OK, I think I can comment here, as I'm someone that's used Linux for years and has periodically looked into Hurd.
Here are major concerns from this end: 1. Basics like filesystems >2GB need to be fixed pronto. The limitation is under-documented and is serious these days. 2. The installer is rather buggy and misleading (even refers to Linux in several places). Debian GNU/Hurd needs an installer of at least the quality of Debian GNU/Linux. 3. The post-installer .sh script is also rather buggy, and should not be necessary at all given dpkg/apt-get. It's also under-documented. 4. Hardware support. 'Nuff said. 5. X. One note: I've heard people ragging on the Hurd's performance. I personally don't care much about that at this stage. I want something I can install, tinker with, discover all the cool things about it, and actually use. I understand if it's slow for now. On Fri, Aug 15, 2003 at 01:31:37PM -0700, Hurd Advocate wrote: > > What can the Hurd community do to promote their favorite OS? > > It seems like the Hurd doesn't really have a critical mass of > users to spur the growth we'd all like to see. So I was wondering what > everyone thought was the best way to attract more developers/users to > the Hurd. The reason I initially looked into the hurd is the BitKeeper > fiasco. I found it unpalatable for free software to be beholden to a > proprietary master. I thought it would't hurt to look at the > alternatives. And I came across the Hurd. From what I could initially > find out, it seemed like it had interesting and modern architecture, > one > which could solve the "Linus doesn't scale" problem more cleanly than > the BitKeeper solution. (And here I'm assuming that things like > userspace device drivers and the fact that any part of the system can > theoretically be replaced on the fly really does solve that problem). > I > was, of course, also attracted just because it was something new and > different. So I wonder what attracts everyone else to the Hurd. To > that end here are a couple of questions I have. > > - Is there any killer-app for the Hurd (available now or in the future) > that we think will bring the masses in? Or phrased a different way, > is there any one feature that people would be willing to think about > converting over for. > translators? > distributed OS? > better security model? > more customizable? (is that a word?) > > - Are hardware compatibility problems more of a problem for newbies, or > is it the lack of software which stifles adoption. (And for the > record, I think the killer-app would be Linux and the Hurd running > side by side on top of the same micro-kernel. That would make > migration easier, since you could still have access to your important > hardware and software that hadn't been ported over yet) > > - Is it hard to attract developers because the project is too complex. > Instead of just learning one system, you have to learn about two: the > hurd and mach. And who would want to learn about mach when it's > scheduled for removal whenever the L4 kernel gets traction (3-5 years > out?)? Or is it the "multi- threaded servers are hard to debug" > problem still. > > - Is a lack of documentation the real hard thing for new developers to > overcome? > > - Are we nice enough to newbs? (I tend to think so, but there was a > little hissy-fit about change-log colon-placement for hello.c on > bug-hurd last month) > > - Do we suffer from a lack of charasmatic leadership and direction? > > - Is there any one thing which could be fixed to attact a lot more > users? > PPP? > sound? > USB? > GNOME? > journaled file system? > OpenOffice? > > - Is advertising our problem? Do we not get enough exposure to > potential developers? (And here I'm thinking CS undergrads) I'm > thinking that a new developer could have a lot more influence on the > design of the Hurd (since it's still in flux) than say a more mature > project like Linux or FreeBSD. > > - Does anyone think that companies like RedHat or IBM might think about > funding some summer college internships to work on something like the > Hurd? > > - Is there any future development that might drive people to the Hurd? > Like the SCO garbage or DRM binaries/signatures in the Linux kernel? > > - Is our installation proceedure/Debian system overly obtuse? > > - Are we always destined to play catch up with Linux? (eventhough we > had > a headstart?) > > Anyways, I'd like to hear your thoughts. > > > The Hurd Advocate > > __________________________________ > Do you Yahoo!? > Yahoo! SiteBuilder - Free, easy-to-use web site design software > http://sitebuilder.yahoo.com > > > -- > To UNSUBSCRIBE, email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] > with a subject of "unsubscribe". Trouble? Contact [EMAIL PROTECTED] >