Messages in this thread |  | | Date | Fri, 21 Jun 1996 09:44:00 -0500 | From | (Andrew C. Esh) | Subject | Re: Simple, effective boot graphic |
| |
>>>>> "Mark" == Mark E Levitt <melevitt@mailbox.syr.edu> writes:
Mark> On Thu, 20 Jun 1996, Albert Cahalan wrote: >> No, it MUST. You are one of many who have missed the point. >> If you can find someone with a Mac (retail store even), ask >> them to let you see the Mac boot. The Mac will actually smile >> at you. It most definitely does not spew technobabble.
Mark> But I LIKE the technobable! When I first booted Linux Mark> after having only experienced DOS/Windows and Mac, I though Mark> "WOW! an OS that actually tells you what's going on during Mark> the boot process."
Mark> I also think it looks much more "high-end" to print out Mark> messages like that rather than put up a graphic.
MUST? I don't agree. Let's make it optional.
LIKE the technobabble? Me too, but I do not argue that we should make it mandatory (I don't think you do either).
Why don't we just add something to replace the kernel which lilo can boot to? It will put put a graphic, and then load the real kernel in the background. Hit 'ESC', and you drop back to the text screen with the bootup messages on it, in case you want to see why something got stuck. If you don't want it, don't put it in your liloconfig, and don't have lilo install it.
If such a booter is installed, it would be nice if it were designed to hand off the display gracefully to the X system, so Linux could then be GUI all the way from the end of BIOS boot, to a ready system.
Some folks would like to have something like this, which would at the same time get rid of all the bootup messages.
I suggest we skip the animation, since the idea is to boot, not waste CPU moving pixels around. If someone wants it, though, let them have it. A better place for animations would be in a screen saver. Here's an idea: Make an X or SVGAlib interface which can read Windows Screen Saver binaries (like After Dark) and play them on Linux (without Wine).
Even though the technical folks (like me) would rather see text, and OS messages, Linux would do well with the general public if it contained more GUI-oriented support, from start to finish.
Again, all of this should be optional. That's what I like about Linux: If you don't like something, you can do something different. Freedom!
--- Andrew C. Esh mailto:andrew_esh@cnt.com Computer Network Technology andrewes@mtn.org (finger for PGP key) 6500 Wedgwood Road 612.550.8000 (main) Maple Grove MN 55311 612.550.8229 (direct) http://www.cnt.com - CNT Inc. Home Page http://www.mtn.org/~andrewes - ACE Home Page
|  |