[SlugBug] Difficulties with Suse 8.2

[Lesley Binks]

Hello everyone :)

I've been trying to compile kernels lately using Suse 8.2 .

Unfortunately Suse 8.2 ships with this version of gcc

gcc (GCC) 3.3 20030226 (prerelease) (SuSE Linux)

This is not the version recommended for kernel compiles and I hit 
another problem the other day.

I have just installed an SMC1244TX network card.  Natch, this piece of 
hardware doesn't have drivers so I went off for a hunt around.

The source I have managed to find from 
http://www.premiopc.com/support/drivers/drivers.html#nic
comes with a shell script to compile it.  This is my modified version.

gcc -DMODULE -D__KERNEL__ -I/lib/modules/2.4.20-4GB/build/include -Wall 
-Wstrict-prototypes -
O6 -c rtl8139.c
   echo -DMODVERSIONS
if [ ! -x /usr/src/linux/modules ]
then
    mkdir /usr/src/linux/modules
fi
cp ./rtl8139.o /usr/src/linux/modules/rtl8139.o

The modification I made is the location of the include files which works 
  in locating the include files fine because I get these sort of warnings

/lib/modules/2.4.20-4GB/build/include/asm/system.h: In function 
`__set_64bit_var':
/lib/modules/2.4.20-4GB/build/include/asm/system.h:189: warning: 
dereferencing type-punned pointer will break strict-aliasing rules

(and yes it does say type-punned, not type-pinned, and no I don't know 
what type-punned means )

which might be the cause of these and similar errors

rtl8139.c: In function `rtl8129_probe1':
rtl8139.c:443: warning: passing arg 1 of `init_etherdev' from 
incompatible pointer type
rtl8139.c:443: warning: assignment from incompatible pointer type
rtl8139.c:446: error: dereferencing pointer to incomplete type

I've also downloaded a precompiled version of the driver from 
www.linuxmagic.com.  This won't even run on my box because Suse has 
given me a prerelease v3 of the gcc compiler and the precompiled stuff 
(quite rightly) is compiled with v2.95.3

I've downloaded v2.95.3 of gcc because this is the version that is 
stable for kernel compiles.  I am working out how I can keep both 
compilers on board and compile this safely.  But then I'll be compiling 
v2.95.3 with the 3.3 20030226 (prerelease) version I have so how much 
use will be the end result?

Now the reason I got into this particular hole, and I feel it is a hole, 
is that I bought the card some time back and did not test it immediately 
on my machine.

Hardware compatibility is one of the major issues witrh Linux and it's 
not the developers' fault.  I know that.

However, I do feel right to go on a rant about this.

<RANT>
It must be real great to tweak around with systems and develop distros 
for release, obtaining licenses for bits and pieces of code.  However
I have had to re-install Suse every so often on this box to redistribute 
partition sizes.  I feel pretty sure that, with the same actions and 
selections at install time I get different things installed on the 
machine.  I get the core of what I need but there are differences 
between the installs and I am not the one doing the changing of the 
installation.

Presumably Suse has used a set of random numbers to select the gunk it 
thinks I should have at install time?  I really would prefer to choose.

My view on this distro from Suse now is that it stops me achieving my 
aims.  I need a network card installed to be able to communicate with my 
Laptop.  I need to be able to communicate between my laptop and my main 
machine.  While I could transfer using CD's burned on my main machine 
the only way back is via floppy. Which is a tad ridiculous in this day 
and age.

I have had a look at Debian and the woody release is clearly marked has 
having no USB unless one chooses a bf2.4 option marked as experimental.

Pardon me if my levels of frustration over this preclude me from feeling 
happy about being part of somebody else's experiment while I try to get 
other things I actually want to do done around here.

I'm not entirely sure how other people get on with Linux in these 
situations but I have found far too many times, that I want to do say 
'task A' but have to go through 'task B' not only to 'task Z' but also 
'task aa' through to 'task zzzz'.  Things become a real nightmare simply 
because someone somewhere in Suse has decided say that gcc v2.95.3 is 
just not good enough anymore and that a prelease version is what the 
customer really wants.

I can only imagine that it is some spotty faced german geek who's 
managed to persuade the decision makers in Suse to use a pre-release 
version of the gcc compiler in this distro ... but could I have found 
that out before buying the distro ??? where would that information have 
been placed???

 From the point of view of someone on their tod with this stuff I have 
to say my experience of Linux over the last few years is that it's fine 
if you are in a job with it where you are paid to sit there and re-tweak 
installs or spend hours on the internet looking for drivers or whatever 
else you need.  My experience is it's not fine if you want to get on 
with something else.

Of course you could get a job where you can get to do all this without 
the bosses realising that the real reason projects are held up is 
because of the problems I have outlined above.  (And yes I have had 
project timelines ruined - no let's say blasted to pieces - by a 
sysadmin who loved to play with a beta version of autofs.  To the extent 
it was a contributory factor to my leaving because I was unable to get 
my projects done because instead of coming in to find that the automated 
stuff had worked and I could move forward I'd get in in the am to find 
the automated stuff hadn't worked because autofs had hung somewhere and 
spend the rest of the morning dealing with the backlog.  This didn't 
help me any!!!!)

Disregarding incompatible hardware issues the biggest problem with Linux 
is that it's built by geeks and used by geeks.  As a server it's 
probably up with the best thanks to apache and exim.  (And that's 
ignoring the network card issue I have atm).

As a work tool my last few years experience of it is that it is built by 
geeks designed by geeks and run by geeks for whom the emphasis is 'oh 
look what I can get this computer to do' and not on getting projects 
themselves done.  It's miles better than what it was but still not good 
enough.  All this Suse distro makes me want to do at the moment, is scream.

There are times when I feel it's designed for 15 year olds who don't 
have to go out and earn a living or do anything else like cook, wash or 
anything 'cos they are (a) stinky little junior geeks and (b) have their 
mum to do everything for them.

And would someone get http://www.linuxhardware.org/faq.shtml to not use 
dark grey or blue text on a black background????  It seems to me that is 
a clear indication of letting a 15 year old loose with no clue about 
colour, legibility or accessibility legislation.
</RANT>

Does anyone know of any distro or release of Linux that doesn't reduce 
any project timeline down to a total mess any time you need to change 
anything???? That is professionally set up ?  With the standard compiler??

Lastly, are there any computer professionals out there who know how I 
can  estimate a project time line on Linux based systems when it has so 
many of these problems?

Regards

Lesley