http://bugs.winehq.org/show_bug.cgi?id=7334
--- Comment #26 from Vanessa Ezekowitz vanessaezekowitz@gmail.com 2008-04-26 17:44:16 --- I probably shouldn't post this, but if I don't it will just gnaw at me. Apologies in advance if this comes off badly, but this has to be said.
Ok, look.. This is isn't 1990 anymore, it's 2008. In the 18 years in the interrim, the vast majority of users have upgraded and aren't stuck with little 4MB Trident cards and 13" monitors anymore. Hell some peoples' machines are new enough that they are incapable of even running in 8bpp mode anymore (like Penelope's laptop). Technology moves on but gameplay doesn't change much once you hit a certain point. Just because the software is old doesn't mean it should be thrown out - it's still fun and it should still remain playable.
I just checked before committing this post, and my copy of WINE has options to simulate just about anything from Windows 2.0 to Vista, and at one time could actually do these 8->24bpp translations and properly display them. That this fails to work now (and in MS Pinball, results in a black window) means this is a *WINE* bug.
Yes debugging takes effort - we all know this. Yes the developers are probably un[der]paid - we know this too. Yes it takes time out of one's schedule - we know this as well. Yes *some* users could learn to code and theoretically fix bugs themselves, but most of us don't have the aptitude.
Can we please stop suggesting unworkable workarounds, stop putting it on the user to fix the bug, stop blaming X, or the games in question, or $some_random_library, or the user, and just get someone to FIX THIS already?