Suivez-nous sur X
|
|
|
0,
A,
B,
C,
D,
E,
F,
G,
H,
I,
J,
K,
L,
M,
N,
O,
P,
Q,
R,
S,
T,
U,
V,
W,
X,
Y,
Z,
ALL
|
|
0,
A,
B,
C,
D,
E,
F,
G,
H,
I,
J,
K,
L,
M,
N,
O,
P,
Q,
R,
S,
T,
U,
V,
W,
X,
Y,
Z
|
|
0,
A,
B,
C,
D,
E,
F,
G,
H,
I,
J,
K,
L,
M,
N,
O,
P,
Q,
R,
S,
T,
U,
V,
W,
X,
Y,
Z
|
|
A propos d'Obligement
|
|
David Brunet
|
|
|
|
Interview with Darren Eveland
(Interview conducted by David Brunet - June 2011)
|
|
Darren Eveland is one of the few people involved in both AmigaOS 4 and NatAmi. So we could not resist to ask him
questions about these two projects...
 Hello Darren. Can you
introduce yourself to our readers?
Hi, my name is Darren Eveland, I'm 39 years old and I'm an IT Manager at my local University in London, Ontario,
Canada. My hobbies (of course) are the Amiga, and learning about Astronomy and Space, specifically Exo-planets,
Rockets, and Propulsion Systems. I am married since late 2009 to a beautiful Ukrainian women who hates the Amiga
because I spent so much time on them! :)
When and how did
you discover the Amiga?
Well I got my first computer - a Commodore 64, just like many in my age, when I was 16. I played with that for awhile,
run a BBS named Dark Castle, played games, did school work and had a lot of fun. I had a C= 64C with 1541 disk drive,
and later the 1581 if my memory serves.
One day I went over to a friend's house. He had bought an Amiga 500 and I had come to see it. Well, I was amazed!
The graphics and sound just blew away my Commodore 64 - made it look like a toy! So from that day forward I had to have an
Amiga! But I didn't want the 500. I saved up all summer and got an Amiga 2000 with two floppy disk drives! I couldn't
afford a hard disk, yet. Back in those days it was very rare and expensive to have a hard drive still. So that's where
it started. And ever since I've been very much into the Amiga, and increasingly so in the last several years.
I visited many computer shows in the 90's until the early 2000's. Once I drove Wolf Dietrich - Managing Director of
Phase 5 - to the airport in Toronto - after he visited the World of Commodore show. He talked a lot about his company
and it was fun to meet him. I also traveled in 1997 to the Computer'97 show and met many Amiga personalities and
had a personal tour of Village Tronic where I got my Picasso IV upgraded by the late Klaus Berkurt.
I've met many other Amiga celebrities at shows in the past - it was always fun to do so.
What are your Amiga
configurations (now and in the past)? And what do you do with them?
I started with the Amiga 2000 with two disk drives (that was 1989 or early 1990), and later got a GVP 030 combo card
for it, added a hard drive and some extra memory, including an 8MB Zorro II ram card. That was really
amazing to have 9MB of ram at that time (like 1990). I was in first year University and I had an Amiga 2000
with 9MB of RAM! Everyone else was lucky to have 640KB in their PC's with CGA graphics. People were amazed I had
9MB!
Later on I got an Amiga 3000 and various graphic cards such as the GVP
Spectrum, Picasso IV. I sold the 3000, moved up to an A4000T, got an 060
card, PCI bus-board, and over the years I acquired several A4000 Desktops
and another A4000 Tower - which is still sitting brand new in the box! It's
the jewel of my collection. I've sort of been a collector of 060 cards and
graphic cards. I have a GVP Spectrum from the new production run, a Picasso
IV, a Merlin 4MB Zorro III card, a CyberVisionPPC, several Voodoo 3's and
one Voodoo 4, several Radeon 9250's. For CPU cards, I have three CyberStormPPC's
- one running at 366MHz on the 604e PPC CPU, and two at 233MHz. And I
have a rare QuikPak XP 060 "desktop" CPU card.
I also have several Next-generation Amigas including a MicroA1 and a Pegasos
II. I have a Mac Mini G4 running MorphOS and a PC dedicated to Amithlon and
AROS.
Today, on the Classic Amigas I am beta testing AmigaOS 4.x Classic. In
addition to doing that, I also play music, surf the web, try out new
software, and tinker around. It's kind of my break from using Windows and
Mac computers all day at work. :)
Since how long are
you a beta tester of the AmigaOS 4? And why did you choose to become a beta tester?
