Older blog entries for jim (starting at number 6)

Trying desperately to get technical docs on a chip so I can fix the Linux support. The vendor's web page requires authentication to get to them. I have requested (via the web page) access several times with no response whatsoerver. I tried their sales e-mail address, its an unknown address and is undeliverable. I tried their published phone numbers. As near as I can tell all paths through the automated response unit end up ringing a phone 4 times and then dumping me into a voice mailbox.

I find this one of the most irritating aspects of programming. How can people use your product if you don't tell them how? Publish the interface!

Maybe someone in Santa Clara would nail my request on their door?

On a less stressful note I finally got a 1024x768 color display on one of the Netwinders. 9" B&W gnome is a bit rough. This is much nicer.

Got the Netwinder to change resolutions and run the xserver-fbdev without core dumping. Thats progress. (fbset -rgba 8,8,8,8)

Now if I could just find a decent monitor. My choices thus far are a fixed frequency 640x480 9" monochrome, a focus blown 13" color, and a NEC 3FGe which doesn't want to sync above 800x600 and loses the red gun sporadically.

I'm testing Debian ARM boot-floppies today. While watching the disks spin and the cursors blink I'm counting all the lines of code in Debian.

Good news! I found a flaw in the gcc code generation on the ARM port. There was a subtle bug significant interaction between the instruction and data cache references and the on chip buffers of the SDRAM. The ARM code has now sped up to the point that compiling code on the Netwinders is faster than on my K6-350.

The Debian RiscPC installer has slain its first tester. I've added new keymaps so they can use their keyboards without learning a new random layout. Wimps.

RiscPC people are coming out ot the woodwork! I'm building RiscPC installation images today. Heck, they may even WORK!

Babysitting three ARM machines building Debian. Seemed like a good time to sign up on advogato.org.