Orbiter port to Linux
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garyw
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How would the directx portions of Orbiter be ported? Seems like a pointless poll
I would imagine that would be dealt with when the graphics and physics portions of Orbiter are seperated.
TMac3000
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I though there was already a Linux version of Orbiter.
Linguofreak
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No, the Windows version does (sorta) work in Linux with Wine, though.
garyw
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So it might be better to wait until then?
Also, it doesn't matter how many people say how much they want Orbiter on Linux because it's closed source so porting it is going to be quite some piece of work.
Even with the graphics separated from the core I'd imagine that the client side is still windows only.
garyw
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And people say yes... then what?
Then I go out and buy a new television.
:rofl:About graphics clients- Artlav has stated that OGLAclient runs on Linux natively.
Yes, but the Orbiter core does not. The Orbiter core makes use of a large number of Windows system calls, and getting rid of those would be very difficult.
This is a pointless poll, and is, I think, rather rude. It seems a whole lot like the countless "when is the next version coming" threads.
I voted no. Why? There's no point in putting Linux on a gaming rig. It's a complete waste of the power since Linux can't run most modern games. Moreover, I respect Martin's time--the hundreds to thousands of hours of work it would take isn't worth it so a few people who hate Windows can be happy. I'm sure there are far better places to put dev time than that.
Writing cross-platform software is a nightmare (as I've learned from the RemoteMFD). Anyone who would propose it for a large project (where the need is dubious) hasn't done it themselves. Moreover, all of the closed-source MFDs and plugins that we now have would be useless on Linux.
This isn't about whether it is possible or feasible or not.
Let's not get into an argument about why or how.
I don't hate windows.
As TSPenguin said, it would be nice to have a program able to run on multiple platforms.
If it's infeasible, asking for it does you no good at all, and asking for it when you know it's infeasible is not going to make any friends. And I think "why" is part of the point. If you don't have a "why" then you have no reason to put it on Linux.
What's wrong with running it on Windows? Sure, it would be "nice" to have it on multiple platforms, but in terms of things that would be "nice" to have I can think of several things that would be a whole lot "nicer" to have than the ability to run it on Linux. There's plenty of lists around.
I'd be willing to bet that most of the people who voted "yes" don't use Linux at home on a daily basis.
Scrooge McDuck
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True, this poll has no use, as noone can currently make the Orbiter-core independant from Windows (except for Martin..).
Anyway, still voted yes but even better to me would be compatibility with Mac OS X
(not that I'm a real fan yet, but using it on a daily basis now and missing Orbiter on it).
regards,
mcduck
Anyway, still voted yes but even better to me would be compatibility with Mac OS X
(not that I'm a real fan yet, but using it on a daily basis now and missing Orbiter on it).
regards,
mcduck
RisingFury
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No. It would be a waste of development time that could be better spent on key Orbiter systems.
Let's just wait for Wine to get it going without problem... which will happen way sooner then getting a port to Linux anyway.
Let's just wait for Wine to get it going without problem... which will happen way sooner then getting a port to Linux anyway.
Scrooge McDuck
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IMO, Wine or any other compatibility layer, or emulator, or virtualization is not a real solution. At least not when you want true reliability and performance. BTW it's true that some newer virtualization software can now even handle DirectX very well (VirtualBox not yet, sadly), but even then it's still no real solution. The best would be if the core itself could be ported natively.
Anyway, I don't think this should be a priority now. Considering only 1 person is developing the core, I think sticking to Windows is more than enough (for now). I'm already amazed by the amount and quality of work done by Martin. Especially I like his SDK documentation style. I've seen much worse examples in professional SDK's!
regards,
mcduck
Anyway, I don't think this should be a priority now. Considering only 1 person is developing the core, I think sticking to Windows is more than enough (for now). I'm already amazed by the amount and quality of work done by Martin. Especially I like his SDK documentation style. I've seen much worse examples in professional SDK's!
regards,
mcduck
Although I would like to have a port to Linux, and voted yes, I have to agree with the majority. It's just simply not feasible and the energy is better spent on finishing the next version for Windows. A nice to have, but not a need to have.
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Didn't vote ... yes it was pointless.
However, in his defence, this issue has been with Orbiter from the beginning. There are more than a few of us who use Linux for other reasons than "we hate the boys in Redmond". Try crashing your Windows and not be able to find the distro that came with your machine when you bought it and find out how much you will learn to hate "the boys in Redmond" then. (At least with Linux, I do not have to load down my system and memory with a plethora of prophylactic programs ... )
Martin started with what he had. It works. Under Wine, it's getting better. With VMware ...
Even if all of the graphics issues can be covered, there is still the matter of which Linux would be best. A Debian port might be best, but Ubuntu is not a complete Debian package either. Redhat, OpenSUSE ...?
However, in his defence, this issue has been with Orbiter from the beginning. There are more than a few of us who use Linux for other reasons than "we hate the boys in Redmond". Try crashing your Windows and not be able to find the distro that came with your machine when you bought it and find out how much you will learn to hate "the boys in Redmond" then. (At least with Linux, I do not have to load down my system and memory with a plethora of prophylactic programs ... )
Martin started with what he had. It works. Under Wine, it's getting better. With VMware ...
Even if all of the graphics issues can be covered, there is still the matter of which Linux would be best. A Debian port might be best, but Ubuntu is not a complete Debian package either. Redhat, OpenSUSE ...?
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