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Ask LinuxPPC Co-Founder Jason Haas
Jason Haas is co-founder, marketing director, and Web manager for LinuxPPC and an all-around good Linux guy. He's also majorly anti-drunk driving these days, because last March a drunk driver ran into his car and left it looking like this. Jason was left in only slightly better shape himself, but unlike his Honda, he eventually recovered (with major help and support from his wife, Cassie) and went back to work. Ask Jason what you will; about out-of-control SUVs (I don't think he likes them), Linux on PowerPCs (something he likes a lot) or anything else. Post your questions below. Tomorrow we'll forward 10 of the highest-moderated ones to him, and we'll expect his answers back in a week or so.
what made you decide to want to do LinuxPPC development and do you think that the Macintosh hardware platform is going to remain a major player in years to come?
Since you were in what appears to be a very serious accident with a very serious idoit, do you feel that the drunk driving laws are good/bad and what do you think could/should be done to prevent accidents like the one you were involved with (if anything)? Also, what do you feel are the effects of alchohol on the average geek mind?
Blah.
Price, Quality, Time. Pick none. What, you thought you had a choice?
LinuxPPC has been around for a long time. There are already many apps ready to go. It is like any other architecture, yaeh you have to recompile them for that arch but the Linux programs will normally work.
It isn't going to take away anymore MacOS people as we take away Windows users...
With the imminent launch of OS/X, one would think that Apple has been a rather prickly bedfellow as of late.
Have they been open, honest and co-operative, or do they seem to view you and your group as something of a compeditor?
"Depression is merely anger without enthusiasm." - Anonymous
I'm also PPC-clueless. Can you talk briefly about the current state of PPC hardware? (availability, capability, price, future roadmap)
SuperID
I'm working on (or more accurately about to start) a very math intensive client server system, where the server has to do a metric ass-load of calculations mostly on 64-bit signed integers on behalf of client machines. The data are all going to be in ram, and multi-cpu support is a good thing.
Would you recommend a PPC machine over a x86 machine for a task like this? I guess this is mainly a chipset/etc... question, but i have been unable to find that sort of information elsewhere, and i figure who better to ask, 'cause you probably have a decent gut-feeling for how the architecture works in practice on real-world data =:-)
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Play Six Pack Man. I
Besides putting linux on every available device with some computing power, what benefit does linux on the mac have? I've been away from Apple products for quite a while. Is there a specific reason to use them? (Better graphics? Sound support? ROI?) What about compatibility? Is byte ordering problematic?
Yep, I never spell check.
More incorrect spellings can be found he
I'm currently looking into obtaining a PowerPC box to test out the current state of Linux on the PPC platform. Hopefully your answers will point me down the path of RISC utopia.
aÍÍ©ÍÌÍ£Ì'̽ͩÌÍzÍYÌÍÌY
hot flaming grapes
How do you think a possible Feb OS X release date will affect acceptance of LinuxPCC among owners G3/G4's?
Burn Hollywood Burn
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Every year during my review, I just pray the words "slashdot.org" aren't mentioned.
I think one thing that would foster Linux PPC adoption, and PPC in general would be a relatively cheap PPC motherboard. I remember IBM released their reference design some tine ago and there was some noise from 3rd parties about product anouncements, but nothing materialized. Does anyone know when we might see something?
I've tried LinuxPPC several times over the years and have actually been disappointed. It just hasn't seemed polished and LinuxPPC, the company, has had some serious customer service problems.
Have you ever thought about or actually talked to RedHat as making LinuxPPC the RedHat Distro for PPC?
This would provide you with extra resources to keep LinuxPPC up to date and cleaner.
I keep wondering about the legal ages for several things in this country (USA).
Driving age: 14-16
Legal sex age: 16-18 (?)
Marriage age: 15 (?)
Death penalty age: 14
Army age: 18
Voting age: 18
Drinking age: 21
It is amazing for how many things you are considered responsible enough for before you are allowed to drink.
