On 12/02/2013 08:00 AM, Daniel Mack wrote:
Technically yes, but changing that would mean breakage for all other users, and making it configurable would result in yet another moving part which makes things even more complex.
How would this cause breakage? Users that use 2 stereo substreams could still work normally.
Yes, unless you opened the first subdevice with more than 2 channels. Then an existing user for the second stream breaks. IOW: the possible configuration and usage for subdevice 1 changes depending on that of subdevice 0.
Suppose a 2nd PCM device is added that would allow 1-4 channel playback/capture (call it "Multichannel Audio" or something). This pcm1 would be mutually exclusive with pcm0 (I.e. while one is open you can't use the other).
Existing applications using hw:n,0,0 and hw:n,0,1 see the exact same interface/behavior. The only failure mode is if the multichannel PCM is in use.
Applications using multichannel work-flows would use hw:n,1.
While it's not a "just works" solution -- directing users to hw:n,1 is a whole lot better than teaching them how to set up a multi plugin.
-gabe