On 6/17/06, Ben Rockwood <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
James Dickens wrote:
> OpenSolaris has been out a year now and the number one download of the
> community is Solaris Express Community Release, but what makes it the
> Community release? Is it because it's released 2 weeks earlier than
> Solaris Express?
>
> How about adding things into it that makes it different and more
> useful and closer reflect the community as a whole? Most people after
> installing it immediately have to install 3rd party drivers and apps.
> My idea is to let the community vote on what should be added to the
> community release some examples include
>
> DTrace Toolkit by Brendan G.
> All 3rd party hardware drivers that we can obtain permission to put on
> the disk
> BrandZ patches if available for the particular build/
> Rich Teer's documents on building OpenSolaris
> Pkg-add
> Schilly's Lib and Tools (star, sfind, cdrecord, etc.)
> Firefox
> Community Submitted themes and Wallpapers.
>
> Since Solaris Express Community version obviously not supported by Sun
> as documented in the click through licensing agreements, why not make
> it easier on the users and make it easier for Linux converts no need
> to make them go on the net to get what the "Communities have built"
>
> I'm sure with a little work from a Sun Engineer, all these could be
> added to the Solaris Express Install quite painlessly before each
> Solaris Express Community Release Drop.
>
> New users and converts are turned off by saying go download foo. To
> make Solaris work the way they expect it to behave.
At the outset, I see your point and respect it, but would make the
following arguments:
1) Governance and the development processes are still very much "in
progress". We're getting closer and closer every day to completing
these but its a huge task and as such the proper procedures for making
such a case are not yet in place.
2) The "community" in SX:CR is, by my interpretation, for the
development community that is keeping in sync as closely as possible
with what the full Solaris build would be like. Diverging from the
standard WOD makes it "something else"(tm), in a sense a seperate
competing distribution.
it is allready a competing distrobution, i don't recall seeing the
numbers, but I would wager that it has a higher number of downloads
than any other distro or package on the site. Saying its almost the
same is just semantics. I'm really not trying to change much I would
consider my goals met if we included perhaps a dozen community chosen
packages at the most.
3) There are currently 5 distributions for OpenSolaris. I see no reason
to neglect those efforts and to attempt to push effort back into
something thats not attempting to compete.
All 5 current distrobutions are currently handicaped. There are lack
the ability of including close bits that are included by Solaris
Express. Untill everything is open it has advantages that no other
distrobution can have why not include what the community has created.
4) Its been made clear that OpenSolaris will not endorse or creation of
its own any one distribution. I agree with and respect that opinion.
SX:CR is not a distro, nor should it become one. To attempt to do so is
to break a "long standing" agreement.
What if Sun isn't the one that does it, but the community as a whole
votes on what it wants, will Sun allow us to submit a request to
incude what the Community wants in its special "community release"
I could go on, but in short, your asking for a distro. Therefore I
suggest using a distro. If Nexenta or others isn't keeping up to date
or doesn't contain tools you want as quickly as you'd wish, then helping
them push out releases fast would be the appropriate course of action.
the distrobution exists, its made by sun, includes bits that no one
else can include, I was just recommendinhg that if the community
wants special packages, perhaps sun could assist in making that
happens.
The addition of these simple packages could make a markedly improved
user experience. I know that Sun can't add these to the default
Solaris for backward compatiblity and risk assesment reasons. But the
community doesn't have those restrictions. What good is the community
release if the community doesn't have any say in what is included in
it.
If opensolaris ever hopes to unseat Windows from the desktop, these
changes need to be made, and Sun/Solaris will always have the most
power to affect changes and inclusion of 3rd party software. But why
should the community be penalized the laws that were designed to
protect the community?
If the community as a whole says the inclusion of a few special
packages is wrong so be it. But to rule that we can't do what the
community wants because it might harm the community sounds backwards
to me.
Alternatively, start you own distro. :)
because the community can't create what what I'm asking for because it
doesn't have the rights or power to include everything that goes into
Solaris Express community build.
James Dickens
benr.
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