That doesn't quite make much sense. Wouldn't it make much more sense having a legislation more European like? In Europe most countries have a legal drinking age 2 years lower than the driving age (Drink: 16, Drive: 18). What happens is that by the time you get to dive all the drinking hype is already gone and there are not so many accidents related to alcohol....
Would Americans trade one age for the other?
Just a thought
I bought LinuxPPC 2000 from your company when it was released and I was very disappointed by it, especially your technical support . I sent a number of e-mails to your support address regarding my problems, none of which got answered. I think its quite sad that, unlike the x86 distros who have to cater for an almost unlimited number of configurations, you can't get a distribution out that works properly on a standard iMac- which is surely one of the first things you should test it on! So could anyone out there reading this tell me how to get X setup for greater depths than 8 bit under LinuxPPC 2000 (first release- don't know what Xfree- 3.something). Also, whatever happened to IBMs POP boards?
First of all, I'd like to commend you and your wife for your courage and determination through your ordeal! I also hope they throw the book at the jerk who caused the accident!
My question is this: Do you find that your perception of the world and what your interests, passions and abilities are, different than before your accident? Has the accident changed your interests towards the computing industry?
Thanks,
TheNecromancer
Attention all planets of the Solar Federation! We have assumed control! - Neil Peart
- I've wanted to mess around with a PowerPC platform hardware but unlike Intel hardware it seems to be very hard to find for realitively cheap. Any hints on how to jump into LinuxPPC without running out to CompUSA and buying a PowerCube?
- Got any feelings about OSX? Will there be any nifty widgets(graphic, hardware drivers, or other) that you will be modeling from OSX for LinuxPPC?
- Have you kept track of the person that crashed into you? I mean in the sense that you made sure that he was dealt with in the courts properly. I don't want to imply you are vengeful or anything but do you think they were treated properly(to lightly, to harshly or something in between)?
About a year and a half ago, my fiancée and I were in a horrible car crash as well. We were also in a small car (Nissan Sentra), and were hit head-on by an SUV. I crushed my femur, broke my hip, and 4 ribs (I walk pretty good now after 2 reconstruction surgeries). My fiancée (now my wife thank God) lost her spleen, 1/3 of her liver, compound fracture of her heel, crushed lungs, and on a respirator for 4 weeks in ICU before she started to come out of it. We are both still recovering (Someday, I'd like to stand up and have it not hurt!).
Things like this can teach you lessons, or destroy you. From that perspective, my question is: What were the biggest lessons you learned from it? (I ask that as someone who has gone through it, and learned a lot about what is important, and what is not.)
This is more of a life question than a geek one.
-Spackler
PS: Yes, we drive big trucks now (F-150), and I'd never own a small car, even if it were given to me!
Would it be possible to replace the BSD kernel in OS X with Linux, and have there been any serious discussions regarding this? I imagine you would be the point man in such an investigation.
Linux does seem to be a better choice, as it is more scalable, is about to get a journaled file system, and has a dazzling array of hardware support.
I would almost rather see Apple throw itself behind HURD than cause more fragmentation amongst the BSDs. It seems the deciding factor was the BSD liscense, and not any technical advantage (although I am probably wrong, and I don't have access to POWER equipment of any sort [not even an AS/400], so I am hardly authoritative).
I did follow the progress of your injury, and I hope your recovery is proceeding well and some good has come out of the experience.
During your recovery period, did you find the need to use any accessibility tools to accomplish tasks? If so, what were your impressions? Does Linux have the tools people with alternative interface needs (like text-to-speech) need to access their information?
Congrats on your recovery progress. I'm glad to see the world hasn't lost another good person to a drunk driver's carelessness.
-- "I have a great faith in fools. Self-confidence, some call it..."
What's your take on MacOS X? As the main point-person on the biggest other Mac-based *nix I'm sure you've been keeping track of it. How do you consider what's coming out of Apple as an OS, specifically as a *nix implementation?
