Re: [cobalt-developers] 2.2.14 kernel

[Dennis <dennis@xxxxxxxxx>]

At 08:48 AM 5/27/00 +0200, Michael Zimmermann wrote:
>From: Dennis <dennis@xxxxxxxxx>
>[about Tim Hockin from Cobalt who said he won't release the new kernel
>before it got a throrough test-beating]
>> No offense, but you'd think that a public company such as yourselves would
>> have people dedicated to such projects.
>>
>> Talk about penny-wise and pound foolish.
>
>I must say, Dennis, this is easy talk from your side.
>On the other hand I see again and again that people
>in these lists talk about where to get the cheapest
>RaQ and they argue about 200 bucks difference.
>And then the arguments that Cobalt support is
>not responding (for free of course) in "due time".
>
>And and and.
>
>If you want to run the latest Kernel, why don't you
>build your own system and put in your personal
>programs and procedures to maintain the machine?

actually, we sell a product that runs on both cobalt RaQ3 and our own
hardware (a 500mhz celeron, 2 ethernets, 1 U...running linux and our
bandwidth management package). Frankly I'd love to sell cobalts and not
have to build so many systems, but I cant move them. Too much $$$ (as you
have to buy a high-end server to get 2 ethernets or a slot), too little
CPU, using buggy ethernet drivers and only running 2.2.12. 

Maybe Cobalt's market is selling to the brain-dead, non linux savvy
community. But there is a whole (huge) market you are missing by
(apparently) being 1 or 2 engineers short. My point, if you care, is that
for the amount of money you raised you could sell a LOT more units by
having a couple more people.

>
>One Kernel revision back is not bad, really not bad
>in my opinion. And the development staff (her it was
>Tim) is allready testing the newest one. I repeat: that's
>really NOT BAD.

But .14 is not yet released, and .16 is almost out....so really .12 is
being shipped and 16pre is available. So you are "almost" only 2 revisions
back. The ethernet contoller fixes for the intel processor was not released
until .15, so you may be short on that also.


>
>And I know what I'm talking about, I did *some*
>OS- and compiler-development and system-software
>QA in my life.

Perhaps, but you dont understand the marketplace. Engineers usually dont.

>The Cobalt guys may have their dark spots, I don't
>argue about that, but Dennis your comment about
>the kernel revision was rather childish.

I never said anything about Tim or his efforts...only that you cant have 1
guy doing everything. A company with your resources should have 5 Tims
dedicated to keeping the RaQ3 up to date.  You only  have to support 1
lousy ethernet controller...how difficult is it to keep it up to date with
the latest fixes?

Good thing Im  not a stockholder, because a company that raised as much as
you have should have more engineers keeping your product up to date. Worse
than that, you dont even seem to understand the impact on your bottom line.

Dennis Baasch, President
Emerging Technologies, Inc.
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