<kristianpaul> gn8
<wpwrak> #2 enumerates, too. yeay ! :)
<wpwrak> (component file) no, you can move pins
<wpwrak> click on the circle
<wpwrak> eor just move there and type M
<wpwrak> some fine day, when qi-hw gets bought by some ultra-conservative megacorp, and they find the USB IDs, all nicely written in "leet", that will drive them crazy ;-)
<tuxbrain> hey hey wait, I have just read it, Fedora electronic lab and Milkymist, what it means a)FEL will run in milkymist or b) You can work on milkymist design with FEL? whatever option is cool indeed
<wpwrak> should be b)
<tuxbrain> well I think is time to think about a FEL post in tuxbrain :)
<tuxbrain> maybe become a fedora Ambassador
<tuxbrain> :P
<qi-bot> [commit] Werner Almesberger: Increased clearance from 9 mil to 9.7 mil. http://qi-hw.com/p/f32xbase/ad0015d
<qi-bot> [commit] Werner Almesberger: Make the board a bit bigger for more relaxed spacing of traces and components. http://qi-hw.com/p/f32xbase/c7a53e8
<qi-bot> [commit] Werner Almesberger: R1/R2 were very close to U1 - move them away. Some small cleanup. http://qi-hw.com/p/f32xbase/807616f
<qi-bot> [commit] Werner Almesberger: hw/cam/: toolpath generation for cutting the PCB. http://qi-hw.com/p/f32xbase/c9f4c9b
<qi-bot> [commit] Werner Almesberger: Customize the FT232 EEPROM with the Qi Hardware ID and other parameters. http://qi-hw.com/p/f32xbase/9777d88
<qi-bot> [commit] Werner Almesberger: Added BOOKSELF and dsv setup procedure. http://qi-hw.com/p/f32xbase/3fd1720
<djbclark> wolfspraul: ah syncronicity
<wolfspraul> syncronicity?
<wolfspraul> how are you doing?
<wolfspraul> a little worried about you :-)
<wolfspraul> we are moving along the lines we discussed back in July
<wolfspraul> btw that guy Henry went dark on me
<djbclark> wolfspraul: I am, in fact, still alive. Finding a fulfillment house willing to work in low quanities in US near me has so far been fail. Just brought over 50 Ben Nanonotes to contractor last week. Should be selling later this month.
<wolfspraul> well, let's say he exactly met the expectations I had into his "I will release code next week"
<wolfspraul> I'm around the block for a while... :-)
<wolfspraul> meanwhile we are actually moving, and code is free & open from day 1, how it should be
<wolfspraul> djbclark: perfect, good to hear that
<wolfspraul> I'm in for the long run, so no worries
<djbclark> wolfspraul: Hallam? He is also still alive. I wasn't aware he had promised anything.
<wolfspraul> we are trying to spend a bit more time to write up good readable news, with pictures and all
<wolfspraul> that will also improve the communication among the core members like you
<wolfspraul> otherwise our project is too diverse
<wolfspraul> djbclark: sure we quipped over it back then.
<wolfspraul> it's not his fault
<wolfspraul> his employer won't let him release nada zip anything
<wolfspraul> that simple
<wpwrak> what wonderful code shall we expect in 4 months ? (standard development time adjustment: add one, duplicate, then convert to the next higher unit)
<wolfspraul> GPS firmware
<wolfspraul> the stuff kristian paul works on
<wpwrak> ooh ! that would be nice
<wolfspraul> yes
<wolfspraul> santa claus also could remember the copyleft iphone this season...
<wolfspraul> djbclark: if you are using an RSS reader, please add http://en.qi-hardware.com/feed/rss20.xml
<wolfspraul> and help spreading the link
<wpwrak> is kristianpaul the guy who's doing GPS in an FPGA ? the project where we looked at the RF frontend chips ? i thought that was someone else
<djbclark> wolfspraul: ah yeah I thought the useful stuff from him was the hardware component descrptions maybe; the code sounded like it would at least be in purgatory (where there are, of course, lots of attorneys) for months at minimum
<djbclark> -> breakfast food
<djbclark> wolfspraul: if by "using" you mean "have", sure, if you mean "actively have read anythin in the last few months", less so :-/
<wolfspraul> he, OK
<wolfspraul> still spread that link if you can...
<djbclark> wolfspraul: sure, I'll go dent it...
