Slashdot Mirror
LinuxPPC64 Contest
Robert MacFarlan writes: "IBM is sponsoring a Open Source developer contest for their Linux on POWER (Linux PPC 64)
effort. The contest is designed to award and showcase innovative
new open source applications that are designed or optimized specifically
for Linux running on the PPC architecture. The contest also awards ports
of existing applications from a predetermined list. Contest prizes
include Segway HTs, Apple Power Mac G5s, and cash awards.
"
My bet is that it's listed under Apple since the 2nd tier winners get:
Apple Power Mac G5 and $1,000 cash prize.
Either that or Hemos knows something we have only heard rumors about between Apple and IBM...
"I'd be smart if I didn't let thinking get in the way."
It's probably the same reason that everything about applications for generic Unix systems get filed under the "Linux" section. The current list of sections is a little poorly chosen, to put it mildly. There is no IBM or Power section, or anything that really would make a good home for Power related topics.
You are not alone. This is not normal. None of this is normal.
Check out number 99. They want someone to port wine!
Now, porting between OS's on the same architecture is difficult. Porting between the same OS on different architectures can be easy, or insanely difficult. Porting a "not-an-emulator" that "ports" other applications running on a different operating system across a different architecture to run the "ported" application on the non-native architecture... well, the word difficult just doesn't seem to cut it.
But, if anyone manages to do it they deserve a freakin' medal!
Karma: SELECT `karma` FROM `users` WHERE `userid`=138474;
POWER is an acronym. "Performance Optimization With Enhanced RISC", IIRC.
;)
Now go shout at the eejits who shout "MAC" when referring to cute plastic from Apple, Inc.
Help savingAmigaOS and a free PowerPC market
Read the article. Entries due by June 2005.. Registration Now..
Who is moding around here...???
What page are you reading??? This contest is designed for Open Source Developers world-wide (w/ the exception of Quebec Canada). Please see the official rules.
This post patent pending.
Actually, the grandparent was complaining about the tied hardware with insufficent released specs. Which isn't likely to change, unfortnuately, since Apple has been doing this pretty much as long as they have existed.
Though I don't pretend to understand what Apple thinks they are gaining by holding back things like full specs on the airport extreme card in my notebook which would allow better development from the open source community with no downside I can see for Apple. But such is the way of the fruit. And I like my little notebook enough, but this is one of the annoyances of going with the Apple platform.
And if someone can tell me why the airport network interface is only brought up AFTER someone logs into the machine, thus making NIS authentication over the wireless card a moot point, I would like to know that, as well. Ah, but that is wandering far off topic.
7. What we cannot speak about we must pass over in silence.
"While some companies permit Quebec entrants, many are scared away by unique rules that are mandated by the province's gaming agency.
Quebec is the lone Canadian jurisdiction that requires security deposits, charges fees and enforces strict rules about draws valued at more than $100. Some American states also enforce rules that prevent their residents from participating in contests.
In addition to requiring that all documents be written in French, Quebec's agency charges three per cent of the value of all national prizes, even if a Quebecer doesn't claim a prize, or 10 per cent of the value of a contest run exclusively in the province. The agency collected nearly $1.7 million in fees last year.
In the rest of Canada, large contests are governed only by the federal Competition Act, a broad framework for promotional contests.
"People often exclude Quebec just because they're afraid of these rules and don't really understand them," said Sharon Groom, a Toronto lawyer who represents many advertisers that run contests as a marketing tool.
"They're not actually that bad but a lot of our clients will say we don't want to be bothered with doing this, so they exclude Quebec."
Remember when IBM Clone or Compatable meant something running DOS or Windows on and Intel chip? What irony.
Someone hates these cans.
I don't get it. Are they rewarding the project that comes up with the poorest code portability? I always thought that one of the strongest points of Open Source Software is portability across platforms (OS and CPU architectures). Does IBM (in the role of a strong platform vendor) publicly promote going in the opposite direction?
I'd expect that since most code developed on x86 can be ported to PPC, the opposite is probably true as well.
But that's the problem - most Linux PPC Linux apps are ports of x86 apps.
The object here, I think, is to promote PPC as a primary platform for Linux development, rather than a platform applications are ported to as an afterthought.
The Airport specs aren't being withheld by Apple, it's a Broadcom chipset which is proprietary.
There's a petition for Broadcom to release opensource drivers on PetitionOnline.com.
-Glitch "We all know Linux is great...it does infinite loops in 5 seconds." - Linus Torvalds