Next, has Apple's open-sourcing Darwin been of any advantage to Linux PPC? Has someone ever popped into their code & looked up how they handled an point or what their solution was to a Mac-specific issue?
Back to your own stuff, where do you see Linux PPC going as regards to the other linuxen? Any stuff you see as being unique strengths of Linux PPC (aside from it's hardware)?
Finally, what issues do you regularly run into being on a non-X86 platform? What could developers do to improve portability for you? What's your "I-wish-they'd" list look like?
-- Michael
I don't read ACs: If a post isn't worth so much as a nom de plume to its author then I wont bother either.
I think that SUV's are great vehicles - for a certain audience. The problem is that people are buying them for the "wrong" reasons.
I have a 1991 Chev Suburban 2WD. I also have an Eagle Talon race car, and the trailer it fits on. The 'burban is the tow vehicle.
For long haul trips hauling a race car, three sets of tires, enough gas for the weekend, tools, spares, and all the other miscellanious sundry required, nothing beats a great big SUV. In fact, I'm in the market for a new one, and I'm having trouble finding one I consider "big enough".
But I'm not the problem here. The problem is those that buy an SUV in the belief that it renders them invincible to weather conditions. The soccer moms roaring down an unplowed Interstate at 80 MPH.
There is an element of truth here - I drive race cars, right? So I took the 'burban out onto a snowy parking lot, to see how easy it was to slide it around, what braking distances were like, and so on. There's no doubt in my mind that the limits in adverse weather are quite a bit higher in an SUV than in a "normal" passenger car. This means that an SUV in the hands of the blissfully ignorent is much less likely to lose control.
However, once control is lost, the laws of physics dictate that a heavy SUV moving at high speed will have a lot more energy and momentum to dissipate in the crash, which means a lot more damage - especially if the SUV hits a smaller vehicle.
Note that THIS is nothing new either - look at what happens when car meets semi - but your average truck driver is much more competant than Ms Soccer Mom.
The problem here is not the SUVs. The problem is people who don't understand the limits of their vehicles, and who drive in excess of those limits (or while talking on the cell phone, or whatever) Idiocy is not limited to SUV drivers.
I'll give you an example. When the tow rig is fully loaded up, the stopping distances get pretty long (trailer brakes notwithstanding) So I leave a correspondingly longer distance between myself and the vehicle in front of me - the idea being that if the car in front of me stops NOW, that I have time to react and get the rig stopped. Well, that buffer space has to be the most attractive thing on the road, because I can't count the number of times that guys in little cars (with much shorter stopping distances than the rig) will move into that buffer space. You do that, and you have taken your own life into your hands, because if you stop before I can re-establish the buffer, then all 10,000lbs of me will be eating your rear bumper if you stop.
Driving is an *active process*, but far too many people treat it as a passive routine. That's your problem.
One final point - I don't have the details about Jason's accident, but I know that every single time I cross an intersection my eyes are up checking the crosstreets for someone approaching too quickly WELL before I enter the intersection myself; green light be dammed. That extra little bit of situational awareness has saved my bacon on more than one occasion. Jason may have been able to do the same.
Assume that everyone on the road is **actively trying to kill you**, drive accordingly, and you'll never have an accident.
DG
Want to learn about race cars? Read my Book
Apple all but killed future support for the BeOS on PPC hardware when it quit providing the technical specs on the new motherboard architectures, and etc. LinuxPPC overcame this with, in my opinion, far fewer resources than Be Inc. Maybe it's a testiment to each OS's user devotion, or OpenSource vs 'ClosedSource', I don't know. My question is, why do you think LinuxPPC was able to successfully continue supporting the newer hardware from Apple when Be couldn't? Also, do you think there may be the posibility of technology sharing between Be Inc. and LinuxPPC?
If you're doing mostly 64-bit integer math, you'll wan't an ISA that supports operations on 64-bit integers. Standard PPC and x86 chips do not have that (IBM has some 64-bit PPC chips/systems out there).
