Re: [gNewSense-users] How to voluntarily follow gNewSense / FSF guidelines on my Ubuntu Apple PPC?

[Brian Greer]

Benjamin Webb wrote:
> I don't know if this is too unrealistic or difficult, but the most
> foolproof way to have a ppc system as free as gnewsense would be to
> port gnewsense to ppc.

It would seem ideal, but I'll have to say why I think this is not a 
good idea.  I'll just put this long reply out there in case anyone 
is thinking along the same lines for completeness, and I'm not 
trying to be controversial:

Linux can be run very well on a PPC box, but in many cases (althoug 
h there are exceptions) it requires that the user has specialized 
knowledge up front about their particular model.  For instance, 
despite the "bulletproof x" now used in xorg, it doesn't always 
apply to ppc, since the hardware doesn't always respond properly to 
probing.  Thus the user has to manually edit /etc/X11/xorg.conf with 
known good values - which is made all the more difficult these days 
for newcomers to "wing it" with what looks like a very blank 
xorg.conf file.  I got lucky with a G5 iMac, but many models require 
a lot of TLC to get going.

Some models have 8gb or 128gb partitioning limitations in firmware, 
but the installers can't identify which models need workarounds or 
special partitioning.  Again, another manual intervention is needed.

Some models have dual hd-controllers, and these need to use an 
openfirmware "alias" instead of a fully qualified openfirmware path 
in the bootloader file.  Again, the installer has no way of knowing.

These are the kinds of problems that can give any ppc distro an 
unwarranted black-eye when the system doesn't magically come to life 
after a first reboot - especially when the user has upgraded or 
purchased a mac with unknown heritage.

Many newcomers to Linux want to put it on their low-spec G3 iMac, 
and while it can be done, walking them through the above when they 
may not have basic editing skills can prove to be very 
disappointing, even though I may explain that it isn't the fault of 
the installer, but the ppc hardware.  Not to mention that just 
"switching to XFCE" isn't a magic cure-all for getting better 
performance out of Gimp or OpenOffice when they may only have 256mb 
on board. :)

Many users are not aware that Ubuntu provides recent releases for 
PPC, but doesn't advertise it on their site.  You have to dig to 
find it, but I won't go into that here.

While I am happy to assist, I'd have to say that the requirements 
for PPC support are just too great, and too much of a risk of 
disappointment for the "I just installed it, and now it won't boot" 
crowd, leaving a bad taste that isn't warranted.

> main advantage to using actual gnewsense is that even without non-free
> modules, ubuntu's ppc kernels will have non-free firmware.

Sad, it is looking like kernel recompilation is the way to go.  I'll 
give the Hardy-Alpha a shot and see if I can come up with anything 
to simplify the issue.

Thanks for your input!  You've given me a couple of things to think 
about..