I've been a beta tester since August 2003. I was so anxious and curious to
get new OS updates - I really wanted to run the latest stuff. So I applied
and Hyperion accepted me. Back at that time AmigaOS 4 was still running on
the 68k, but by late 2003 and into 2004 it started to go all PPC piece by
piece.
How to become a beta
tester?
I'm trying to remember how I applied... I believe I wrote to Hyperion and
asked, told them what hardware I had, and I guess I fit the description for
what they were looking for.
How many beta
testers there was? And can you name them?
For this latest project, AmigaOS 4.1 Classic, all the testing was open to
the entire beta testing team, and we recruited some additional testers for
the Classic release. You may recall Hyperion recently had a call for more
Classic beta testers. About 25 additional people were chosen. I can't name
them all, but myself and Carl Moppett were considered the primary testers.
And you probably know Karl "Karlos" Churchill who is actually a developer,
is writing the Permedia2 Warp3D driver.
During this phase
of beta testing, what were the most difficult problems to solve or the problems which delayed the most the final
release?
Probably the hardest part was to get the Radeon working, and that is still
not complete because it is not yet working on the Prometheus PCI bridge (we
hope to add that in a later update). Right now the Radeon only works on the
Elbox Mediator boards. There were a lot of timing issues with the Amiga and
the PCI bus board and the PPC, and of course the problem to execute the
Radeon's x86 BIOS so we could init the card. I can't say the release was
delayed at all, it just took a bit longer than we had hoped. But I guess
that is normal for software development.
We had originally wanted to ship AmigaOS 4.1 Classic by the end of 2010, but we didn't actually finish it
until mid-April, 2011. The ISO went "Gold" on April 13, 2011 and it shipped
just over a month later on May 17th, 2011. It took some time to press the
CD's, print the boxes, make the floppy disks, etc. Not a bad "turn around"
time if you ask me from Gold to shipping! :)
The development of
the AmigaOS for Classic seemed almost dead one year ago. Which is/are the person(s) who wanted to restart its
development? How did you convince the manager of Hyperion that it was possible?
Well, it's sort of a long story. Carl Moppett had been, on his own,
building upon the AmigaOS 4.0 Classic ISO. So as new updates and kernels
became available for the other platforms (AmigaOne and Sam) in the beta
testing cycle, Carl kept updating the Classic ISO. He got it to a point
where it would actually install and run. I started to help him out testing
this ISO back in early 2010 or late 2009. In mid 2010, we approached the
Hyperion management and asked them about releasing AmigaOS 4.1 for Classics.
Since we were able to already prove we had a working ISO, it did not take
much to convince Hyperion them. After all they are Classic fans too. :)
All we needed was a distribution partner - and that is where AmigaKit came
in. Once AmigaKit agreed to help out, the project was given a green light
and we started to talk with the developers about what new features we wanted
to implement. Of course there was no shortage of features Carl and I wanted
to have implemented. :)
Who are the developers
behind AmigaOS 4.1 for Classic? Is this version delayed the development of the AmigaOS for the others machines?
Well, virtually the entire AmigaOS 4.x development team, but notably Thomas
Frieden and Joerg Strohmayer did most of the heavy lifting. We had
assistance and support from Elbox, Michael Boehmer (E3B), Tobias Seiler,
AmigaKit, Simon Archer, Steven Solie (the AmigaOS 4.1 development team lead),
Martin "Mason" Merz, David Braconnier, and of course the support and patience of
Hyperion Management. ACube also helped us with printing the install guide
and providing graphical layout. There are many more I'm sure I am
forgetting here. But it was a true team effort. Everyone had their role to
play and everyone helped out. There is some kind of rumor or speculation
that the Classic release delayed releases or updates for other platforms.
That is not true. Development happens in parallel. For example we found
many bugs and issues in Classic development that will actually benefit the
other platforms, so it may actually speed up the release of future updates. :)
The AmigaOS 4.1 for
Classic Amigas is now available. What are the strengths (or the features you like) in this version of the system?
For me it's the out-of-the-box experience. There are no additional drivers
to install, the Radeon just works, your Mediator just works. The
Installation procedure is really great - Carl and I spent a lot of time on
that. It looks great and functions well right out of the box. The Extras
contributions give added functionality. Web browsing, FTP, Remote Desktop,
File Management, and more, just work. We have all new high resolution
graphic backdrops and some new icons made specifically for AmigaOS 4.1
Classic.
