Re:BRL-CAD
by marcodiego on Tuesday August 16, 2022 @07:32PM
(#32490437)
We heard similar comments about linux and GNU a few decades ago.
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Re:BRL-CAD
by ChrisLomont on Tuesday August 16, 2022 @09:30PM
(#32491214)
And IBM and RedHat both poured literally billions into it to make it work at the level it does today, which underscores the point. And there have been billions more poured in from a lot of other corporate groups.
Yeah. Sometimes someone brilliant does something hard for the good of humanity though. I'm think specifically of that guy who wrote DXVK back in the mid 2010s. He basically made gaming on Linux possible.
He is certainly brilliant (I remember how quickly it went from showing a single triangle to actually having working games), but was quickly hired by Valve to work on it full-time.
Yeah, it was nuts. Us Linux gamers were all upset at CDProjekt Red for the bait and switch on the Linux support for Witcher 3, and then, blam DVXK suddenly made that irrelevant. And then so much more!
...and at the same time, GNU was making the same comments about CAD software. It's been on the list of desired projects for GNU since about 1990 - a CAD program comparable to AutoCAD.
The problem is that writing one takes a big effort - like Linux kernel sized, and needs people with niche technical knowledge. It's much, much easier to find someone who can write a java app for a web page than it is to find someone who can write CSG code for a CAD system.
It may eventually happen, but it's not inevitable.
There was discussion a few years ago about adding CAD to the list of free software priority areas, to direct talent and energy where it's needed. That would likely help. Finding ways to leverage existing efforts too. BRL-CAD has been working bottom-up with a focus on analytic correctness, capability, hybrid representation. FreeCAD has been working top-down with a focus on usability and parametric interactive editing. Both will likely get there eventually tailored to different markets.
For what it's worth, BRL-CAD has over 450 full-time staff years of effort invested with ongoing dev funded by the U.S. Gov't. It was made open source specifically so that investment could be shared with the world, to help commoditize CAD like has been done for browsers and compilers. It's a long road to get there no matter what.