On Fri, Jan 9, 2009 at 8:22 PM, Mario Limonciello <email address hidden>wrote:
>What's the first
>thing you do when you boot your computer from the factory?  You run
>oem-config...

I don't know about other companies' practices, but no customer of IYCC has
to run oem-config. We have already run oem-config-prepare before we ship the
machine. Normal customers should simply turn on the computer, wait for the
Xserver/GTK dialog to start, fill out the form, and then log in. Even on
reinstallation, the customer should NOT be running oem-config unless the
customer wants to join the ranks of the Linux Army.

Oem-config is a tool for the OEM. Before the machine ever leaves the
factory, oem-config-prepare should have already been run so that the machine
is in a working state, ready for the customer to get to work. When the
customer turns on the machine the first time, the system runs through its
start-up scripts, one of the last of which is starting the Xserver. Because
it is the first time the customer has turned on the machine, instead of
running the gdm-chooser immediately, a GTK application runs that asks for a
few pieces of information, the user is created behind the scenes, and
finally the gdm-chooser (or other login screen) loads.

If the machine is unable to complete the boot process enough to load the
Xserver, the customer has a defectively or incompletely configured computer
and should either call the OEM for support or return the system for a
cheerful refund or exchange. The GTK application won't run without an
Xserver running. The application assumes (rightly) that the system is
configured well enough from the factory that the process is capable of
completing all the steps necessary, all the way through to Xserver startup.
(Although it is technically possible to run natively in graphics mode from
the time the kernel is loaded, for reasons of reliability and maximum
compatibility, that's not the current state of the art.)

Recovery discs should not require a customer to go through oem-config, even
on reinstalltion. The Right Way to support the customer is to send a
factory-customized disc that contains a more traditional desktop
installation script and some additional recovery tools. The factory already
knows how the system is to be configured, so it should have already set up
the preseed file with all the configuration options already set and included
all the necessary packages. The customer should not have to think, and the
install should "just work."

Pre-configuring the system is what customers pay OEMs to do. The oem-config
script is an aid to OEMs when engineering a custom system. If the system
needs a re-installation, the customer should be guided through a very clean
desktop installation process that doesn't require anything more than filling
in customer-specific information.

Back to the original issue of this bug report, I share your frustration with
defectively designed or built monitors and other peripherals. I do believe
that oem-config-firstboot should fail more gracefully and provide more
helpful information. Having banged my head against a wall way too many
times, however, I am steadfast in my conviction that oem-config failing over
to "bulletproofX" would just be pouring water on a drowning man.

Again, if there are OEMs that need or want additional assistance with
engineering and installing systems, IYCC has a great deal of expertise in
this area, much of which we give away for free.

We welcome your call.


Happy Trails,

Loye Young
Isaac & Young Computer Company
Laredo, Texas
http://start.iycc.net