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Intel — Only "Open" For Business
Michael Knudsen writes, "Intel still refuses to work with open source projects such that they can provide their users with proper support for Intel's hardware products. As he has done before, Theo de Raadt once again asks users to take action by contacting Intel, telling them what they think of their current policy of not releasing hardware documentation and granting open source projects the right to distribute hardware firmware with their products. Failing to do so only harms users in the way that they risk having unsupported or malfunctioning hardware in their operating system of choice." Read more below.
It's really important that people understand that Intel is only trying to cooperate just enough to make people believe that they're open and doing the right thing. Don't fool yourselves: They are not.
What we need all users of open source software to do is contact Intel and let them know what you think of their current behaviour. If you run a big department and chose another vendor's products over Intel's because it doesn't work in your operating system, let them know, along with how many units they could have sold you. If you are an end user who has had problems when using Intel hardware because of poor support, let them know.
Let them know that their current lack of support will only harm them in the long run because you will be avoiding their products. Let them know that you want your hardware to work out of the box when you have installed your operating system of choice, and how Intel is preventing this with their lack of support.
Intel is not doing you a favor by requiring you to go to a website and download firmware for your hardware. You paid for the hardware, and Intel is thanking you by making it difficult for you to use it. Let Intel know what you think of this.
It's really important that people understand that Intel is only trying to cooperate just enough to make people believe that they're open and doing the right thing. Don't fool yourselves: They are not.
What we need all users of open source software to do is contact Intel and let them know what you think of their current behaviour. If you run a big department and chose another vendor's products over Intel's because it doesn't work in your operating system, let them know, along with how many units they could have sold you. If you are an end user who has had problems when using Intel hardware because of poor support, let them know.
Let them know that their current lack of support will only harm them in the long run because you will be avoiding their products. Let them know that you want your hardware to work out of the box when you have installed your operating system of choice, and how Intel is preventing this with their lack of support.
Intel is not doing you a favor by requiring you to go to a website and download firmware for your hardware. You paid for the hardware, and Intel is thanking you by making it difficult for you to use it. Let Intel know what you think of this.
Mod the parent up!
It's true - the Intel 945GM on my laptop is currently running open-source drivers supplied by Intel and merged into the Xorg codebase.
The great de Raadt may be frustrated, but the accusations he's leveling make him sound like a big, fat crybaby. I know that's childish, but I don't represent an entire open-source operating system, do I?
Did he stop to think that maybe Intel hasn't got complete control over the IP in the products he wants open-source drivers and open specs for?
I got my Linux laptop at System76.
Hey, we live in a country where the majority doesn't even believe in one's right to MARRY the person of one's choice... why on earth should we expect the (wholly reasonable, of course) freedom to run an operating system of our choice?
;)
Any American who isn't straight, and doesn't run Windows, is a deviant unamerican commie terrorist-sympathizer. Right? I mean, right???? Somebody back me up here.
With spending like this, exactly what are "conservatives" conserving?
It's a shame you're so stupid then, what is this product's name so that I may never purchase it?
Noone needs the documentation or the code or the firmware opened up, noone needs any of it. But if you are going to go and claim to support open source, yet prove this a lie by your own actions, people will get upset. Intel has no obligation to release their firmware for the wireless chipssets in any manner, be it under liberal or restrictive terms - but if they are saying they are good and friendly to open source and yet refuse flatly to be good and friendly to open source, they are being dicks and wasting people's time by lying to them.
Theo de Raadt isn't looking for the source code for the drivers, just the firmware to be redistributable. If you had a firmware upgrade, would you allow people to hand it out so your own customers could update the product they gave you money for?
Noone was asking for them to open source shit, they just want the firmware, the little bit of code that runs on the hardware, the code that lets the damned thing run at all, be sent out with all the operating systems of the world, so the hardware that depends on that firmware is actually usable.
How hard was that to understand?
I'm sick of following my dreams - I'm just going to ask them where they're going and hook up with them later.