From alsa-devel-owner@alsa.jcu.cz  Sun Dec 20 16:02:17 1998
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Date: Sun, 20 Dec 1998 16:02:12 +0100 (CET)
From: Jaroslav Kysela <perex@jcu.cz>
To: Marcus Brinkmann <Marcus.Brinkmann@ruhr-uni-bochum.de>
cc: alsa-devel@alsa.jcu.cz
Subject: Re: SB Live! support
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On Sun, 20 Dec 1998, Marcus Brinkmann wrote:

> On Sun, Dec 20, 1998 at 03:18:19PM +0100, Jaroslav Kysela wrote:
> > 
> > Creative don't released datasheets for SoundBlaster Live and seems that
> > they want sign some NDA (to distribute only binaries) which seems to be
> > imposible in Linux world (this breaks GPL licence).
> > 
> > I currently see only black future for Linux SB Live drivers :-((((
> > 
> > Seems that drivers will be available only as binaries (this means that
> > they willn't work with each kernels). This is for me unacceptable.
> 
> Hi Jaroslav!
> 
> I too think this is inacceptable. How much can be achieved by guessing? It's
> too bad that the SB Live! is a PCI card and therefore incompatible to all
> prior CT Labs card, but isn't it possible to find out the information we
> need by looking at the card and try and fail?
> 
> Please bear with me if this is near to impossible. I don't know too much
> about hardware, so I don't know what is involved in such a procedure.

I think that is impossible write good driver for new soundcards without
documentation. I simply don't know how you can collect enough information
for programming without it... Most of new soundcard chips are very
complicated...

							Jaroslav

-----
Jaroslav Kysela <perex@jcu.cz>
Academic Computer Centre, University of South Bohemia
Branisovska 31, C. Budejovice, CZ-370 05 Czech Republic