<wolfspraul> yes! :-)
<wolfspraul> thank you!
<wolfspraul> that's the pure original qi news link
<wolfspraul> no aggregated stuff
<wolfspraul> 100% copyleft hardware :-)
<wpwrak> wolfspraul: ah, nice. thanks ! i've been wondering if anything had come out of it. good to see that it's alive :)
<wolfspraul> huh of course
<wolfspraul> you are chatting with him every day :-)
<wolfspraul> wpwrak: you are Werner, right?
<wolfspraul> :-)
<wolfspraul> it's the same guy working on the case for ben-wpan with his reprap
<wolfspraul> he got a sige 4162 evb, and an antenna, and some other smaller stuff
<wolfspraul> oh and a SIE board
<wpwrak> wolfspraul: hehe ;-) i just didn't know he was the one doing that GPS thing. he occasionally mentioned something about GPS, but relatively little and nothing that would "connect" it.
<wolfspraul> oh, I see
<wpwrak> world view updated :)
<qi-bot> [commit] Werner Almesberger: fw/c2usb.conf: USB product ID assignment is now official http://qi-hw.com/p/f32xbase/77d6848
<wpwrak> grr. and i need caffeine. s/fw/hw/ # grmbl
<kristianpaul> wpwrak: yes
<kristianpaul> i just dont like spread loudly what is not done yet :)
<kristianpaul> also is a huge learning curve, task i still doing almot every day
<kristianpaul> almost*
<kristianpaul> right now i want debug the GPC IC frontend output before go further
<kristianpaul> thats why i want use SIE as scopemeter
<kristianpaul> and is not GPS on FPGA initally (surelly will, but who knows)
<kristianpaul> lets see how the ben can handle the GPS correlatiion/tracking  and no die in the try ;)
<wpwrak> kristianpaul: will you generate/collect a sample data stream to try on the Ben ?
<wolfspraul> hmm
<wolfspraul> nice idea
<wpwrak> kristianpaul: (scopemeter) hmm, but you have a digital output on the RF frontend. so why the scopemeter ? (besides generally being a useful thing to have around)
<wpwrak> wolfspraul: much nicer if the data you're trying to reproduce that bug with doesn't change every second ;-)
<wolfspraul> well I also thought about it from a practical standpoint
<wolfspraul> right now we only have one sige 4162 evb
<wolfspraul> and they are hard to come by
<wolfspraul> but if kristianpaul uploads sample data streams, more people can join development
<wolfspraul> we 'virtualize' the evb :-)
<wolfspraul> it also reminds me of a meeting I had at u-blox a while back, where they told me how some cameras had a system where the camera only stored the raw data stream when taking the photo, and it would be converted to the GPS location only later when the pictures are copied to the desktop
<wolfspraul> (of course all with proprietary software)
<wolfspraul> that way the cost of the gps solution in the camera would be much lower
<bartbes> but crappier
<bartbes> as you would be tied to their software
<wolfspraul> sure, although that is not the fault of the hardware
<bartbes> I know, it is simply a note regarding that particular product
<wpwrak> wolfspraul: (board access) yes, good point
<wolfspraul> on the camera itself there are indeed few applications where the user would want to know the gps coordinates immediately
<wpwrak> bartbes: free the software and it's uncrappy again :)
<wolfspraul> that's something they noticed, so the camera is simplified (the hardware), without the user noticing a lost feature
<wolfspraul> that in itself is a good realization
<bartbes> wolfspraul: well, if I have a camera I want to be able to take out my mem card and copy the photos, in this case with the gps position in it
<wpwrak> wolfspraul: and since we're all about making things chin^H^Heap .. :)
<bartbes> though if the gps data is stored on the mem card it is already much better
<wolfspraul> I don't know how they embed the data with the picture, in this case the raw data instead of the gps coordinate
<wolfspraul> anyway we are diverting. it just came to my mind when werner spoke of 'sample data streams'
<wpwrak> bartbes: is there actually a "standard" way to put GPS data into EXIF ?
<bartbes> heh
<bartbes> I believe there is
<wolfspraul> because essentially a 200kb data stream (a vague memory from that meeting) is the same as a gps coordinate
<wolfspraul> just needs a bit of math :-)
<wolfspraul> so where you move that math depends on the application/device type - why not...
