2002-06-12 23:53:28 +00:00
|
|
|
|
<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.01 Transitional//EN">
|
2001-11-13 16:19:48 +00:00
|
|
|
|
<HTML>
|
2002-03-07 17:55:34 +00:00
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
<HEAD>
|
2002-06-12 09:14:08 +00:00
|
|
|
|
<LINK REL="stylesheet" TYPE="text/css" HREF="default.css">
|
2002-06-12 23:53:28 +00:00
|
|
|
|
<META HTTP-EQUIV="Content-Type" CONTENT="text/html; charset=iso-8859-1">
|
2002-03-07 17:55:34 +00:00
|
|
|
|
</HEAD>
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
2002-06-12 23:53:28 +00:00
|
|
|
|
<BODY>
|
2001-11-13 16:19:48 +00:00
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
2002-05-08 18:00:26 +00:00
|
|
|
|
<P><B>In medias res</B></P>
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
<P>There are two major topics which always cause huge dispute and flame on the
|
|
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://mplayerhq.hu/pipermail/mplayer-users/">mplayer-users</A>
|
|
|
|
|
|
mailing list. Number one is the topic of the</P>
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
<P><A NAME=gcc><B>GCC 2.96 series</B></A></P>
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
<P><B>The background:</B> The GCC <B>2.95</B> series is an official GNU release
|
|
|
|
|
|
and version 2.95.3 of GCC is the most bug-free in that series.
|
|
|
|
|
|
We have never noticed compilation problems that we could trace to gcc-2.95.3.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Starting with Red Hat Linux 7.0, <B>Red Hat</B> included a heavily
|
|
|
|
|
|
patched CVS version of GCC in their distribution and named it <B>2.96</B>. Red
|
|
|
|
|
|
Hat included this version in the distribution because GCC 3.0 was not finished at
|
|
|
|
|
|
the time, and they needed a compiler that worked well on all of their supported
|
|
|
|
|
|
platforms, including IA64 and s390. The Linux distributor <B>Mandrake</B>
|
|
|
|
|
|
also followed Red Hat's example and started shipping GCC 2.96 with their
|
|
|
|
|
|
Linux-Mandrake 8.0 series. </P>
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
<P><B>The statements:</B> The GCC team disclaimed any link with GCC 2.96 and issued an
|
|
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://gcc.gnu.org/gcc-2.96.html">official response</A> to GCC 2.96.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Many developers around the world began having problems with GCC 2.96, and
|
|
|
|
|
|
started recommending other compilers. Examples are
|
|
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://www.apachelabs.org/apr-mbox/200106.mbox/%3c20010623194228.C25512@ebuilt.com%3e">Apache</A>,
|
|
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://www.mysql.com/downloads/mysql-3.23.html">MySQL</A>,
|
|
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://avifile.sourceforge.net/news-old1.htm">avifile</A> and
|
|
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://www.winehq.com/news/?view=92#RH 7.1 gcc fixes compiler bug">Wine</A>.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Other interesting links are
|
|
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://www.realtimelinux.org/archives/rtai/20017/0144.html">Real time Linux</A>,
|
|
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://www.atnf.csiro.au/people/rgooch/linux/docs/kernel-newsflash.html">
|
|
|
|
|
|
Linux kernel news flash about kernel 2.4.17</A> and
|
|
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://www.voy.com/3516/572.html">Voy Forum</A>.
|
|
|
|
|
|
<B>MPlayer</B> also suffered from intermittent problems that were all solved by
|
|
|
|
|
|
switching to a different version of GCC. Several projects started implementing
|
|
|
|
|
|
workarounds for some of the 2.96 issues, but we refused to fix other people's
|
|
|
|
|
|
bugs, especially since some workarounds may imply a performance penalty.</P>
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
<P>You can read about the other side of the story
|
|
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://www.bero.org/gcc296.html">here</A>.