I think you'll find Alpha will kick butt, with Sparc being another potential contender (probably too pricy for the net benefit).
sigs are a waste of space
I got my SO an iBook (with wireless LAN) for Christmas. She's pretty happy with it, but I've been considering putting Linux on it. She's used Linux on my computer without much difficulty, so I'm not so concerned about usability issues, but I am concerned about hardware issues, and of course the ability to dual boot. I checked out LinuxPPC's site, and dual boot seems like a manageable issue, but I was wondering if you could comment on iBook hardware support.
sigs are a waste of space
1)How much can a PPC linux distro can benefit from Altivec optimization?
2)Does LinuxPPC enjoy the same degree of improved performance from additional processors that OS-X does?
flame away...
I know this has already been adressed to a small degree in this thread, but not well, and I apologize if this comment seems insensitive or off-topic, but I would be interested to know your opinion.
I agree that SUVs are very dangerous on roads, and it seems that poor drivers are often at the wheel. However, Honda is famous for (at least during the 80's and early 90's) making cars extremely light to improve fuel efficiency. Kia and Hyundai currently do this. This seems extremely irresponsible to me. While these cars can be made in such a way that they do not crush the passenger or driver (which it appears was not the case with your Honda, unfortunately), they still cannot eliminate the biggest problem with lightweight vehicles: instant acceleration. When a light car is struck by a medium to large vehicle (say, 3300 to 4000 lbs.), it accelerates instantly much faster than it would have if it weighed just a bit more. Depending on speed and many other factors, just 500 lbs. can mean the difference between 8 and 12 g-forces. That's a big difference. My car (a 1994 cavalier with a V6) was rear-ended by another vehicle going 55 mph while my vehicle was traveling at 5-7 mph. I was not injured. My sister's Toyota Celica was hit by a car going only 30 mph in front of our house. My dad and I spent 15 minutes tearing the door off to get her out, because the car was thoroughly crushed. Luckily, she recovered in a few weeks, but some people aren't so lucky. I realize that many people are convinced that Asian vehicles are more reliable, nicer, etc.; but they are designed in countries where speeds over 40 mph are very rare, and as such, they often cannot handle a collision that isn't bumper-to-bumper at low speed. I know I'm not giving any empirical evidence here, and I admit that a large part of the problem are vehicles like Suburbans and Excursions, but I won't be caught driving a Honda/Toyota/Nissan or any product of their divisions, because I have seen what happens to them in accidents.
One more bit of info about me: I have, in the past, raced cars semi-professionally. Mostly, I drag-raced, but I also raced a few races at PIR. I've been in my share of wrecks, including an end-over-end incident at 240+ mph at a dragstrip. We can blame the SUVs, but that's only part of the problem, because if I can walk away from that wreck, Japan can definitely add a few pounds of metal to their cars for our safety. I have no desire to be surrounded by plastic when my life is on the line.
It'd sure be cool to make a low-cost board that could run the real linux, with real memory management (MMU), and a pretty speedy CPU. By low cost, I'm thinking able to sell at $120-$150 for board where you add a SDRAM DIMM and use a network bootstrap or add compact flash card for a local boot. So far, it's looking like the available PPC based off-the-shelf boards are quite expensive. I probably ought to do a bit more homework, but since you're here, my question is....
What are the propects for making a really low cost PPC-based embedded linux computer? Has anyone done it or tried? Is it even possible?
PJRC: Electronic Projects, 8051 Microcontroller Tools
Where can I get an off the shelf G4 PPC linux box with a real mouse ?
Intel hardware is a commodity; it's cheap, there are lots of peripherals for it, you can buy individual components and build your own box easily, and prices are very low.
:) Educate me.
AFAIK (which isn't far), PowerPC hardware is mostly proprietary, controlled by Apple, is more expensive, has less variety in peripherals, and you're more or less stuck buying a Macintosh just to get your PC. Not just that, but many components of many PowerPC-based computers have marginal to no support under Linux (USB is marginal, Firewire is nonexistent right now, etc).
