Mailing List os2-wireless_users@2rosenthals.com Archived Message #5768 previous message next message back to list

From: "Christian Langanke" <os2-wireless_users@2rosenthals.com> Full Headers
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Sender: "OS/2 Wireless Users Mailing List" <os2-wireless_users@2rosenthals.com>
Subject: Re: [OS2Wireless] Is it time to commission a driver project apart from GenMAC?
Date: Mon, 24 Sep 2007 22:02:49 +0200
To: "OS/2 Wireless Users Mailing List" <os2-wireless_users@2rosenthals.com>

Lewis G Rosenthal wrote:
Most of us on this list are aware of the current GenMAC situation (which is relatively unchanged from where it has been for the past couple years, to wit, closed source). Is it time to think about "porting" (or adapting) something like MadWiFi (http://madwifi.org/) or one of the Intel-based projects (http://ipw3945.sourceforge.net/, http://ipw2100.sf.net/ or http://ipw2200.sf.net/)?

<snipped the following>

Hi all,

I forwarded this to Adrian Gschwendt, netlabs.org as I definitely know that he would have some comments on this. Being generally open to any discussion, my only comment at this point is that I second very much to better discuss this in the genmac mailing list, so that Adrian can react to all comments.

In order to achieve this, I just posted exactly this to the Genmac list and _would like to ask everybody to follow this thread at gmane ONLY_.

To take part in the list as a mailing list, see
    http://wiki.netlabs.org/index.php/Mailinglists
and use genmac-user as the list name

To read the list as a news forum, connect to news.gmane.org and subscribe to
   gmane.org.netlabs.genmac.user


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First remark: This should be discussed in the Genmac
mailinglist/newsgroup. I'm not on this mailinglist, got the message via
Christian Langanke.

> > Most of us on this list are aware of the current GenMAC situation (which
> > is relatively unchanged from where it has been for the past couple
> > years, to wit, closed source). Is it time to think about "porting" (or

That statement is just wrong. Genmac was greatly enhanced the past
months, the core of Genmac was enhanced and rewritten several times to
support new cards with new requirements and it is working very well.
Beside this there are new supported chipsets in every release. We will
release the final 2.1 release soon which again adds new cards.

Regarding open source: Willibald and I talked about that and it might
happen one day. No details yet but Willibald *does* think about that.
But to be honest, we doubt that many people will have the know how to
contribute to this driver in any form, it's not really something you
understand fast. And the few people who would be able to understand it
are busy with other stuff already...

> > adapting) something like MadWiFi (http://madwifi.org/) or one of the
> > Intel-based projects (http://ipw3945.sourceforge.net/,
> > http://ipw2100.sf.net/ or http://ipw2200.sf.net/)?

Would be a great waste of time. The Madwifi guys just rewrite their
driver for the third time in a row which is, in my opinion, just plain
stupid (ok, GPL extremists at work there...)

> > While reinventing the wheel is never a task to be undertaken lightly,
> > perhaps another wrapper project - open source - would be the best way to
> > go? What would it take? Who would be interested to step up to the plate
> > either with financial support (for test equipment, etc.) or with
> > programming talent?

I still don't get why we should do that. What's the benefit?

> > We all appreciate Willibald's efforts, and we appreciate Thorolf's
> > constant monitoring of the GenMAC mailing lists; this goes without
> > question. That said, *I* don't see the situation with the code changing
> > anytime soon (a wrapper project such as GenMAC, which distributes driver
> > packages published by others may indeed have some infringement issues;
> > however, a project which distributes the wrapper *only* and then has
> > directions for where to obtain Win32 drivers, unpack them, and install
> > the necessary components - or a semi-automated script to download,
> > unpack, and install - would likely not violate any such terms).

This would be the ultimate support nightmare. We knew why we were *not*
gonna do it that way. Everyone would use another driver and problems
would be pretty hard to debug because you never know which combination
the user is using right now.

Again, I don't get why you are requesting this, I don't see any benefit
for anyone, we would just wasting time.

cu

Adrian
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