|
|
|
|
|
|
GCC 2.96 does not allow | (pipe) characters in assembler comments
|
|
|
|
|
|
because it supports Intel as well as AT&T Syntax and the | character is a
|
|
|
|
|
|
symbol in the Intel variant. The problem is that it <B>silently</B> ignores the
|
|
|
|
|
|
whole assembler block. This is supposedly fixed now, GCC prints a warning instead
|
|
|
|
|
|
of skipping the block.</P>
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
<P><B>The present:</B> Red Hat says that GCC 2.96-85 and above is fixed. The
|
|
|
|
|
|
situation has indeed improved, yet we still see problem reports on our
|
|
|
|
|
|
mailing lists that disappear with a different compiler. In any case it does not
|
|
|
|
|
|
matter any longer. Hopefully a maturing GCC 3.x will solve the issue for good.
|
|
|
|
|
|
If you want to compile with 2.96 give the <CODE>--disable-gcc-checking</CODE>
|
|
|
|
|
|
flag to configure. Remember that you are on your own and <B>do not report any
|
|
|
|
|
|
bugs</B>. If you do, you will only get banned from our mailing list because
|
|
|
|
|
|
we have had more than enough flame wars over GCC 2.96. Please let the matter rest.</P>
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
2002-05-12 01:41:24 +00:00
|
|
|
|
<P>If you have problems with GCC 2.96, you can get 2.96-85 packages from the
|
|
|
|
|
|
Red Hat <A HREF="ftp://updates.redhat.com">ftp server</A>, or just go for the
|
2002-06-27 16:17:54 +00:00
|
|
|
|
3.0.4 packages offered for version 7.2 and later. You can also get gcc-3.1
|
|
|
|
|
|
packages (unofficial, but working fine)
|
|
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="ftp://people.redhat.com/jakub/gcc3/3.1-1/">here</A> and you can
|
|
|
|
|
|
install them along the gcc-2.96 you already have. MPlayer will detect it and
|
|
|
|
|
|
use 3.1 instead of 2.96. If you do not want to or cannot use the binary
|
|
|
|
|
|
packages, here is how you can compile GCC 3.1 from source:</P>
|
2001-11-13 16:19:48 +00:00
|
|
|
|
|
2002-02-03 13:39:35 +00:00
|
|
|
|
<UL>
|
2002-05-12 01:41:24 +00:00
|
|
|
|
<LI>Go to the <A HREF="http://gcc.gnu.org/mirrors.html">GCC mirrors page</A>
|
2002-06-27 16:17:54 +00:00
|
|
|
|
page and download <CODE>gcc-core-3.1.tar.gz</CODE>. This includes the
|
2002-05-12 01:41:24 +00:00
|
|
|
|
complete C compiler and is sufficient for <B>MPlayer</B>. If you also want
|
|
|
|
|
|
C++, Java or some of the other advanced GCC features
|
2002-06-27 16:17:54 +00:00
|
|
|
|
<CODE>gcc-3.1.tar.gz</CODE> may better suit your needs.</LI>
|
2002-05-12 01:41:24 +00:00
|
|
|
|
<LI>Extract the archive with<BR>
|
2002-06-27 16:17:54 +00:00
|
|
|
|
<CODE>tar -xvzf gcc-core-3.1.tar.gz</CODE></LI>
|
2002-05-12 01:41:24 +00:00
|
|
|
|
<LI>GCC is not built inside the source directory itself like most programs,
|
|
|
|
|
|
but needs a build directory outside the source directory. Thus you need to
|
|
|
|
|
|
create this directory via<BR>
|
|
|
|
|
|
<CODE>mkdir gcc-build</CODE></LI>
|
|
|
|
|
|
<LI>Then you can proceed to configure gcc in the build directory, but you need
|
|
|
|
|
|
the configure from the source directory:<BR>
|
|
|
|
|
|
<CODE>cd gcc-build<BR>
|
2002-06-27 16:17:54 +00:00
|
|
|
|
../gcc-3.1/configure</CODE></LI>
|
2002-05-12 01:41:24 +00:00
|
|
|
|
<LI>Compile GCC by issuing this command in the build directory:<BR>
|
|
|
|
|
|
<CODE>make bootstrap</CODE></LI>
|
|
|
|
|
|
<LI>Now you can install GCC (as root) by typing<BR>
|
|
|
|
|
|
<CODE>make install</CODE></LI>
|
2002-02-03 13:39:35 +00:00
|
|
|
|
</UL>
|