Given all this, where is the major win in the PowerPC? Why ought my next purchase for a PC be a PowerPC running LinuxPPC/Yellow Dog/MkLinux?
I'm not trolling here; I'm just uneducated.
I recomend burbon, early morning, and no seat belt. Try not to hurt anyone nice when you die, looser.
Friends don't help friends install M$ junk.
Just to clear something up, Jason's car was a Honda Accordion.
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While LinuxPPC may be great for Mac users wanting to dangle their toes in the Linux world, the higher price of Apple's hardware is tough for many x86 users to swallow. Is the LinuxPPC group working with any companies to develop a lower-cost motherboard/machine setup based on IBM's open PowerPC specs? Or is the goal to make LinuxPPC such compelling server solution that x86 users won't mind paying the extra bucks to squeeze a few Cubes onto a rack? I realize a 3rd party PPC setup would only cater to a very small group, but is anyone working on using IBM's design at all?
I rolled a car a few years ago after 8 espresso shots.
Granted, I was coming down a hill with very loose gravel combined with a good deal of ice, but I think my reflexes would have been better if I had been paying a bit more attention and hadn't been so shaky.
Now I never drive when I know I've had a bit much caffeine.
-"The GIMP Girl"
Angry IT woman in big clompy boots. And talking lint!.
He's also majorly anti-drunk driving these days, because last March a drunk driver ran into his car and left it looking like this.
... climb out and hang ...
Being that you have been personally involved with drunk driving like this, what is your take on the current status of drunk driving laws? What kind of penalties would you like to see implemented for drunk drivers?
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Put your feet out and stop
I pledge allegiance to the flag...
of the Corporate States of America...
After reading your wife's diary of your recovery (first 8-10 weeks or so) I was amazed at her dedication to reporting your progress. I'm sure you have read those logs as well and I am curious as to your thoughts. Do you remember much if any of those early weeks? Do you have any insights into how helpful the therapists were in prodding you toward your recovery?
Evan
Evan - needs to hit preview before submitting
Presently, it's either Apple or nobody. There were shining hopes for something better, but it never appeared.
Actually, there are many non-Apple PPC computers that run Linux (though admittedly *new* non-Apple PPC hardware is hard to come by).
For example, there's the RS/6000 IBM boxes, BeBoxes, Amiga APUS, and Motorola and Bull boxes. And, of course, TiVo and other embedded platforms.
Check out http://www.linuxppc.com/about/hardware/ for a complete list of supported hardware.
Still, the OpenPPC.org bit has been a bitter disappointment so far. Ah well, keep your fingers and toes crossed...
HTH
Ethelred
Everyone wants to be Ethelred. Even I want to be Ethelred.
I drive a '94 Ford Aspire, which is #8 of the "Worst cars to be in during an accident". I think it got there because of the ridiculous number of SUVs on the road with their higher bumpers. Given that my car is dead cheap on gas and gets me around just as fast as a 5xCost SUV, and that SUVs are being blamed for many of the worst road fatalities on roads today, what do you think we as smarter car drivers could do to convince manufacturers and gov't officials that vehicles such as SUVs aren't worth keeping around?
TheGeek
TheGeek
http://www.geekrights.org
Kill the monkey
Jason,
Since your accident, what have you noticed as far as a change in your priorities goes? I am curious with respect to your "real job" versus private research interests (e.g. PPCLinux) versus your family versus the things that you have been putting off in your life. What other changes have you seen in yourself as far as attitudes towards what sucess really is, and what you want to do with the rest of your life?
Want to see every step I took to start my company? http://www.rowdylabs.com/blogs/pitchtothegods
Linux is more scalable than BSD? Please, support this argument. First, define scalability. Next, describe how Linux is more scalable than *BSD.
While many people view the presence of different OS's as a fight to the death with only one winner (and while this often happens), it's obvious that they sometimes influence one anothers design. In the open source world, I sometimes expect this to happen to a greater extent, since the ideas and code are shared freely. I'm curious to know if you've played tried Darwin and NetBSD, and what you think about them. Anything cool about them LinuxPPC doesn't have? Any directions they're taking you think will influence LinuxPPC? And you could answer the same questions for the other PPC Linux distros....
