<snip>
>
> People keep proposing bandaid solutions that only treat the symptoms.
> Device files are a namespace used to access kernel drivers, not just
> an ordinary collection of files. There is a fundamental difference here.
> It is critical that /dev be perfectly synchronized with the kernel.
> Preferably, /dev is also synchronized with the hardware.
Hmmm, I wonder how PCMCIA has worked all this years?
>
> How would an anti-devfs person support USB? Remember, the whole system
> is dynamic. You can add and remove devices on a live system. You can
> have several devices of the same type, there is no adjustable ID like
> SCSI has... It will put you through hell.
Dynamic, sounds like PCMCIA.
Hotswap, sounds like PCMCIA.
Mutliple devices of the same type, sounds like PCMCIA.
"It will put you through hell." , Well, no.
Well I would start with the current PCMCIA code, which has managed to
deal with these very subjects.
HotSwap, Multiple PCMCIA cards of the same type, devices come and go.
PCMCIA uses slots, and USB uses ports not much difference there.
Specifically cardmgr looks like the best place to start. Instead of
cardmgr it would become usbmgr. Instead of managing cards it is managing
a bus. Actually it is managing the devices that may come and go from the
bus.
The next place to go would be to talk with the MkLinux Fellows are Apple
and discuss with them how they are handling USB for the new IMac. Also
since Apple has had the Apple Desktop Bus (ADB) which is similar to USB
it would be wise to look at the ADB code currently in the Linux kernel,
and MkLinux. I would also talk with Alan Cox since he did the Linux port
to the Macintosh, I would bet that Alan is just full of the the gory
details concerning ADB.
The next place to go would talk with the Linux PPC fellows, and discuss
with them how they are handling USB for the new Apple IMac which has a
USB keyboard, and USB Mouse.
I would also checkout http://www.usb.org for their discussions groups
concerning USB.
Since Digital, and IBM where part of the original 7 (seven) companies
that drafted the USB spec, and since both have become active supporters
of Linux, those two companies would be the next stop.
My gut feeling would be that the Linux PPC groups (Native & MkLinux)
have a better grasp of this since they are dealing with it now with
the new IMac, and will be sharing that knowledge base.
So let us see what we have sofar.
Cardmgr from PCMCIA becomes the USBmgr
ADB kernel code sounds like a good starting point for the skelton
USB code.
Other parts of PCMCIA used to dynamically load the required driver
for the USB device.
There are at least two other groups dealing with these every same
issues,
Linux PPC and MkLinux. There is bound to be some really useful
information,
designs, code from those two groups.
That sounds like an excellent start.
-- Terry L. Ridder Blue Danube Software (Blaue Donau Software) "We do not write software, we compose it."When the toast is burnt and all the milk has turned and Captain Crunch is waving farewell when the Big One finds you may this song remind you that they don't serve breakfast in hell ==Breakfast==Newsboys
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