve the overall availability
of all types of drivers (kernel device drivers, printer drivers, etc.)
for Linux.

Of course, efforts should always be applied to the biggest pain points
first. ;-)

gerrit