[geeks] Ubuntu partition on Bootcamp Mac?

[Mark]

On 31 Jul 2007, at 02:38, Jon Gilbert wrote:

> Yeah, apparently so. I think part of it may be that OS X 10.5 was
> originally slated for a spring release. It's likely that Apple
> planned the NVIDIA 8600M GT release to coincide with the 10.5
> release, but when 10.5 was pushed back, they did not delay the 8600M
> GT computers.

Stupid iPhone...

> Anyway both Apple and Linden Labs are at work on this
> problem now, I have learned.

Ah. Translating a little here that means it's Linden Labs who screwed  
up and Apple are helping them un-screw-up their code. What often  
causes issues like this with APIs like OpenGL is developers kludge  
something way back in the history of the game that then comes back  
and bites them in the ass, because the hardware changes mean that it  
fails or causes a bottleneck or an error. It occurs quite often with  
new hardware architectures, especially GPUs and Windows games :).  
It's not really a surprise that it happened on a Mac game *ahem* I  
mean application ;)

> Still, I think it will be cool to have a Ubuntu partition, since I'd
> like to play with Linux anyway, and I think that the kernel
> architecture of Linux allows for theoretically higher graphics
> performance. OS X's microkernel design does not allow hardware
> drivers as direct of access to things, I believe, which can limit
> performance as I've been told. Can anyone verify this?

If that's the case then how in the hell do QuartzExtereme and  
CoreImage perform so well? I don't think the kernel is much of a  
bottleneck in OS X. In my experience it's hardware handling and  
access has for the most part been exemplary, and as far as OpenGL  
goes, damn fast. I don't see how MESA sitting on Linux is so  
different to Quartz sitting on the Mach kernel. In both cases the GL  
renderer has it's own drivers which it uses to access the hardware  
directly via a direct HAL AFAIK. It's kinda getting to the limits of  
my knowledge of OSs though so I may be off the mark slightly.

>> An Second Life is supposed to be a fine and definitive example of
>> great programming? Oh please...
>
> Well I won't argue with you there. But still, the fact that OS X
> lacks the "NVIDIA Control Panel" seems inexcusable.

Why? I have one in Windows and I rarely touch it. It doesn't have  
much really useful as far as aiding compatibility goes as far as I  
can see, then again I'm using a 7300GT so it might be more advanced  
on the  8600M GT. Apple have always insisted on total control of  
these things, and as such don't include such dangerous utilities ;).  
ATi do one though as a 3rd party download, but I installed that on my  
G4 and never used it either.

-- 
Mark Benson

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