<wpwrak> small details :)
<bartbes> wpwrak: though if I remember correctly there are a few different formats, and some of them are actiually stored in the EXIF comment section..
<wpwrak> wolfspraul: also helps a lot if you can debug your math on the PC
<wolfspraul> bartbes: I am not saying I like the pile of proprietary crapware that will stand at the end of this, we are on the same page about that.
<wpwrak> bartbes: good. so at least some made a reasonable choice :)
<bartbes> wpwrak: though wikipedia seems to *suggest* there is a standard way of adding it to ExIF
<wpwrak> wolfspraul: (proprietary) it's at least a choice that can be useful to have. besides, coming from us, it would be open anyway. so worst case, you'd need another open utility to decode the samples
<wolfspraul> sure, like I said it's not the fault of the hardware
<wolfspraul> the idea to drastically simplify the gps module/hardware in a camera because in that device it's enough to collect the raw data stream is a valid idea, I think
<wpwrak> wolfspraul: definitely. just like SDR moves the hard stuff into the CPU. so you move everything one further step down, towards less specialized equipment.
<aisa> having worked with OpenWrt to build 1.5 packages, I have to say this system is really great.
<wolfspraul> aisa: did you have a chance to look into that owners/permission problem, whether you still have it?
<wpwrak> wolfspraul: btw, how about the ghostbusting band-aid ?
<aisa> wolfspraul: porting this package, jbofihe, has taken longer than I planned.
<aisa> the program compiles part of itself and then uses that to finish the build,
<wolfspraul> wpwrak: another mail in my inbox
<wpwrak> ;-))
<wolfspraul> it's excellent. if it works we're done.
<aisa> so I've had to look at gforth package and do a lot of searching to get it working.
<aisa> I am planning on testing this permission problem next, after this package is successfully ported.
<aisa> I'm happy to report that as of this morning it is running on the NanoNote,
<aisa> but I still have at least one bug to fix.
<wolfspraul> today was not a good day, I ran out of battery without noticing, after power cycle some files were corrupted (executables), I thought a few quick apt-get would fix it, but maybe I should not have been so quick as the problem got bigger, and so on
<wpwrak> wolfspraul: was that about the band-aid ? if yes, i'll switch the heap randomization off and rebuild avt2. then we'll see the truth, ugly or not
<wolfspraul> of course
<wpwrak> (fs corruption) eek
<wolfspraul> that's what I would do once I get to your mail
<wolfspraul> amazing that you (think you) tracked it down so quickly. if that workaround works we're done.
<wpwrak> i still don't know what really causes it. but for that, i'd also have to compare kicad versions and so on. but that can wait :)
<wpwrak> (quickly) not really. albout a week :-( well, with several interruptions.
<wolfspraul> nah
<wolfspraul> we document it properly, and that's it. after a year we can check whether it's still needed.
<wpwrak> hehe :)
<wpwrak> rebuild is running. let's keep our fingers crossed :)
<wolfspraul> maybe uninitialized variable somewhere? small compiler differences in the myriad of C++ constructor options
<wolfspraul> there are many ways something like this can creep in
<wolfspraul> the workaround (if it's stable and works) is fantastic I think
<wolfspraul> effective!
<wpwrak> yes, my guess would be some uninitialized boolean for boldface on/off
<wolfspraul> wpwrak: do you know the 1000 different ways of C++ constructors?
<wpwrak> wolfspraul: i'm not sure i want to ;-)
<wolfspraul> that's a real jungle. I do not envy a compiler writer who has to implement this bug-free, somehow.
<wolfspraul> you could easily study just constructors for a year or two
<wpwrak> i didn't know there were such a mess. thought they just get called and that's it
<wolfspraul> amazing how a simple concept such a linear memory can be made so complex
<wolfspraul> oh no
<wolfspraul> but let's not continue the C++ rant :-)
<wolfspraul> if that workaround works it's great!
<wpwrak> it's done. how do we like this ? http://projects.qi-hardware.com/schhist/board-qi-avt2/
<kristianpaul> wpwrak: (scopmeter) sure the SiGE EVB have pulse digital ouput, i'm just want debug the signal
<wolfspraul> he
<wolfspraul> perfect I think!
<wolfspraul> wpwrak: I'll document this tomorrow, thanks a lot for the help!
