linux-kernel - Re: arch/i386/boot rewrite, and all the hard-coded video cards

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Message-ID: <4637AA91.1010901@gmail.com>
Date:	Tue, 01 May 2007 23:01:05 +0200
From:	Rene Herman <rene.herman@...il.com>
To:	Linus Torvalds <torvalds@...ux-foundation.org>
CC:	"H. Peter Anvin" <hpa@...or.com>,
	linux-kernel <linux-kernel@...r.kernel.org>,
	"Eric W. Biederman" <ebiederm@...ssion.com>,
	Andi Kleen <ak@...e.de>, Jeff Garzik <jeff@...zik.org>,
	Jeremy Fitzhardinge <jeremy@...p.org>
Subject: Re: arch/i386/boot rewrite, and all the hard-coded video cards

On 05/01/2007 10:32 PM, Rene Herman wrote:

> On 05/01/2007 04:43 AM, Linus Torvalds wrote:
> 
>> Doubtful. The Tseng ET4000 cards may have been the gold standard in 
>> 1991, but I don't think most people even _remember_ them. And if they 
>> have them in their machines, they probably tend to run a Linux-1.2 
>> kernel, or at least not care a lot about graphics (ie they may have an 
>> old card in the machine just because they need VGA to boot, rather 
>> than because they care about Tseng).
> 
> My 386 has an ET4000. An ET4000AX/W32 even. And you bet it's because 
> it's nifty! Okay, I'll admit the thing doesn't currently run a 2.6 
> kernel...
> 
> The answer will probably be "no", but would this be a good point to ask 
> if this would be a good time to not bother with the mode switching code 
> at all anymore? I'm generally rather appreciative of old gunk but I 
> haven't cared for that specific feature for ages now. I personally don't 
> use framebuffer, but I would if I wanted more than the plain VGA my BIOS 
> sets up.

Confusingly put; please consider a "If the switching code in itself is still 
considered relevant, " to be present here. But rip it all out, I'd say...

> I'd consider keeping anything but VESA 1.2 (which that ET4000 and most 
> all other Super VGA cards of the era also do!) nonsensical and as far as 
> I'm concerned this includes all the VGA modes with the strange number of 
> lines; a 43/60-line VGA screen is too horrible to look at anyway...

Rene.
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