Re: Intel graphics driver not so open source after all

In article <ec21ag$s5t$1@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>,
pNaonStpealmtje@xxxxxxxxx says...
On a sunny day (Thu, 17 Aug 2006 10:57:05 -0400) it happened Keith
<krw@xxxxxxxxxx> wrote in <MPG.1f4e4da87c22f792989c45@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>:

In article <s7%Eg.1640$q63.1605@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>,
redelm@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx says...
Keith <krw@xxxxxxxxxx> wrote in part:
redelm@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx says...
George Macdonald <fammacd=!SPAM^nothanks@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in part:
What bothers me about this whole HDTV thing is the content delivery:
I hate those bloody great STBs, the content deliverers are dragging their
feet on channel cards and the industry is still trying to sell us HDTVs
& recorders without channel card slots... standardisation? ... not
from where I'm looking! The whole thing is a mess with the consumer
in the middle... getting bilked.

Agreed on the mess, but I'm searching more for causes. HDTV
uptake in the US has been dismal to the FCC's and others chagrin.
Mostly due to the scarcity of decode-tuners ("HDTV Ready").

I think it' s mostly because people don't see a need for HD.
It's mostly a yawner.

Certainly possible, although afficionados ("golden eyes"?) will tell
you otherwise.

Sure, audiophools tell you that you need MonsterCable and gold RCA
connectors too.

I have been very pleasantly surprised at how good
NTSC can look even at only 525 lines. The key is feeding it
proper signal -- SVideo or RGBcomp from a DVD player.

Sure. I've never used RGBComp, though my receiver has the switching
at least some inputs, but SVideo makes a big difference. At some
point though, the difference isn't worth the extra expense. Then
there's the content problem.

Why weren't these soldered in? Are the decode components that
expensive? Or is there some outsided [submarine patent] royalty?

Keep up margins; disguise the true price?

Maybe, but I thought of another possibility: apparently HDTV off-the-air
doesn't work, even in urban areas. Xmit power is too low, so antenna
requirements are significant.

Dunno, it seems to be alright in the Boston area. At least the TVs
in the BestBuy down there looked goo with the OTA signal.

Cable monopolies love this (did they
influence the FCC?) because it makes them the conduit of HDTV and they
don't face competition from broadcast. Setmakers have a big customer
service/returns problem if they include tuners that most consumers
cannot make work with simple indoor antennae. So they leave them off.

Oh, *Indoor* antenna. We can't get anything with any sort of
indoor antenna anyway. Actually, I think OTA is almost dead for
reasons other than HD. People really don't want a huge, expensive,
ugly outdoor antenna but do want a clear picture and a gazillion
channels. ...and have the money to pay for it.

It is satellite here where I live.
There are always political fights going on what the cable should carry,
OTA only a few stations.. I have a satellite dish with a motor that I can
turn, there are already a _lot_ of HDTV 'tests' going on.
Well, 'tests' BBC sends HD experimental over satellite, the French, the
Germans, all receivable for free (except some German channels that need a
card).

3m C-band dish? These have all but gone the way of the dodo on
this side of the pond. AIUI, most of the satellite content has
been encrypted for years. In their place the 1m fixed dish,
subscription dishes have spring from houses like mushrooms.

But what it comes down to: If I want to watch CNN I can get it on satellite,
if I want Russia Today I can get it on satellite, if I want China CCTV4:
satellite, on my PC I only have to select it (PCI card) it steers the dish
automatically, the French.. any country almost including relayed South
American stations.
No political manoeuvring can black out my CNN :-)

Unfortunately. ;-)

And believe me they try here.
One neighbour has cable, pays a lot each month, has fewer channels and less
choice....
Yes a dish is big, but it is behind the house against the wall, not such a
big deal.
Very bad weather (like thunderstorms) can interrupt the signal, but that is
the only negative point I can think of.
But cable stations relaying some of these programs have big dishes themselves
that can also experience a loss of signal.

At least here they have 10m dishes; 10dB more gain and more
accurately aimed. They rarely if ever get drop-out.

But I am in Europe, has not US a similar service? I'd say
get a sat dish :-)

http://en.kingofsat.net/hdtv.php
Shows the satellite HDTV available here now....

--
Keith
.

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