Could there be a "Linux Hardware Configuration wiki"?
 

It was something that occured to me a while ago, as a vague "Is this possible?" thought.

Essentially, it boils down to:

• There's lots of guides on how to setup just about every piece of hardware going scattered around the Web
  
• Getting a piece of hardware working tends to be a matter of having the right kernel options, software, and configuration files present
  
• If you buy a new piece of hardware, it would be really helpful if you had one big, centralised database that could tell you exactly what changes to make to your kernel, what software you need to download, and what you might need to put into the config file(s)
  
• (Pipe dream) If you could set this database up so software on the user's PC could detect new hardware, access the database, tell you what changes needed to be made, and maybe even make those changes all by itself, you could eliminate a lot of "hardware is so hard to install under Linux" whinges on fourms like this one. Especially if you could figure out a way to interface it with the distro's package manager.

Obviously, you'd have a big burden in terms of bandwidth & storage etc., and you'd need major community involvement to make it work - especially from the distro makers themselves, I presume. But is there any technical reason why it couldn't be done?

Biggest reason would be the infinite variations in installed software..
Library dependencies, are development libraries installed, kernel rebuilds to make drivers..

You could do it for example with a standard distro, but then, if it's not a standard package used, you end up with a non-standard distro.. et al..

Hardware compatability isn't going to be a packages solution, but rather a "process" to follow to install. A process would be almost identical across many distros, even using wildly different components..

That could totally be done. in fact it NEEDS to be done regardless of the technical complications, the users will work those out, and it doesn't need some miracle, or any particular focus, it just needs to be open like wikipedia is open (the wiki here at lq is not open at all, only for members - major limitation).

Excellent post.
Excellent ideas.

You'll be hard pressed to find an open wiki.. The thought of clearing up an "anonymous" mess is too hard to bear! How to find the posts amongst the million or so!

Registering isn't membership either, and it couldn't be any easier than it is here !! :)

There has to be a level of responsibility taken by the person entering data into a wiki, and if registering frightens them off, then it's done it's job perfectly.. IMHO.. :)

Good points but ... I don't agree.

I understand it seems complicated but the linux community can do much better.

I still think considering all the advantages and disadvantages that the open wiki is the best plan. Wikipedia has succeeded without registration. I think the linux community could and should do it too.

Here you are, it's not hardware specific, but it does fit your needs. All you need to do now is to write for it.

Thanks, but the wiki here doesn't fit my needs.