Not to mention that now the Classic platform can run all of the
latest AmigaOS 4.1 software. Ok, games that require huge CPU resources or
ram won't run or will be too slow, but most of the stuff will, including
Quake 3. We have new hardware support for Zorro III memory, SATA support,
Radeon as I mentioned and much more. For a complete hardware compatibility
list check out my website : www.hd-zone.com.
Here some screenshots :
1,
2,
3,
4 and
5.
Are there still
things that you dislike in the AmigaOS 4.1 for Classic?
Well, I wish we could include more features and support more hardware. But
we had a limited time and budget. I wish the CyberStormPPC didn't have a
128MB ram limit (but that is more of an Amiga architecture limit and not an
AmigaOS 4.1 limit).
I wish it was named something different. Really. The
hardest thing is convincing AmigaOS 4.0 Classic users that 4.1 is something
really "new". The 0.1 release to many is just an "upgrade". But AmigaOS
4.1 Classic is an entirely new product with many, many new features. You
can't even compare it to 4.0. Just for the record, I wasn't really involved
in AmigaOS 4.0 Classic - at the time I had no hardware capable to run it. I
only got a few used CyberStormPPC's afterwards...
I heard that the
AmigaOS for Classic is the best selling version of all variants. Can you confirm this?
That is true to my knowledge. I can't tell you the exact sales figures, but
I was surprised how high it was when I heard the number. Remember that
Phase 5 and DCE made about 10 000 PowerUP BlizzardPPC and CyberStormPPC
boards. We realize that as time goes on (AmigaOS 4.1 Classic is nearly 4
years after 4.0 classic), that there may be less machines available to run
AmigaOS 4.1 Classic, due to the age of the hardware. We also realize that
some were not happy with 4.0. That's one reason why AmigaOS 4.1 Classic
exists - to really give a huge update and improve upon just about everything
in 4.0. We hope that 4.0 Classic users understand this and support our
development and future updates by buying the product. Yes, this update
costs money, but it is not free to produce - you have to pay the developers,
pay to distribute the product, pay to press the CD's and print the
full-colour Install guide.
Do you know if all
next updates of the AmigaOS will also be available for Classic Amiga?
Yes, updates are planned for Classic along with updates for all the other
platforms (Sam, AmigaOne, X1000). The next update has not been officially
announced, although people are calling this "Update 3". The updates are
already running on the Classic in beta test, so anyone that buys AmigaOS 4.1
Classic now will get these updates for free.
Do you think
A-Eon/Varisys could build an accelerator card for Classic Amiga?
They are certainly technically capable. But I think they have their hands
full right now with finishing the X1000. To my knowledge no one has
approached them about such a project. If they chose to do so I would help
out in any way I could on that project.
When the AmigaOS 4.1
Update 3 (or AmigaOS 4.2) will be available? Perhaps before the end of this year?
You are best to ask Steven Solie the AmigaOS Development Team Lead. It is ultimately his call.
You're also part of the
NatAmi Team. What is exactly your position on this team?
As I am interested in Classic Amigas, I volunteered to the NatAmi team to
learn more about the project. I also volunteered to write the User Guide.
Since I wrote the Installation Guide and 16 page FAQ for AmigaOS 4.1
Classic, I have some experience in doing this and wanted to lend a hand.
Which features of
the NatAmi seem to you extraordinary?
For me it's the graphics, the fact that the native SAGA (Super AGA) will be
so much faster and better than Commodore's AGA. That and the fact the
memory access will be very fast - it will be like running a super Amiga
4000. Something I have always wanted to see produced.
The NatAmi is made
for which kind of users? Players? Programmers? Old Amigans? New comers?
It's probably made for anyone who really wanted a very fast and efficient
Classic Amiga. Retro game players who want to play some updated "retro"
style games... people that want to re-live the memories they had growing up
but wish to run on real hardware and not an emulator. People that just want
to have a great time using a really interesting and different computer.
Apart a clone of the
1942 shoot'em up, we have not seen much programs that will use the new capacities of the NatAmi. Can you tell us more about
the "new programs" that can be used on NatAmi?
There are several other games and applications that have been shown.
Recently some benchmarks and screenshots have been shown of the latest
NatAmi board - the MX. Check out the NatAmi forums at www.natami.net
and you can see all the latest information. The team is quite open about
the progress.
