Hey Folks, There's something else that I think would be helpful to all involved: A white paper on "Linux for Machine Control." Something that explains: -What are the unique needs of machine control vs. office or server computing -What are the technical capabilities of Linux in regard to machine control req'ts -Regular Linux vs. RT Linux -Some of the non-obvious considerations -Basically a technical defense of the reasoning behind a LinuxPLC -Something that non-coders can understand. -It should also explain why a person who knows nothing about Linux could still easily use the end product -- why people needn't be afraid of it. -It should have a glossary of common terminology -Hyperlinks to helpful websites I think this should also be an "open source white paper" where everyone can contribute, and designated editor(s) play referee on the final release. I'd be happy to be an editor. Others are far more qualified to speak to technical issues than me. In general, I think that one of the things that the Linux community lacks is a sense of what appeals to, or alternately confuses, those who know little about it. A well written paper like this would be a big help. I plan on getting to this one way or the other in the next few weeks, but I'm sure some folks on this list already have some material they could paste together to get this started. Perry Sink Synergetic [email protected] _______________________________________________ LinuxPLC mailing list [email protected] http://linuxplc.org/mailman/listinfo/linuxplc

 

A white paper is probably a better idea than an open letter asking employers to give their people time to work on the project. As they say, it's easier to get forgiveness than permission. In addition, things have become tighter for many companies in the past few months, and they're less likely to grant free time than they were. The press release that will get big play will be the one that announces product, but that's off in the future. In the mean time, how about releases giving progress updates? Don't make them too often, and don't do them unless there is something really newsworthy happening, but do send them out. Most magazines are looking for hard news to report, and we welcome good input. Peter Cleaveland Senior Technical Editor Control Solutions magazine (formerly Instrumentation & Control Systems--I&CS) 2002 Sproul Rd, Suite 302 Broomall, PA 19008 610-325-8192 Fax 610-325-8198 _______________________________________________ LinuxPLC mailing list [email protected] http://linuxplc.org/mailman/listinfo/linuxplc

 

Perry, I think this is a good idea. I would be glad to help. Please let me know what I can do. I think this paper should also make a case for the "open source" part of the project; what are the commercial advantages for vendors, VARs, end users, etc.... regards rickj [email protected] _______________________________________________ LinuxPLC mailing list [email protected] http://linuxplc.org/mailman/listinfo/linuxplc