Slashdot Mirror
Compaq expands Linux line
Richard Finney sent us story to Compaq's latest Alpha announcement. They will be rolling out some new Alpha-based models, trying to use the popularity of Linux to boost sales of this chip. Interestingly, Bob Young, of Red Hat is saying that the # of units of the Alpha are too small to make a huge difference.
my understanding was that gcc performed badly on an alpha. digital, er, compaq's compiler produced far better code. any word on whether compaq was going to help the gcc/egcs team out?
also, anyone try building an alpha/linux distribution with the compaq compiler? (sorry rms, just think of it as goal setting)
US Citizen living abroad? Register to vote!
Sounds to me like you're drawing an awful lot of conclusions with very little actual information. Your comments amount to anti-Compaq FUD.
"Optimizing for Linux" could be as simple as choosing hardware that has really good Linux drivers, or that won't require special configuration steps under Linux.
It could also include little things like picking a video adapter that had good XFree86 support, and even bundling a three-button mouse instead of the usual 2-button Logitech Firstmouse. (BTW, Logitech makes a three-button OEM version of that mouse. Hewlett Packard bundles them, they're not bad. I'm looking for a consumer version.)
Optimizing for Linux could also involve staying away from any chipsets that had known problems with Linux.
In short, optimizing for Linux is a very good thing.
Right... I think I see where you're coming from.
:-/ )
However, RedHat still does sell 5.2 for Alpha - and Sparc, too.
I can't find the boxed set, but I suspect that this is simply because of sound business reasons.
Equally, I also suspect that Compaq are barking up the wrong tree... An OS like Linux doesn't make a CPU. They simply have to lower the price, or at least produce boxes that match up to what the UltraSparc hardware can do - which probably means a departure from PC style hardware.
But really, there's no need to get paranoid. Just keep pushing your favourite CPU make and model if you beleive in it.
(Currently running NT of all things...
One big hurdle to performance was the math libraries. Compaq recently released those -- they're available on their web page for download. The general compiler issue is one that hasn't escaped Compaq's notice. Things are being examined right now. Don't mistake silence for inactivity in this area.
Oh blood and ASHES! I hit preview and all my text is deleted. Argh..
Short story is Intel is funding companies and efforts to subtly "lave out" alternative CPU's. EXPECT this FUD effort to carry over into the Linux world, such as Rob Young's unflattering remarks about Linux on Alpha.
Gee, didn't Red Hat used to sell an Alpha Linux?
Didn't VA Research used to sell Alpha workstations?
Didn't BeOS used to support PowerPC?
Didn't MetaCreations promise a Mac port of the MC/Intel "MetaStream" web 3D project?
Isn't Intel deliberately withholding the specs to Indeo instead of producing a Mac version (Indeo is for wanna-be's, but still I've talked to people who can't consider it because it's not x-platform).
We're just about to get independence from Microsoft and people don't see we'll end up right in the grip of Intel. Watch for future "Linux efforts" by Intel designed to keep non-Intel Linux users off the cutting edge. No one can "own" Linux, true, but anyone can make a version so technically appealing that the masses won't give a rat's ass about "politically correct" licensing (look at all the people who didn't care about the *OLD* QT/KDE licensing...)