The NatAmi was
originally planned for summer 2008. Currently, what are the estimated release date and price?
As far as I am aware there is no set release date or price yet, but work is
getting done every week so they are getting closer. As you can imagine,
this is a huge project that is being handled primarily by a few people, with
secondary people helping out, so it does take time. But it is a real
project and it will be released. And it will be fun!
You were the first
to write on the Hyperion's blog. Could you tell us the story
behind its creation?
Well, many have wished for Hyperion to have more frequent communications.
The blog is one step in an overall strategy to improve this. Technically it
was setup by Hans-Joerg Frieden. Anyone in the Developer or Beta team for
AmigaOS 4 can post in the blog. Expect to see more articles in the future.
For AmigaOS 4.1 Classic, more pre-release information was given out than any
other AmigaOS 4 release in the past. You will see more steps by Hyperion in
the future to open up communications and reach out to the user base. I
think most users would agree things are improving.
You use AmigaOS,
MorphOS, NatAmi, etc. How is it possible to use and support all Amiga variant?
Well, some days it was difficult :). But I think for most of us now, those
red vs. blue "wars" are over. Really, none of us won. All of the existing
Amiga-ish user communities are tiny, compared to the overall computing
market. We all branched out from a common start in the Amiga to our various
interests today. I talk with MorphOS developers, including core team
members, I talk with AROS people, I talk with some Commodore USA people, I
talk with the Classic crowd - and guess what. I get along with all of them
and even work on some projects across some of those groups.
Sure, you have people shouting in some of the forums, or making critical
remarks, or outlandish demands. The forums make it easy for people to hide
behind a nickname and do that. But for me, I'm focused on delivering
results. When I set out to do something you can be sure that it will get
done. It may not be perfect in the first iteration, but I will do what I
say and ship what I am working on. I won't listen too loud to those yelling
in the forums and otherwise not making any contribution.
Soon there will
be another Amiga variant : the Amiga from Commodore USA. What is your opinion about it?
You know what, I think it's kind of cool. At first I thought it was really
a bad idea, selling the Commodore name but not a real Commodore or Amiga
machine. But have changed my mind and I wish them well. As long as they
respect existing license agreements and are a good corporate citizen, I hope
they succeed. Who knows, if they are successful maybe they will help the
real AmigaOS advance, or the NatAmi. Perhaps make some large investments in
AROS or other parts of the community. In the end I think for all of us it
can only be a good thing if they are successful. I'm thinking about buying a
"new" Commodore 64 myself. :)
You have funded the
port of rDesktop on AmigaOS 4. Is money still important in the tiny Amiga market to bring new software?
Yes, that is true. Actually it was a cross platform effort for 68k,
AmigaOS 4, MorphOS, and recently AROS. Of course it is only fair to pay
developers for their work. Yes, some will do work for "free", but I prefer
to pay people for their time. Many users donated for Remote Desktop in the
past and continue to do so. I want to personally thank everyone who donates.
I've since released the full version of Remote Desktop for the Sam460ex users
and the AmigaOS 4.1 Classic users. I would like also to include the full
version for X1000 users and AmigaOne users. Of course if the MorphOS team
wants to include it with their OS that would be great, too. AROS already
has its own port and Remote Desktop is already part of the Icaros Desktop
distribution.
A last word for the
Amiga community?
My last words would be to have fun! The Amiga is our hobby, we are supposed
to enjoy using it. We are a very small community with our parent long since
died (Commodore), yet we are still getting new software AND hardware
releases from many companies. Support those companies and try to give
positive feedback. Stay engaged and contribute in any way that you can. We
are all in this together. I would encourage some of the veteran developers
to come back and help us. There are many skilled developers who were former
Amiga users (and developers) that are still "around" but not really
contributing. It would be nice if they could help out on various projects.
As for AmigaOS 4.1 Classic - Carl and I, the developers and beta testers,
and others at Hyperion put nearly a year's work into it and we really have
made it the best we could. Yes, it's not perfect, but it's a huge upgrade
from AmigaOS 4.0 and there are future upgrades planned for it. I would
encourage all Classic users with PPC cards to give it a serious look - it is
a really great out-of-the-box experience and myself and Carl are available
to help you out. Oh, one more thing... There is a "secret projects"
directory on my AmigaOS 4.1 Classic desktop, too... :)
|
