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How the LSB Keeps Linux One Big Happy Family
blackbearnh writes "The Linux Standard Base is the grand attempt to create a binary-level interface that application developers can use to create software which will run on any distribution of Linux. Theodore Tso, who helps maintain the LSB, talked recently with O'Reilly News about what the LSB does behind the scenes, how it benefits ISVs and end users, and what the greatest challenges left on the plate are. 'One of the most vexing problems has been on the desktop where the Open Source community has been developing new desktop libraries faster than we can standardize them. And also ISVs want to use those latest desktop libraries even though they may not be stable yet and in some ways that's sort of us being a victim of our own success. The LSB desktop has been getting better and better and despite all the jokes that for every year since I don't know probably five years ago, every year has been promoted as the year of the Linux desktop. The fact of the matter is the Linux desktop has been making gains very, very quickly but sometimes as a result of that some of the bleeding edge interfaces for the Linux desktop haven't been as stable as say the C library. And so it's been challenging for ISVs because they want to actually ship products that will work across a wide range of Linux distributions and this is one of the places where the Linux upstream sources haven't stabilized themselves.'"
FYI, the LSB started in 1998, the first Year Of Linux On The Desktop.
What I'm listening to now on Pandora...
Try reading Slashdot. There's six years just in first-line results of the first page.
http://slashdot.org/search.pl?query=lsb
...to create a binary-level interface that PRIVATIVE-LICENSED application developers can use to create software which will run on any distribution of Linux.
There, corrected for you.
The kernel API also needs to be stable (or so do vendors like National Instruments think).
The truth is ubuntu doesn't have any LSB modules available by default. BUT, don't be lazy, open Synaptic Package manager, search for lsb package, select it for install and than:
petar@aurora:~$ lsb_release -a
LSB Version: core-2.0-ia32:core-3.0-ia32:core-3.1-ia32:core-3.2-ia32:core-2.0-noarch:core-3.0-noarch:core-3.1-noarch:core-3.2-noarch:cxx-2.0-ia32:cxx-3.0-ia32:cxx-3.1-ia32:cxx-3.2-ia32:cxx-2.0-noarch:cxx-3.0-noarch:cxx-3.1-noarch:cxx-3.2-noarch:desktop-3.1-ia32:desktop-3.2-ia32:desktop-3.1-noarch:desktop-3.2-noarch:graphics-2.0-ia32:graphics-3.0-ia32:graphics-3.1-ia32:graphics-3.2-ia32:graphics-2.0-noarch:graphics-3.0-noarch:graphics-3.1-noarch:graphics-3.2-noarch:languages-3.2-ia32:languages-3.2-noarch:multimedia-3.2-ia32:multimedia-3.2-noarch:printing-3.2-ia32:printing-3.2-noarch
Distributor ID: Ubuntu
Description: Ubuntu 8.04.1
Release: 8.04
Codename: hardy
So next time, before writing something, check your facts first.
I think his point is that the install should automatically put all plugins into a standard system-wide directory (with an advanced option to allow it to be installed into your profile) and not rely on a move/copy etc afterwards. The issue appears to be with the plugin installers. If plugins were installed in to a standard system wide and/or your own profile plugin directory then things would be simple to configure and then a lot more user friendly. This location needs to be the same for all distros and all browsers should use them by default but should also give the more advanced user the option to set up they way they like.
You can also have flash work happily in one browser version and then it not work in another, i have that situation with Opera, Firefox 2 and Firefox 3. I just can't be arsed to sort out FF3 flash as i sorted of expected it to work straight away as FF2 and opera were working. I'll probably sort it out when i finally decide to uninstall FF2
konquerer takes the cake for searching all locations for plugins by default, there are 14 combinations of Mozilla, netscape and firefox local and system wide directories. Its madness.
Realplayer, flash plugins all seem install into different locations, i.e. their own directory structure rather than a standard system wide directory so you have to arse about with putting in loads of search paths in the browser config to find all the plugins.
"The hands that help are better far than lips that pray." - Robert Ingersoll (1833-1899)