[MPlayer-users] rant

[Arpi]

Hi,

> > > This is obviously not the case, because MPlayer 0.50 compiled with gcc 2.96
> > > works very well on my Mandrake 8.1. I tested it on 20-25 differents
> > And on 20-25 different hardware configurations and libs versions?
> > If so,
> > Please send full raport about combinations that work.
> 
> He's not making a point in favour of a binary distribution.  He's making a
> point that 2.96 builds a working mplayer.
Some "releases" (GNU never released gcc 2.96) of gcc 2.96 works, some
(olders in mdk 8.0 and redhat 7.x) don't.

If someone
- give us a method of detecting gcc 2.96 release
- give us a complete list of test results with gcc 2.96 releases
then we can limit this check for really buggy releases.

> Surely all that is required is a comment that "mplayer is not tested with
> the 2.96 compiler - there have been issues with this compiler in the past
> - we don't recommend you use it.  Please don't report problems to the
> lists until you have confirmed that they also exist when you compile with
> 2.95 or >=3.0."

It was done for 2 months. But it seems, nobody readed it. They simply
proudly reported they use gcc 2.96 and they have problems.
So we changed it to be interactive. Maybe they notice that message now.

> I can understand the concern - who needs problems caused from outside.  
> But all this xxx is CRAP, yyy is SHIT that's all over the docs and list
> really grates for me.  I don't think it does the project credit.  Which
> seems a shame with such a good player... :
> 
> Quality code is hard to write.  Mplayer has bugs, gcc has bugs.
> icewm has bugs...
and we has idegs. and our idegcounter overflowed again and again.

unfortunatelly mplayer is out of our control. it's used by lamers, linux
users who can't even use windows, and never tried to compile a kernel.
they installed (with default options) mdk or redhat or suse, and without
rtfm'ing send messages saying 'it doesn't work! help me! please! i'm new to
the linux! help! oh! help me!'. We can't stop them, but at least we try to
force RTFM and to read fuckin' messages of ./configure and mplayer.

and you clever guys come and flame us with gcc 2.96 and binary packages.
instead of helping users or making patches to help solve problems.

half of our spare/free time is spent by answering silly mails here and
making newer tricks and checks to configure to avoid such mails.

and there is a balance. one side are you, clever guys, saying we are very
bad because we don't like buggy gcc 2.96, and at the other side the 'new to
linux' guys who showing us gcc 2.96 is buggy.

conclusinion: we can't be good. half of people always will say we are bad.

maybe we should close the project, make it closed source, commercial, and
provide install support for it. then we could leave current work, so
development could go faster, and we earn lots of money with it and buy a bug
house etc etc. do you really want it? it seems.

back to the topic. yes, mplayer also has bugs. but 95% of this list traffic
is about system (compiler, installation, configuration, users's mind)
problems. mplayer bugs are mostly fixed if reported.


A'rpi / Astral & ESP-team

--
mailto:arpi at thot.banki.hu
http://esp-team.scene.hu