2002-01-01 23:57:53 +00:00
|
|
|
|
|
2002-05-08 18:00:26 +00:00
|
|
|
|
<P><A NAME=binary><B>Binary distribution of MPlayer</B></A></P>
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
<P>This was the second big problem but has been solved as of version
|
|
|
|
|
|
0.90-pre1. <B>MPlayer</B> previously contained source from the OpenDivX project,
|
|
|
|
|
|
which disallows binary redistribution. This code has been removed and you are now
|
|
|
|
|
|
welcome to create binary packages as you see fit.</P>
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
<P>Another impediment to binary redistribution was compiletime optimizations
|
2002-06-28 06:07:46 +00:00
|
|
|
|
for CPU architecture. <B>MPlayer</B> now supports runtime CPU detection
|
|
|
|
|
|
(specify the <CODE>--enable-runtime-cpudetection</CODE> option when
|
|
|
|
|
|
compiling). It is disabled by default because it implies a small speed
|
|
|
|
|
|
sacrifice, it is now possible to create binaries that run on different
|
|
|
|
|
|
members of the Intel CPU family.</P>
|
2002-05-08 18:00:26 +00:00
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
<P><A NAME=nvidia><B>nVidia</B></A></P>
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
<P>We dislike the fact that <A HREF="http://www.nvidia.com">nVidia</A>
|
|
|
|
|
|
only provides binary drivers (for use with XFree86), which are often buggy.
|
|
|
|
|
|
We have had many reports on
|
|
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://mplayerhq.hu/pipermail/mplayer-users/">mplayer-users</A>
|
|
|
|
|
|
about problems related to these closed-source drivers
|
|
|
|
|
|
and their poor quality, instability and poor user and expert support.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Here is an example from the
|
2002-06-12 23:53:28 +00:00
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://www.nvnews.net/forum/showthread.php?s=fda5725bc2151e29453b2da3bd5d2930&threadid=14306">
|
2002-05-08 18:00:26 +00:00
|
|
|
|
nVidia Linux Forum</A>.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Many of these problems/issues keep appearing repeatedly.
|
|
|
|
|
|
We have been contacted by nVidia lately, and they said these bugs
|
|
|
|
|
|
do not exist, instability is caused by bad AGP chips, and they received
|
|
|
|
|
|
no reports of driver bugs (like the purple line). So if you have a
|
|
|
|
|
|
problem with your nVidia card, you are advised to update the nVidia driver
|
|
|
|
|
|
and/or buy a new motherboard or ask nVidia to supply open-source drivers.
|
|
|
|
|
|
In any case, if you are using the nVidia binary drivers and facing driver related problems,
|
|
|
|
|
|
please be aware that you will receive very little help from our side because we have
|
|
|
|
|
|
little power to help in this matter.</P>
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
<P><A NAME=kotsog><B>Joe Barr</B></A></P>
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
<P>Joe Barr became infamous by writing a less than favorable
|
|
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://www.linuxworld.com/site-stories/2001/1214.mplayer.html">
|
|
|
|
|
|
<B>MPlayer</B> review</A>. He found <B>MPlayer</B> hard to install, but then
|
|
|
|
|
|
again he is not very fond of
|
|
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://www.linuxworld.com/linuxworld/lw-2000-06/lw-06-exam.html">reading documentation</A>.
|
|
|
|
|
|
He also concluded that the developers were unfriendly and the documentation
|
|
|
|
|
|
incomplete and insulting. You be the judge.
