Linux Drivers?

[unaHm]

Dear all,

I know that this question may initially seem quite simple, but from what I've been reading with the advent of Scope 6 (Open Scope), there has been a lot of talk of cross-platform compatibility.

I've also had a look at the Ardour site (www.ardour.org), which is developed by Paul Davis. He also developed Linux/ALSA drivers for the RME cards, and I read in the Ardour forum that he'd originally contacted Creamware about writing drivers, but didn't get any further as they showed a lack of interest.

I think that was back in 2006. Now that times have changed, do you think it would be possible to work with the ALSA team on creating drivers for these cards?

I know the driver side of these cards appears to be quite simple in comparison to all of the hard work that goes into developing the Scope system, so it's probably not a question that can be easily answered, or a challenge that can be easily looked at, but I did want to voice an interest!

I'm not really a programmer, but now I have a 3DSP card I'd be quite happy to provide anyone with as much information as they'd need. I'm a big fan of Linux, its system timing, and its constant growth. There has been a lot of development in the audio field for it in recent years, and while there are hundreds of LADSPA/LV2/DSSI plugins, they aren't a Scope system

Thanks for taking the time to read this post!

Kind Regards,

unaHm

[dante]

Well, Paul should definitely contact S|C and ask the same question. According to Hurolura who attended MusikMesse, his information is that once a driver is written, the rest of the platform theoretically would port once JUCE becomes (or is already) available for the target platform.

http://www.hitfoundry.com/issue_14/mes_mast.htm

[garyb]

it's not just drivers.
the whole program needs to function in the chosen os.

when Scope 6 is out, which is pretty much a cross platform program, it will certainly be possible for a third party to write a driver. until then, it's not possible.

[unaHm]

Thanks for the responses!

That's good news - I got that feeling from reading some of the threads on this forum regarding Scope 6, so it'll be worth taking note of the plaforms' progress, so that once it IS complete, Paul can be contacted, and the ball can start rolling!

There are some automated scripts that the ALSA people have put together, so I may grab a Live CD, and see if I can submit some information to them in a preliminary manner, and then point them to Scope 6. It can't hurt!

I'll let you know what I find out.

Kind Regards,

unaHm

[HUROLURA]

it's not just drivers.
the whole program needs to function in the chosen os.

when Scope 6 is out, which is pretty much a cross platform program, it will certainly be possible for a third party to write a driver. until then, it's not possible.

That's the point Gary, Scope 6 is definetly needed for that purpose but Paul Davis could be of some help for designing Linux drivers but this has to be acjeved in close cooperation with S|C.
And in case he could also to similar stuff for Apple Macs, that would be a nice jump back in the race for Scope ...

Just image Ardour provided to Linux or Mac users with Scope support by mean of Open Scope.

[garyb]

why is it always an arguement? what am i fighting? what am i against? the driver is the easy part. the card is worthless without the instruction set for the dsps. there's nothing to be done until the system is ready. then a driver can be written.

of course Creamware wasn't interested. after the insolvancies they couldn't even get a version that ran on Vista. Holger decided to open the Scope platform. end of discussion. now we wait for the platform to be put in order to be opened to the public.

personally, i think it's a good idea, although i'm dubious about whether or not this will sell more XITEs to people who like to get things for free and the relatively few who might actually have a custom audio use that would really benefit from Linux. still, if it sold 2 more units, that would be enough to make opening the system up worthwhile, as long as opening the system is just part of the natural development of the platform and not a siphon of resources.

no point in trying to convince me of anything, i don't make desicions. i'm just telling the few facts that i know. these "revelations" are certainly only gross simplifications of the bigger picture.

heck, a skilled hacker could probably guess and make a driver that worked, at least well enough. the parameters involved in interfacing with the os are known and limited, or at least this is how i understood what was explained to me. there's a reason why v5.1 took more than 2 1/2 years. you can't have the present form of Scope ready for a new os in a few months no matter who writes the driver, unless you have a crew like Microsoft does. there's no way for S|C to funnel 2 1/2 years of resources into Linux. they CAN funnel the resources into something that will run on XP, Win7, OSX and Linux, though. after that, a driver to work in a new os is a fairly simple thing. if Scope is opened, Paul or whomever will have what they need to write a driver, no problem.

[unaHm]

I agree. Development of something as in-depth as this with only a small group of programmers takes a while!

For example, the ReactOS (www.reactos.com) project began in 1998, and it's still in the alpha stages, even though it's gathering momentum.

Ardour itself is still in the Beta stages for version 3.0, and that's also taken some time. Great results more often than not require a great deal of time and effort. It's nice to see all of these things develop though

Well, I've posted an email to the ALSA developers mailing list, and hopefully I worded it in a way that piques their interest! If I hear any official responses, I'll be sure to post them here!

[jksuperstar]

In my opinion, getting Linux on board doesn't provide a whole lot of direct consumer sales.

however, most product development (embedded products) is done with some variant of Linux, because the developer can make it as custom, streamlined, lightweight, or expandable, without too much effort or license fees.

which means someone can make a stand-alone mixer again, or something more complicated than a guitar pedal, and the system works. that is good news for S|C anytime.