BIOS UI

i, for one, would like to state my opinion on the UI of OpenBIOS. i *DO NOT*
want a command-line driven one. if i have to RTFM just to do what Award does
with three keystrokes (autoconfigure a hard drive), i'll just give it up.
something nice could be done with say, arrow keys and highlight bars maybe? i
remember the old BBS days at 2400, with everyone trying to draw huge artistic
works out of the regular ASCII characters.. maybe the BIOS shouldn't resemble
some big elite ANSI, but that sort of interface is nice. and since this is
going to specifically *for* the x86 PC, why not let it get interesting? we can
use direct video memory access, no problem. earlier today, i saw an Award
system doing its POST, but it started as a blank.. *during* the memory test,
the whole thing quickly skidded onto the screen. that was pretty cool.

i suppose my point is that we shouldn't try and make this thing so scary and
esoteric.. true, many of us are unix people, but not everything has to be so
dull and cryptic. i think a command-line BIOS is a bad idea, unless it's made
*very* simple.

_        _  __     __             _ _                                  _
|        / |/ /_ __/ /_____         |       Nuke Skyjumper               |
|       /    / // /  '_/ -_)        |         "Master of the Farce"      |
|_     /_/|_/_,_/_/_\__/        _|_           [e-mail]       _|

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[Benjamin Scott]

N = [e-mail]
N> i, for one, would like to state my opinion on the UI of OpenBIOS.

I guess that means I'll have to add my two cents, of course.  <grin>

N> i *DO NOT* want a command-line driven one.

I do.  It's a matter of preference.  I've already said, as have many
others, that the UI should be modular, and the user should be allowed to
select which they want.

N> if i have to RTFM just to do what Award does with three keystrokes
N> (autoconfigure a hard drive), i'll just give it up.

This project really isn't for the faint-of-heart.  We're talking
rewriting the system mainboard firmware, here.  With all due respect, if
you have trouble dealing with a CLI, then you're in the wrong place. 
:-)

N> we can use direct video memory access, no problem.

Um, serial console?  A lot of people (myself included) have expressed
an intererest in this.  :-)

N> *during* the memory test, the whole thing quickly skidded onto the
screen.
N> that was pretty cool.

Again with all due respect, we're implementing system firmware, not
writting a multimedia demo.  Download "Crystal Dream II" or buy a Mac if
you want that sort of thing.  <grin>

-- Ben

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