Re: [Discuss-gnuradio] GNURadio is disappointing [was: Greeting and a question]

[Brian Padalino]

I changed the subject to better match the tone of the email.

On Thu, Jan 20, 2011 at 11:12 AM, Sanjay Singh
<address@hidden> wrote:
> Hi all,
>
> Am disappointed with the way GNURadio is getting into.
>
> I see all the discussion around is to promote the products of Ettus
> Research.
>
> Agreed!. Great work from Ettus Research.
>
> But there are many boards available which are far better in capability vs
> price. I don't want to mention them here to deviate the concern.
>
> During the market for USRP1, no one in the forum focused discussion on
> embedded platform. When queries regarding any such embedded platform was
> posted, there were lot of quotes saying GNURadio is focused on developing
> SDR framework based on Desktop based solution. With Ettus Research coming
> out with USRP E100, everyone on is bouncing on embedded platform.
>
> I wonder; Is GNURadio biased with Ettus Reserch ?. My obvious understanding
> is NO!.
>
> Its the community of people driving Ettus products into market. The
> potential of doing so is to make money. Either way, Ettus Research is now
> part of National Instruments and may be now GNURadio be delinked with Ettus
> Research for being open source. There are many people who can contribute low
> cost open source solutions.
>
> Initially, all the Hardware and software was part of GNURadio. All the files
> was part of free source available to download and use. In around a year or
> so all the files from GNURadio were moved out separating hardware and
> software. All the hardware related files were not available after this. Why
> so, no one knows.
>
> The boards when purchased from Ettus Research it was under terms and
> conditions as free open source schematics for motherboard and free open
> source schematics and pcb files.
>
> Its time now for the community of people interested in building free open
> source platform including both software and Hardware to come out with an
> complete open source low cost solution.
>
> S---

I need to borrow your soapbox.

This e-mail infuriates me.  If you thought you bought a motherboard
from Ettus under the terms that you were getting schematics and PCB
files and blah blah blah, fine.  If you didn't get them, point to the
line item on the receipt or the clause in the contract and take it up
with Ettus.

Next - the general tone of GNU Radio seems to be biased towards Ettus
only due to the fact that he, Josh and a whole slew of other people
worked damned hard to not only develop their hardware, but make sure
it was compatible with GNU Radio.

Let me repeat that.

Matt, Josh, and the rest of the people at Ettus Research did damn near
ALL the legwork - software and hardware - to make it compatible with
GNU Radio so you can buy something, plug it in and make it work.
Moreover, they field support questions on an open forum for free.  To
dismiss this fact is grossly inappropriate.

On that note, I have put together a simple list of things for people
to do if they feel they want to get out of this Ettus Research
totalitarian dictatorship that is GNU Radio:

    1) Create your own RF front end boards
    2) Create your own digital/baseband board
    3) Write all the software for board in step (2) to control all the
boards you create in step (1)
    4) Write all the host side software to interface software written
in step (3) with GNU Radio
    5) Contribute all previous work to GNU Radio
    6) Stop complaining*

*NOTE: Steps 1-5 are optional.

I am a massive proponent of making some 100% fully open SDR hardware
that serves the low cost/cheap and
easily-modifiable-for-my-specific-purpose market.

Like I said in my original e-mail, stop asking and stop the rhetoric.
If you want to dethrone Ettus from the monopoly he has on the GNU
Radio hardware scene, you just need to do something.  GNU Radio is
open source.  Make your board and contribute your patches.

In other words, do some work if you don't like the current state of
things.  This community is driven by the people on this list.  If you
don't like something about it, you need to have the drive to change
it.  Demonizing Ettus Research is childish.  If anything, look at
their past and draw inspiration from it.

I look forward to seeing your patches in GNU Radio.

Thanks for the soapbox.

Brian