<kristianpaul> wpwrak: in teory this si square ouput, but it could get triangled due some reason related to capacitance load (i need read more about it)
<kristianpaul> wolfspraul: yup thats the plan, upload the streams
<kristianpaul> surelly :)
<wpwrak> wolfspraul: two more steps: 1) rebuild the rest too (there may be ghosts we haven't spotted yet), and 2) set things such that this survives a reboot
<kristianpaul> i just want to make sure have a clean data aqusition process usign the Ben
<wolfspraul> wpwrak: I'll do that, no worries
<wpwrak> kristianpaul: ah, just the signal integrity. i see. hmm, what sample rate do you expect to get ?
<wpwrak> wolfspraul: ok, so i'll leave all that to you :) thanks
<wpwrak> kristianpaul: (on the scopemeter)
<kristianpaul> wpwrak: (generate data) yes is other idea simulate QI data froma fpga to the ben in order to test benchmarking
<kristianpaul> wpwrak: (rate) there are 3 signal out, SYNC(2Mhz) , DATA (4bits per sync), CLK (8Mhz)
<wpwrak> yes, that too. ah, you'll still need to make that spi-to-spi cpld :)
<kristianpaul> probably
<kristianpaul> but i want see the sqare behavior before
<kristianpaul> thats why i need the scopemeter
<kristianpaul> i plan ignore the CLK
<wpwrak> kristianpaul: (rate) for signal integrty you need some multiple of that. some recommend 10x, but that's probably a bit excessive. still, 80 MHz is achievable.
<kristianpaul> and just track SYNC and do internal timingns to get the right 4 bit data
<kristianpaul> 4 bit pulse data**
<kristianpaul> wpwrak: you mean i need 80Mhz scopmeter to measure 8Mhz data
<kristianpaul> ?
<wpwrak> why not get a decent bench scope ? :) there's an advantage in having a device with real controls that doesn't depend on the pc ...
<kristianpaul> i dont have all that money
<wpwrak> yeah. well, it actually depends on the raise/fall time specification.
<wpwrak> isn't this a for-work project ? :)
<kristianpaul> for-work?
<wpwrak> one that's part of your job
<kristianpaul> nope
<wpwrak> (dunno what you're doing, actually)
<wpwrak> ah, pity
<kristianpaul> my real-work is information security
<wpwrak> not much hardware then
<kristianpaul> thats from all the money came from to bvuy reprap, fpga abnd otehr stuff
<wpwrak> but you can cupcake keys to the server cabinets ;-))
<kristianpaul> :p
<wpwrak> you should ask for a raise. explain them that the expensive hobbies make you more qualified ;-)
<kristianpaul> i considered thata ctually
<kristianpaul> hehe
<kristianpaul> wpwrak: any way i like support this project :)
<kristianpaul> wpwrak: in case my DIY scopmeter fail i think i could byt this http://shop.ebay.com/i.html?_nkw=scopemeter&_sacat=0&_odkw=scope&_osacat=0&_trksid=p3286.c0.m270.l1313#
<wpwrak> 100 MHz, good price for that
<kristianpaul> yeah
<wpwrak> but i wonder if the price is for real. that thing costs USD 2600 new.
<wpwrak> so if they sell it that cheaply, they either have no clue or it's broken
<wpwrak> ah, it's an auction. that's why.
<kristianpaul> :/
<wpwrak> amazing how the prices differ. one place sells it at USD 2100 refurbished. another has it at USD 1500, apparently new.
<kristianpaul> wait where is 100Mhz i read it was 10Mhz..
<wpwrak> 10 MHz would be completely useless :)
<kristianpaul> damm
<kristianpaul> it is
<kristianpaul> ok
<kristianpaul> hmm
<kristianpaul> i need go to a lab then
<wpwrak> 10 MHz would mean that you can see a 10 MHz sinus. so forget about the signal integrity of anything faster than 2 MHz :)
<kristianpaul> :/
<qi-bot> [commit] Juan64Bits: Routing image sensor. http://qi-hw.com/p/xue/ad23f9e
<qi-bot> [commit] Juan64Bits: Cleaning. http://qi-hw.com/p/xue/cc01f3c
<kristianpaul> 2000usd !!
<kristianpaul> :(
<kristianpaul> i think i need ask for a electronic lab in the local university
<qbject> aisa: does your work on wordgrinder mean that it can now be installed on a nanonote?
<aisa> it can.
<aisa> I should have marked the package as unbroken.
