Re: VESAfb question
Alain Williams (addw@phcomp.co.uk)
Thu, 14 Jan 1999 12:50:40 +0000
On Thu, Jan 14, 1999 at 12:13:01AM -0600, Shawn K. Quinn wrote:
> On Mon, 11 Jan 1999, Alan Olsen wrote:
>
> | As a side note... Does anyone have a rational explanation for the
> | "proprietary interface" mentality as displayed by video and sound card
> | manufacturers?
>
> The only ones I can possibly come up with is the hardware makers in question
> are too far in bed with Microsoft (for example), or the companies have
> really lousy lawyers.
No, they think that if the release the details on how to talk with their
cards then:
* competitors will be able to clone their cards and so they loose $$
* competitors will be able to steal their ideas (``hey, what a
neat way of getting/asking it do do XXXX'') and so make their
competitors products better than their owen.
Whether any of the above will (in reality) happen is another matter, but
as far as they are concerned they can't loose by no releasing the
interface details --- ``people don't need it anyway 'cos we have written
all the drivers and they get it on a floppy, anyone who wants to write
their own driver must be nuts.''
The only way of getting them to release the specs is by education. Every
time I look at something and can't see the specs I email them to let
them know that I won't be buying their product because the interfaces
aren't documented; it is sad to say that 95% don't bother to even reply.
--
Alain Williams
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