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Libertarianism is rich wolves and poor sheep playing gambler's ruin for dinner.
Jason,
Congrats on your recovery! I can't even begin to imagine how hard it must have been for you and your wife.
My question to you is this: How do you feel towards the driver? Do you have a great malice towards him? Would you do the same thing to him as he did to you so he could know first hand what you went through? Or, on the other end of the spectrum, do you forgive him? Do you realize that he made a terrible mistake by getting behind the wheel and driving drunk and that he will be punished by the law, which while it can't equal the physical pain that you've gone through, he will be locked away from society. Or, do you forgive him completely?
All the best!
Brad
"I drive a '94 Ford Aspire, which is #8 of the 'Worst cars to be in during an accident'. I think it got there because of the ridiculous number of SUVs on the road with their higher bumpers."
Gee, maybe its' ranking is because the Aspire is a sardine can on wheels? Any car as small as that will be reduced to scrap metal in an accident, regardless of what hits it (SUV, pickup truck, mid-size family car, hazmat, etc).
Here's my opinion for you...get something that isn't mistaken for Ringling Bros. property.
And for the record, no, I don't own a SUV, I own a VW Jetta. Neener.
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The real Raunchola isn't cool enough to have any imposters
Do you see companies supporting the PPC Linux any time soon?
I see companies with Linux software ignoring the Apple boxen and only supporting those with Intel (and possibly AMD, if they are a cool company).
I know that Alias is porting (has ported?) Maya to the Mac (for OSX I think...). Seeing that they have ported (beta) for Linux on x86 I would expect talk for a LinuxPPC port.
Maybe it is just because of the lack of demand. I guess what I want this question to boil down to is:
Do you see the LinuxPPC solution as being worth a company's time to port code for and to support with OSX and x86 solutions being more common?
-I just work here... how am I supposed to know?
Several linux distributions (such as Corel, Redmond Linux, MaxOS, Caldera,just to name a few) try to keep their UI's consistent with that of Windows. Even much of GNOME follows much of the windows pattern (same keyboard accelerators and windows, same menu item labels, etc) for the sake of easy transition from Windows. As someone who went from MacOS to Linux, windows UI layouts such as the Ok Button being on the left and selecting "Exit" to quit applications just doesn't quite feel right. Has LinuxPPC ever considered modifying GNOME or KDE to better ease the transition for mac users? Has there been any talk of releasing some sort of "Cupertino Linux"?
On your site and on the news items about LinuxPPC-2000 Q4, you say that the ISO is available for the full install CD and that it's available through any of your mirror sites. I have yet to find anything other than images dated as late as August on any sites. What gives?
I am not merely a "consumer" or a "taxpayer". I am a Citizen of the State of Texas
The main tangible advantage you get with a PowerPC over x86 is the lower power use, resulting in less heat and noise. Recent Macs don't even bother with a single fan at all. Going by noise and electric bill, an iMac or one of those new cubes, would make a much better server (or any other 24x7 application) than my Athlon box, which I think has a total of 7 (?!) fans and guzzles electrons like there's no tomorrow.
Another tangible (but very specialized) advantage of PowerPC would be the vector processor in the G4. If you do something that can use this, it might tip the scales in favor of PowerPC.
Then there are the intangible benefits, mainly involving the relative elegance of PowerPC compared to x86. This is probably not a significant factor for non-geeks, though, and the pragmatic and unromantic can safely ignore it.
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As copyright owner of this comment, I authorize everyone to defeat any technological measure which limits access to it.
Pardon my French, but being blasé is so passé ...
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Information wants to be beer, or something like that.
I've heard that x86 floating point math is sloppy at best, but does it make a real difference? Can a PPC compete despite the clock speed advantage of the x86s? Some real world examples would be nice, thanks.
Friends don't help friends install M$ junk.