<aisa> it did not work for me on the factory image,
<aisa> but once I flashed to the latest build.
<aisa> wordgrinder works.
<aisa> I've not really exercised it, but it opens and writes.
<aisa> qbject: that last bit was all for you.
<qbject> Cool. Thanks.
<qbject> aisa: I realized after I asked that I should probably avoid using it and keep to my own project, but it's good to know that it's out there. :)
<aisa> here, let me port more software for you ;-)
<qbject> Heh. Well, now that you mention in... :-P
<qbject> in -> it
<wpwrak> kristianpaul: do you have it far to bogota ?
<aisa> after a post to the mailing list.
<qbject> aisa: how's it looking?
<aisa> qbject: what, the video?
<aisa> I cross posted it to another list, I enjoyed it.
<qbject> Very cool. I'll watch it tonight while I'm duct taping Dingoo libs into my nn.
<aisa> I spent a lot of time getting a package to generate files on my host, only to realize they were platform dependent and didn't work on my NN.
<aisa> I did get a package out of it, which I can use to generate those data files.
<aisa> that's my next duct tape project.
<aisa> I know nothing about Dingoo...
<aisa> goes to investigate.
<qbject> aisa: NN's less productive but no-less motivating bretheren.
<aisa> ah, cool.
<aisa> Don't get too caught up playing POWDER ;-)
<qbject> Never tried it, but okay.
<aisa> it's a roguelike for platforms like the dingoo.
<qbject> Ach. Meritous is the crawl I'm pursuing atm.
<qbject> And OpenTyrian.
<qbject> And other various modern interpreters for old content.
<qbject> aisa: oo. POWDER does have the sort of pixels I love.
<aisa> after reading about Meritous and OpenTyrian I had to forget they existed.  At least for now ;-)
<aisa> I do plan on porting POWDER to the NN.
<aisa> Not sure of my timeline yet.
<aisa> it's not in my current sprint.
<qbject> aisa - before you get carried away, I think zear has already done so, though I don't know the status of his port: http://downloads.qi-hardware.com/people/zear/games/
<aisa> great!
<qbject> If you REALLY want to have to forget that something exists, take a look at ASCIIpOrtal
<qbject> downloads
<kristianpaul> wpwrak: 12 hrs by ground
<kristianpaul> wpwrak: i live in Buga, is like 450~ away
<kristianpaul> wpwrak: why?
<kristianpaul> away from here*
<kristianpaul> wpwrak: if i dont get the ost of scopemeter i'll trust signaling (glup!) and move to a logic analizer or sort of..
<kristianpaul> 09:42 < wolfspraul> it also reminds me of a meeting I had at u-blox a while back, where they told me how some cameras had a system where the camera only stored the raw data  stream when taking the photo, and it would be converted to the GPS location only later when the pictures are copied to the desktop
<kristianpaul> yeah thats reelly usefull
<kristianpaul> as cameras can correlate all that data :)
<kristianpaul> cant*
<kristianpaul> i'm not sure but u-box seems to use the same SiGE chip i have or same family**
<kristianpaul> wpwrak: The CLK_OUT, DATA and SYNC output drive is set to maximum by R6 = 0R pulling SE4162T RVI pin 12
<kristianpaul> to LDO_OUT pin 24. RVI pin can be left open circuit for minimum output drive (7.5pF load). The GPS
<kristianpaul> clock and data outputs are slew rate limited to minimize coherent feed-round interference which would
<kristianpaul> otherwise de-sensitize the radio. As the load capacitance increases the higher frequency clock will tend
<kristianpaul> towards a triangular waveform. In most practical applications the output drive should be more than
<kristianpaul> adequate to drive the combined PCB and processor input load capacitance. However, problems may
<kristianpaul> occur with large development platforms. In such cases a local, triple buffer for the clock and data lines
<kristianpaul> may be required. Consideration of the total load capacitance should be made when viewing the condition
<kristianpaul> of the clock waveform with a standard 11pF scope probe.
<kristianpaul> that really worry me, thats why i need xscope, but i can guess this will happen and just implement they buffer they said..
<kristianpaul> or avoid clock
<kristianpaul> may be
<kyak> i just compiled a "Hello, world!" on Ben with gcc, under OpenWRT :)
<kyak> now to create a usable Makefile
<qbject> kyak: awesome.
