My fears about the evolution of Linux

• Tags:
• Ubuntu,
• Fedora,
• Xorg,
• Linux

Jack Wallen

Published: 18 Feb 2009 11:31 GMT

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After a run-in with a cheap KVM (keyboard, video, mouse) unit, Jack Wallen discovers that the Xorg open-source implementation of the X Window System has evolved into something he never expected.

Recently I had a situation where a KVM was the cause of Xorg not being able to read the correct modes from my monitor. It took me a while to work out what was going on, but in the process I discovered something about the most recent Xorg that is both exciting and disturbing at the same time.

I had been installing Fedora 10 on my desktop, which had been running Ubuntu 8.10. Because the KVM switch was keeping Xorg from setting up 1,200×1,024 resolution, I thought I might just have to hand-tweak my xorg.conf to get it. Not a problem, I've done it hundreds of times.

But it's funny how quickly you can find yourself in one of those "Huh?" situations. I opened a terminal window, SUed to root, changed to the /etc/X11 directory, and issued the ls command. What I saw gave me pause. There was no xorg.conf file. I had a machine up and running, in full 5 runlevel, with no X configuration file.

How is that possible? Well, it turns out that is where Xorg is heading, as of release 7.4. And I'm not sure I like it.

Don't get me wrong, I understand the 'why'. For large-scale adoption, Linux needs to be as simple to use as the competition. One way to achieve this is to take the guesswork out of setting up such things as video. And I think it's safe to say we all know that configuring video has, in the past, been a nightmare on certain chipsets.

Linux-Windows merge
So to that end I can fully understand why the developers would want to go down this route. And if they can create a fool-proof system that will be able to successfully configure X Windows with zero user intervention, more power to them. But I think this is a sign of things to come, and that sign looks like a Merge with Linux and Windows.

How so? I'll tell you. It used to be that every single system in Linux had a handy, user-editable configuration file, most often found in the /etc directory. If there was ever a problem, you simply had to open up that file and make a few modifications.

Some of these systems are evolving in such a way that the configuration files have either disappeared altogether or spread out over numerous files that are either hard to find or figure out.

Personally, I don't want a Linux that obfuscates or does away with configuration files. It doesn't make sense to me. I want my Linux flexible. Of course, I understand that even in this new-fangled Xorg, if I am not happy with an xorg.conf-less set-up I can generate one with the Xorg -configure :1 command and then edit it myself.

But if this new setup is heralding a new era of Linux, then I worry that the only way to solve a problem will be the old-fashioned Microsoft way of reinstalling. That just will not do. But my complaint is not the loudest voice in the choir. No, the loudest voice is the one crying to make Linux ever easier. And that is certainly the voice that needs to be heard. But I don't think the solution is to cut off us old-school users altogether.

Path to world domination
The answer is not to add another step to the installation process. In fact, the answer is most likely to lie with the end users themselves. For those of us old-timers, it might be time to allow Linux to evolve into something a bit easier for the masses to swallow. For a long time we have called for world domination. But just as U2 sold out after the Joshua Tree album, those who have cried the loudest for domination do an about-face when it seems Linux is onto something that could tip the scales.

I cry, "Why are you making this too simple?" at the same time as new users are crying "Why is this so hard?". I think we can both have our cake and eat it too, but the old-schoolers are going to have to eat our own dog food.

As a Linux user who is pretty confident in most areas of the operating system — sans development — I don't have a problem with creating and editing an xorg.conf. So if Xorg wants to evolve in such a way that X Windows doesn't require an xorg.conf file, but can use one if the user so desires, then old-timers will enjoy taking the user-friendly release and rockin' it old school.

And I am sure it's only a matter of time before the latest version of Fedora is forked and a newer, less user-friendly version will appear. At that point there will be a Linux for every skill level. And from that, world domination will ensue.

Credit: The Evolution of Linux from TechRepublic.com

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