9. Future Development

This is a concise listing of current projects underway for Linux/m68k. Let me know if your project isn't listed so I can add it.

I have marked the ones that haven't had any recent activity with ? (these may revert to unclaimed status if I don't get mail from someone saying that they are being done).

9.1 General

• Creation of a freely available Debian distribution for Linux/m68k. Send mail to debian-68k-request@lists.debian.org with the word ``subscribe'' in the message body. Mails should be sent to debian-68k@lists.debian.org. Please do not join the list if you are not able to actually work on the packages. Testers are not yet needed (it's too early for that). More information about Debian, and mailing list archives, can be found at http://www.debian.org/.
• A port of the Generalized Graphics Interface (a kernel-level I/O abstraction) to Linux/m68k: Geert Uytterhoeven <Geert.Uytterhoeven@cs.kuleuven.ac.be>. (This project seems to have been abandoned in favor of Geert's abstract console scheme.)
• Atari TOS emulation: The OSIS Project.
• AmigaOS emulation: The Amiga Replacement OS project.
• Linux/m68k-specific edition of Linux Installation and Getting Started: Chris Lawrence <quango@ix.netcom.com> (about 1/2 finished; I'm willing to farm out some of the work).
• Rewrite of 68882 FPU emulation under GPL or under a less restrictive BSD-style license (like the MIT/X Consortium license): Roman Zippel <zippel@fh-brandenburg.de>, Rob Pelkey <rpelkey@abacus.bates.edu> and others.
• (Unclaimed) Macintosh emulator (based on Shapeshifter, perhaps?)

9.2 Amiga

• Drivers for Arcnet cards are in alpha/beta: Frank Neumann <Frank.Neumann@informatik.uni-oldenburg.de>. Frank is looking for someone else who is willing to adopt the code; current sources can be found at ftp://ftp.informatik.uni-oldenburg.de/pub/linux/local/driver/.
• Support for the Oktagon SCSI controller is planned: <kcozens@interlog.com> and <shermane@ct.picker.com>. There is a web page about this project.
• A frame buffer device for the GVP Spectrum, Piccolo and Piccolo SD64, and Picasso II graphics cards (known as the Cirrus Logic generic driver or clgen) is in a public beta. A complete kernel package is available at ftp://ftp.informatik.uni-oldenburg.de/pub/linux/local/: Frank Neumann <Frank.Neumann@informatik.uni-oldenburg.de>.
• ? Support for the A2410 and DMI Resolver graphics boards is planned: Topi Kanerva <topi@susanna.oulu.fi> and Jes Degn Sørensen <Jes.Sorensen@cern.ch>.
• Support for the Commodore A2232 7-port serial card is under development: Eric van Dijken <E.vanDijken@PTT-Telecom.nl>.
• Support for the Commodore A2024 monitor (a high resolution grayscale monitor): Frank Eibisch <ergocat@minet.uni-jena.de>.
• Support for the Phase5 PowerPC boards: Roman Zippel <zippel@fh-brandenburg.de>, Jes Degn Sørensen <Jes.Sorensen@cern.ch> and Jesper Skov <jskov@cygnus.co.uk> (Phase5 contact person).
• Support for the Commodore/DKB A4091 SCSI card, WarpEngine accelerator's builtin SCSI and the A4000T built-in SCSI controller: Alan Hourihane <alanh@fairlite.demon.co.uk>. This code is now integrated into the mainstream kernel.
• Access to ISA cards via GoldenGate/BridgeBoard (as in OpenBSD): Arno Griffioen has done some work in this direction on the GoldenGate. He currently has some non-DMA devices working using the standard Intel drivers.
• Support for the Blizzard 1230-I and 1230-II SCSI boards: Jesper Skov <jskov@cygnus.co.uk>. Jesper is also attempting to get information on the 1230-III board.

The following drivers were asked about (or I thought of them) but nobody has reported interest in writing them:

• Concept and code for the use of chip ram and the blitter from user space.
• Support for the Utilities Unlimited Emplant serial and SCSI.
• BSC Alfa Data MultiFaceCard II support. Docs available from Jörg Dorchain <dorchain@mpi-sb.mpg.de>.
• Improved Phase5 Cybervision support (on-the-fly mode changes, 15/16/24 bits-per-pixel framebuffer support, 3.2-based XF68_Cyber, new 3D version, 3D MPEG add-on support, etc.). Perhaps part of GGI effort? I may work on the 3D card support when (if?) I get my upgrade offer from Phase5. (Some of this is being worked on already...)
• Prodev Merlin graphics card.
• Commodore A2090 SCSI controller.
• Commodore Bridgeboards (A2286 in particular).
• Commodore A4066 Ethernet card (and the 4066 card from the A4066's OEM).

9.3 Atari

• Port to Hades is underway: Wout Klaren <W.Klaren@inter.NL.net>

9.4 VME

• Earlier MVME cards (with 68020 and 68030 processors).

9.5 Apple Macintosh

The Linux/Mac68k project is a fresh effort to port Linux/m68k to the Mac. More information on this project is available at the Linux/Mac68k Home Page.

9.6 Hewlett-Packard/Apollo Domain Workstations

The first pre-alpha is now available at ftp://www.ba.be/pub/apollo/. It apparently only runs from a ramdisk, but it does support the monochrome framebuffer, 3c505 ethernet card, and the keyboard. Contact Peter De Schrijver <p2@linux.cc.kuleuven.ac.be> for more details.

9.7 Sun 3 Workstations

Pekka Pietikäinen <pp@netppl.fi> is the point of contact for this port. A patch relative to 2.0.25 is available from him. More information is available at http://www.netppl.fi/~pp/sun3/.

9.8 HP 9000/300

(written by Phil Blundell)

Phil Blundell <Philip.Blundell@pobox.com> is working on this port. More details can be obtained from him but there is no working code yet; please don't send him mail if you aren't interested in getting your hands dirty.

9.9 NeXTcube and NeXTstation

Several individuals have expressed interest in the port to the m68k NeXT computers, including:

• Martin Bähr <mbaehr@iaeste.or.at>
• Sarlo <sarlo@tezcat.com>
• Mike Allison <mallison@konnections.com>
• Cal McInvale <calm@tpdinc.com>

The current status of this port is unclear. More information should be available at the BlackLinux web site, http://www.black.linux-m68k.org/.

9.10 Other Systems

As far as I know, there is nobody working on ports to any other systems at the present time. If you'd like to be listed in the FAQ as interested in a particular port that isn't already being worked on, send me email and your name will be included in the next FAQ.