<kristianpaul> kyak: ohh?
<kristianpaul> kyak:  ported gcc? how you achieved that?
<kristianpaul> kyak: great :)
<lekernel> kristianpaul, basically fighting with autocrap build system I guess :o)
<kristianpaul> lekernel: ;)
<wpwrak> kristianpaul: (bogota) ah, i was thinking that carlos' group could help you with measurements. but 12 h is a little far.
<kristianpaul> wpwrak: well i'm just finished writing a mail to a profesor i know from the local public univesity here,
<kristianpaul> i'm now they hav lot of scopemeters
<kristianpaul> i used soem of then
<kristianpaul> but i'm not stduying there
<kristianpaul> so i asked him for some help and support
<wpwrak> let's hope they can do something for you
<kristianpaul> wpwrak if were in bogota (NOO ;)) i think anyway carlos keep busy with its courses and students so let him work :)
<kristianpaul> me too :=
<wpwrak> seems that you could just start with R6 = 0R. given that the data clock is constant, you'd notice quickly if anything is amiss
<kristianpaul> yup
<wpwrak> kristianpaul: carlos would not have to assist you _personally_ ;-)
<kristianpaul> wpwrak: sure but i know equipment is expensive and he dont know nothing about me so.. at least that count
<kristianpaul> anyway i'm not near to bogota to worry about it :)
<kristianpaul> in the other hand this professor know me since years go so is different ask for soemthing like this
<wpwrak> kristianpaul: for measuring the clock frequency, you can use the approach i used for ben-wpan/cntr: implement a large (> 32 bit) free-running counter, read it from a pc, and synchronize with NTP
<kristianpaul> :O
<wpwrak> NTP isn't extremely accurate bit it's immune to drift. so you can implement an arbitrarily precise frequency counter if you're willing to wait long enough
<wpwrak> s/biy/but/
<kristianpaul> i'm doing !
<wpwrak> gah
<kristianpaul> for mlkymist
<kristianpaul> but is kind of crude yet
<kristianpaul> but can be improved :)
<wpwrak> (already) great !
<kristianpaul> hmm you gave me an interesting idea
<wpwrak> i used "cntr" to check that the transceiver has a clock that's better than +/- 30 ppm. i can get a measurement accuracy of a few ppm quite easily. a frequency counter with the same precision would cost something like USD 2-3k
<wpwrak> of course, it would be faster :) 1 s vs. 20 minutes :)
<kristianpaul> :)
<wpwrak> i wish my scope had a larger sample memory. debugging usb-driven communication (ft232 bit-banging) is quite da pain. 1 MHz output change rate with delays of several ms between bursts. i either see only a small fraction of even the simplest session or it's with an unusably low sample rate :-(
<wpwrak> sigh. why or why do those nice new rigols with 140 MSa have to be so expensive ...
<kristianpaul> sigh
<kristianpaul> checks bitscope.com
<wpwrak> that ft232 is a weird beast. seems that set_bitmode can bypass a write.
<wpwrak> also nice: in peak detect mode, my scope doesn't combine min/max samples but shows them one after the other, "inventing" nice glitches. haven't used peak detect mode for a while, but i think with older firmware, it didn't do this.
<wolfspraul> wpwrak: the milkymist 'memory instability' bug is fixed, turned out to be a software problem in usb event handling
<wolfspraul> just fyi
<wolfspraul> lots of time went into this, but at least we got some stability improvements in the rc2 board out of it, that (assuming there are no regressions) should be a good thing in general
<wpwrak> wow. sounds like a pretty non-obvious connection
<wpwrak> yeah, sometimes you find a lot of other problems when chasing a bug long enough ;-)
<wpwrak> well, congratulations to the mikymisters ! :-)
<wpwrak> wolfspraul: seems that you have enough stuff already for a community news update :-)
<wolfspraul> oh
<wolfspraul> yes
<wolfspraul> tons
<wolfspraul> it's a lot of work to turn it into high quality news though
<wolfspraul> I think I will work on a milkymist press release for 27c3
<wolfspraul> try to get a quote from Lattice, etc.
<wolfspraul> that's another thing that was missing in the Nanowar release - a quote
<wpwrak> maybe a good strategy for the community news would be to have a frequency or quantity trigger. if you have enough items, don't wait for more. that way, you avoid getting a small encyclopedia every once in a while (which many people won't read with the same amount of attention something smaller would get).
