[NTLUG:Discuss] Re: Linux article -- BrisCAD IntelliCAD for Linux (WINE)

[Bryan J. Smith]

I _hate_ "meta-discussions" on "what Linux needs to do" because Linux
really can't do anything.  Continued development will drive adoption,
and adoption will change many things.  But in the end, consumer
ignorance is always the problem.  Unlike many people, I don't want the
government to solve it for me with lawsuits and mandates, because 80% of
consumers are too stupid to think there is a "free lunch."

So, I offer this more _technical_ information ...

Bryan J. Smith wrote:  
> The only bright spot is BrisCAD.  BrisCAD is an IntelliCAD licensee
> who has released a WINE-compatible version of its suite for $299.
> How long they will do that before Microsoft puts an end to it, I
> don't know.
> It'll be interesting to see what happens to BrisCAD.  But at
> $299, it might not hurt to try it out while it exists for Linux
> _now_.  ;-ppp

BrisCAD is an IntelliCAD code-based solution.  Although it is a bit
dated, it's still quite DWG compatible with late release AutoCAD.

BrisCAD's Linux offering runs under WINE.  In other words, they make
it WINE compatible.  They do not use WINELIB to directly port it
natively, because that might be the "fine line" before Microsoft
pulls their license (which they probably wouldn't ever recover from).

For more on the BrisCAD Linux offering, see the March press release:  
  http://www.bricscad.com/news/BricsCad%20goes%20Linux%20English.htm  

For more on the IntelliCAD Technology Consortium, see:  
  http://www.intellicad.org/  

-- Bryan

P.S.  I have the BrisCAD demo on my dual-AthlonMP with a GeForce4
Ti4200 128MB and dual-head.  It works perfectly and flawlessly,
with excellent OpenGL performance and usability.


-- 
     Linux Enthusiasts call me anti-Linux.
   Windows Enthusisats call me anti-Microsoft.
 They both must be correct because I have over a
decade of experience with both in mission critical
environments, resulting in a bigotry dedicated to
 mitigating risk and focusing on technologies ...
           not products or vendors
--------------------------------------------------
Bryan J. Smith, E.I.            b.j.smith at ieee.org