|
|
|
|
|
|
He went on to mention <B>MPlayer</B> negatively in his
|
|
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://www.linuxworld.com/site-stories/2001/1227.predictions.html">10 Linux predictions for 2002</A>
|
|
|
|
|
|
In a followup
|
|
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://www.linuxworld.com/site-stories/2002/0125.xine.html">review of xine</A>
|
|
|
|
|
|
he continued stirring up controversy. Ironically at the end of that article he
|
|
|
|
|
|
quotes his exchange with G<>nter Bartsch, the original author of xine, that
|
|
|
|
|
|
perfectly summarizes the whole situation:</P>
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
<BLOCKQUOTE>
|
|
|
|
|
|
However, he also went on to say that he was "surprised" by my column about
|
|
|
|
|
|
Mplayer and thought it was unfair, reminding me that it is a free software
|
|
|
|
|
|
project. "If you don't like it," Bartsch said, "you're free not to use it."
|
|
|
|
|
|
</BLOCKQUOTE>
|
2002-01-01 23:57:53 +00:00
|
|
|
|
|
2002-05-08 18:00:26 +00:00
|
|
|
|
<P>He does not reply to our mails. His editor does not reply to our mails.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Here are some quotes from different people about Joe Barr, so you can form your
|
|
|
|
|
|
own opinion:</P>
|
2002-01-01 23:57:53 +00:00
|
|
|
|
|
2002-05-08 18:00:26 +00:00
|
|
|
|
<P>Marc Rassbach has <A HREF="http://daily.daemonnews.org/view_story.php3?story_id=2102">something to say</A>
|
|
|
|
|
|
about the man
|
|
|
|
|
|
</P>
|
2002-01-01 23:57:53 +00:00
|
|
|
|
|
2002-05-08 18:00:26 +00:00
|
|
|
|
<BLOCKQUOTE>
|
|
|
|
|
|
You may all remember the LinuxWorld 2000, when he claimed that Linus T said
|
2002-01-01 23:57:53 +00:00
|
|
|
|
that 'FreeBSD is just a handful of programmers'. Linus said NOTHING of the
|
|
|
|
|
|
sort. When Joe was called on this, his reaction was to call BSD supporters
|
2002-05-08 18:00:26 +00:00
|
|
|
|
assholes and jerks.
|
|
|
|
|
|
</BLOCKQUOTE>
|
2002-01-01 23:57:53 +00:00
|
|
|
|
|
2002-05-08 18:00:26 +00:00
|
|
|
|
<P>A <A HREF="http://www.mplayerhq.hu/pipermail/mplayer-users/2001-December/009118.html">quote</A>
|
|
|
|
|
|
from Robert Munro on the
|
|
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://mplayerhq.hu/pipermail/mplayer-users/">mplayer-users</A>
|
2002-06-12 23:53:28 +00:00
|
|
|
|
mailing list:</P>
|
2002-05-08 18:00:26 +00:00
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
<BLOCKQUOTE>
|
|
|
|
|
|
<P>He's interesting, but not good at avoiding, um... controversy. Joe Barr
|
2002-01-01 23:57:53 +00:00
|
|
|
|
used to be one of the regulars on Will Zachmann's Canopus forum on Compuserve,
|
2002-05-08 18:00:26 +00:00
|
|
|
|
years ago. He was an OS/2 advocate then (I was an OS/2 fan too).<P>
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
<P>He used to go over-the-top, flaming people, and I suspect he had some hard
|
2002-01-01 23:57:53 +00:00
|
|
|
|
times, then. He's mellowed some, judging by his columns recently. Moderately
|
2002-05-08 18:00:26 +00:00
|
|
|
|
subtle humor was not his mode in those earlier days, not at all.</P>
|
|
|
|
|
|
</BLOCKQUOTE>
|
2002-01-01 23:57:53 +00:00
|
|
|
|
|
2001-11-13 16:19:48 +00:00
|
|
|
|
</HTML>
|