<wolfspraul> totally agree
<wpwrak> the frequency trigger would be a timeout to show that the project is still alive
<wolfspraul> I may need to move some of the 11-1 stuff into 12-1
<wolfspraul> but one by one
<wolfspraul> also, even though schhist, or 2.6.36 inclusion, would justify a proper press release of their own, I don't have enough time right now to do it
<wolfspraul> so it will just show up as an entry in the community news...
<wpwrak> community news are fine for such things. they're not big enough to make it into, say, heise newsticker anyway
<wolfspraul> I think we should only do a press release when we reach some minimum quality level, with regards to the text, pictures, quote, etc.
<wolfspraul> and also on the release day of the press release we need someone full-time to follow up with media
<wpwrak> yes, that too. and have something substantial enough. a product launch, for example. or some major new use(r)
<wolfspraul> so unless we have that capacity, it's better to bring it nicely in the community news rather than have a lot of failed press releases
<wpwrak> yeah, i saw how you explained it to tuxbrain. quite a bit of work :)
<wolfspraul> sure
<wolfspraul> but think about how much work whatever the press release is talking about is
<wolfspraul> if you want your press release to be picked up, you are competing with others and they put substantial efforts on getting their word out...
<wpwrak> sure. still, didn't expect that you'd actually need a propagation-around-the-world schedule. well, never thought about it.
<wolfspraul> well that's my suggestion and I have seen it like that in recent years. if someone knows a better way, please late us know...
<wolfspraul> these things are changing, it depends on how the media is working
<wolfspraul> I remember even 10 years ago it was all about the address list (snail mail) you had
<wolfspraul> so on the day of the press release, you would mail out x00 letters to the 'secret list' that only your PR guy had and would never share with you
<wolfspraul> so at least that has been blown wide open now
<wpwrak> it does sound quite reasonable. i'm more the "fire and forget" type. but i can see how that approach would fail miserably in this case.
<qi-bot> [commit] Xiangfu Liu: add the manual page manual/fped.1 http://qi-hw.com/p/fped/f8ed574
<qi-bot> [commit] Xiangfu Liu: add debian/fped.manpages  for install manpage http://qi-hw.com/p/fped/31b5a9d
<qi-bot> [commit] Xiangfu Liu: add DESTDIR to Makefile. http://qi-hw.com/p/fped/d50bb0b
<wolfspraul> with a little time, you can easily collect submit and personal email addresses of any media you like
<wpwrak> open hardware, open PR ;-)
<wolfspraul> I think something new in recent years is that stories are 'pulled'
<wolfspraul> journalists are so overloaded with bad quality stuff, that they rather contact known PR agents themselves, and work with them to craft/time interesting stories
<wpwrak> heh :) interesting
<wolfspraul> but who knows, we just do step by step, see what works, adapt, etc.
<wpwrak> and nice for the PR agents. strengthtens their position
<wolfspraul> definitely
<wolfspraul> they found a replacement for the 'address list' they guarded like a state secret 10+ years ago
<wolfspraul> everybody has that now
<wolfspraul> but the result is flood, and... things turn around and the PR pro is back in business... :-)
<wolfspraul> back then they often were an overpriced mailing service, leaning back and sitting on their list
<wolfspraul> I do think now they have to work harder on quality, so someone will contact them to pull stuff
<wpwrak> fat cat biz :)
<wolfspraul> if I had more money I would work with a PR agent right away
<wolfspraul> works like a multiplier on whatever you have
<wpwrak> could we have someone in the community who'd have channels ? there are some people who seem to have more of a journalistic profile than a developer profile
<wpwrak> or perhaps you already have better access anyway
<wolfspraul> help is always good
<wolfspraul> I don't know, it's a good question
<wolfspraul> xiangfu continues to work on the fped Debian package
<wolfspraul> should be almost done
<wolfspraul> as for getting it into Debian, we might need a sponsor or so (I think first xiangfu uploads it to mentors.debian.net, he can do that himself, and after that it needs to be pulled up by higher authorities)
<wolfspraul> I was thinking about contacting Jan Luebbe, he's a Debian developer and may have the powers
<wpwrak> ah, interesting process :)
<wolfspraul> Bas Wijnen is writing from a Debian address too, I don't know whether that means he is a Debian developer and wants to/can help
<wolfspraul> just fyi
<wolfspraul> Xiangfu knows someone too, who helped get xburst-tools to the next stage
<wolfspraul> but that took about 6 months I think, so this time I will try to find others as well
<wpwrak> urgh. that's slow.
