Genkernel - blessing or curse?

cybrjackle · Apprentice Joined: 09 Jan 2003 Posts: 248 Location: USA

I've compiled more kernels than I care to think about, if you use:

Sergio1704 · n00b Joined: 16 Aug 2003 Posts: 73

raid517 · l33t Joined: 06 Mar 2003 Posts: 946

Good analogy, but I'm sure others will want to play that game too...

Q

paranode · l33t Joined: 06 Mar 2003 Posts: 679 Location: Texas

kallamej

Daemonfly · n00b Joined: 31 Jan 2003 Posts: 46 Location: Pa - USA

The idea for it is good, makes it easier for people who don't want to do custom compilings.

I tried it this past weekend for the hell of it and it just didn't work. Finally found out that it just never copied the bzImage over to /boot. Ended up just doing it the regular way.

Manually compiling isn't that hard, just follow the doc, and in-menu descriptions once you run make menuconfig, although there are a lot of options that don't have any description at all.

Sergio1704 · n00b Joined: 16 Aug 2003 Posts: 73

Stieltje · Posted: Sat Aug 30, 2003 5:03 am Post subject:

(Please, bear in mind that I am a little to drunk and talkative, and that eng. is not my default lang.)

well, I have compiled about 7 different kernels under gentoo (currently running mm-sources), I have learned to tweak them to get good performance as well.

ir I have learned the names of the different parts I need to get a nice sys. I have no greater understanding of what the different things do, or why. Maybe that will come later on.

one of the major things I like about gentoo/linux is typing my commands in a terminal window, rather than using a gui where the options are so limited that it feels like a straight jacket, or having to press ugly buttons whos images really do not tell anything about what they do. I really like to have my config file out in the open, not letting a program clutter it full of comments or whatever. Ok, I emerged kportage, it can be good for browsing portage, but I never use it to emerge stuff, I want control. I guess all the buggy windows apps, who's gui-windows might just collapse all of the sudden have made me that way.....

but this was about kernels, and kernel compiling. All I can say is, that as long as there is extensive documentation about what the different things do, and what errors that may occur if not used, or used, then do not change it, no gui, no automation.

hehe, came up with another thing.. give me a reason why there should be so many different *-sources if there is a script that does everything for you? Why try to move from gentoo-sources to ck-sources if you do not get to see the differences in the config, why bother to emerge mm-sources? etc.

And, If I had a sys that worked perfectly by default, whatever hardware I had installed, how much code would that be? the thing on specifiyng your hardware is that of the design idea that less code is better.

I'll just round off with that with the VERY nice layout of the kernel config of the 2.6-kernel, who the hell needs genkernel anyway.
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Corporal Dan · n00b Joined: 29 Jul 2003 Posts: 32

Ian Tindale · n00b Joined: 13 Dec 2002 Posts: 16 Location: London

Someone gives you a hamster for your birthday. Do you:
a] immediately perform an autopsy on it?
b] get on and use it.
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The Mountain Man · l33t Joined: 03 Sep 2003 Posts: 643

I think Genkernel is a good thing. I've dinked around with computers ever since my brother bought a Commodore 64 in the early 80's and I have some Linux experience having run a Slackware box for about six months, but personally, I was happy that Gentoo offered an automatic kernel configuration program. Even as much computer experience as I have, it was a bit stressful compiling an OS from scratch so I was very thankful that when it came time to install the kernel, I didn't have to spend an hour or more going through "make menuconfig", scared to death that I'm going to break something. At that point in time, I just wanted a system that worked. I've since recompiled my kernel several times, adding hardware support and tweaking it for performance, but in the heat of installation, I was relieved that I didn't have to mess with it.

nadamsieee · Posted: Sat Sep 13, 2003 6:13 pm Post subject:

nerdbert · l33t Joined: 09 Feb 2003 Posts: 981 Location: Berlin

nadamsieee · Posted: Sun Sep 14, 2003 12:07 am Post subject:

nerdbert · l33t Joined: 09 Feb 2003 Posts: 981 Location: Berlin

ok, guess we agree about this... bedtime for nerdbert (2:09 over here)... bye

EvilN · Posted: Sun Sep 14, 2003 10:46 am Post subject:

genkernel is of course a good thing.
I completley understand that people dont wnt to know everything thats going on in their computer.

most people that claim that "real users" should know that before they should be allowed to use gentoo..to thos users:

so you know how to rebuild and clean the carburator in your car (or your fuel njection system)? can you do a full maintenance of your engine and maybe even tune it a bit?
Do you know all the components involved in a broadcast system(hey your watching TV right?)
Do you understand and can modify all the DSP functions in your home cinema reciever and if you know how to set it all up, are you sure that you're doing it all perfectly?

Didnt think so either.

We are all on different levels of our usage of different things and helper apps are allways wellcome...especially for people that actually want to use something as quickly as possible.
And dont say use another distro in that case, that selection is NEVER up to anyone else than the user.

For those whining l337 users I think we should get rid of menuconfig and all help files too..yeah, and devfs and /etc/init.d and /etc/conf.d and so on and so on.

Gee, I just want to get KDE running with a decent speed an reliability.
Btw, personally I dont use genkernel but respect the people who find it usefull to them.
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ews99 · n00b Joined: 10 Aug 2003 Posts: 16

I dislike RPM and loves the portages. That's why I use Gentoo. With Gentoo you're free, you can choose your system as you like.
If you want to use a full-gentoo system without time, just do a GRP installation with genkernel.
If you have a lot of time you could build your gentoo yourself. Fully optimized to your requirements.
That's why my router and workstation has a src-build gentoo, and my test machines use GRP.

Sergio1704 · n00b Joined: 16 Aug 2003 Posts: 73

Sergio1704 · n00b Joined: 16 Aug 2003 Posts: 73

Sergio1704 · n00b Joined: 16 Aug 2003 Posts: 73

Sergio1704 · n00b Joined: 16 Aug 2003 Posts: 73

Sergio1704 · n00b Joined: 16 Aug 2003 Posts: 73

Sorry, message posted several times because of server error

auctmore · n00b Joined: 16 Nov 2003 Posts: 11 Location: Lint/Belgium

[quote="neuron"]so how about my little idea, genkernel --graphical, maybe even force it.[/quote]

Very bad idea. Period.

One of my reasons to switch from SuSE(TM) to Gentoo(TM) is the obligation to do a text mode install! Ten minutes after a graphical setup with any distro my students don't remember where they should click to repeat my demo themselves because they didn't learn anything about why certain setup choices are made.

Moreover with each release SuSE -- like M$ (no TM) -- has developed a tendency to completely revamp the look and feel of a graphical installation as a sign of innovation. As if every semester we have to learn again what we already knew or at least have to find out were some option has been hidden this time. If I want to play hide and seek I simply take my children out in the open and forget about computers.

Need another reason? In my experience graphical installs tend to hang on certain combinations of display adapters and sound cards. In which case I had to fall back on a text mode install anyway! Even without a clue as to what caused the install to hangup because it could no longer tell me 8)

But your mileage will surely vary.
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filerba · n00b Joined: 16 Oct 2003 Posts: 29 Location: Oregon

There's way too much automation in the world already. I mean, why should my car's turn signal turn off every time I turn just a little bit, just because people are too lazy to turn it off themselves. And the robots that made the car. And the machines that milk the cows. And computers... er, never mind.
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