<wpwrak> well, debian has that reputation to uphold ... :)
<wolfspraul> eventually we'll get it in, no worries
<wolfspraul> if my frustration levels goes too high, you will hear about it here :-)
<wolfspraul> xburst-tools just took me 15 months, and it is _almost_ in unstable now
<wolfspraul> wpwrak: on the 2.6.36 release day, we should have made a nice press release with quote from CEO of Ingenic etc.
<wolfspraul> argh
<wolfspraul> so many good opportunities, so much work
<wolfspraul> I am pretty sure if all I described recently about press releases would have been done, it could have been picked up at quite a few places
<wolfspraul> maybe more as 'new Chinese CPU supported' or so
<wolfspraul> 'mobile Chinese CPU finding its way into Linux'
<wolfspraul> ha, to go with the nobel peace prize - 'freedom fighters free mobile Chinese CPU'
<wpwrak> don't piss off the rulers of your country ;-)
<wolfspraul> anyway now it's too late, i think 2.6.36 will be released very soon, and I cannot get enough energy into this right now
<wpwrak> yeah, don't know how well "refreshing" old news works
<wolfspraul> not at all
<wolfspraul> facts don't cease to be facts, but news ceases to be news
<wpwrak> too bad then. nanowar would have been a candidate
<wolfspraul> that's almost like Newton's law in media. don't argue with it.
<wpwrak> yup. nothing's as old as yesterday's news :)
<wolfspraul> btw, journalist friend of mine (non-tech) sent me an email, just ranting a bit about his job
<wpwrak> hehe :)
<wolfspraul> he went to Cuba, for journalistic reasons. In such cases they try to have multiple assignments, some confirmed, some 'maybe' (depending on quality of report), etc.
<wolfspraul> so he finally got his 10 A4 pages article accepted by a large German newspaper as a 'culture report', and got: 400 EUR!
<wolfspraul> 40 EUR / page
<wpwrak> cuba is a nice place to be sent to for work
<wolfspraul> sure you can look at it that way, and it won't be 100% 24/7 work, but still
<wolfspraul> 40 EUR / page for a high quality journalistic report
<wolfspraul> it's really becoming pocket change
<wolfspraul> you can actually only do it on the side of a family vacation soon
<wolfspraul> recoup some icecream money
<wolfspraul> that's for a large newspaper
<wpwrak> if you can still ffort a family or vacations, let alone both, they're paying too much :)
<wolfspraul> and for 40 EUR / page, it needs to be interesting, have good pictures, etc.
<wpwrak> afford even
<wpwrak> interesting how the press became so penniless
<wpwrak> or stingy
<wolfspraul> well I think newspapers are going down fast, and the situation at blogs is even worse
<wolfspraul> interesting changes ahead
<wolfspraul> techcrunch sold itself to AOL because, as the founder of techcrunch said, it was just unsustainable
<wolfspraul> he was tired of this, tired of that. just unsustainable.
<wolfspraul> now within AOL hen can focus on the journalistic side again (he hopes). :-)
<wolfspraul> I have my doubts about that, I think the site will be flooded with junk advertisement, but OK, I can understand the tiredness.
<wpwrak> hmm, don't even know techcrunch
<wpwrak> group-editng blog. wow. tres avantgarde
<xiangfu> wolfspraul: I think I finish the manual page of fped. and I have uploaded to : http://mentors.debian.net/debian/pool/main/f/fped/
<wolfspraul> he, cool!
<wolfspraul> xiangfu: should I email Jan to ask for help?
<wolfspraul> "Needs a sponsor: YES"
<wolfspraul> :-)
<xiangfu> wolfspraul: yes.
<kristianpaul> The arbitrary-precision counter counts clock cycles of a frequency
<kristianpaul> source that is assumed to be free from drift
<kristianpaul> wpwrak: so you take the risk and guess that...
<kristianpaul> guesed*
<wpwrak> kristianpaul: well, relatively free from drift. ultimately, ntp is synced to nuclear clocks. but i don't know what they are synced to.
<wpwrak> kristianpaul: ah, they sync to TAI: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Atomic_Time