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AMD Backs openSUSE with Huge New Infrastructure

Posted by CowboyNeal on from the money-where-mouth-is dept.

apokryphos writes "AMD has helped sponsor the progress of openSUSE with leading-edge hardware and development expertise. "AMD is helping to ensure that the openSUSE Build Service continues to be an important collaboration and development platform for developers of all distributions," said Terri Hall, AMD vice president of Commercial Systems Marketing. Are these continued announcements of huge support from large OEMs an indication of a new era?"

14 of 117 comments (clear)

  1. microsoft connection? by datapharmer · · Score: 5, Interesting

    I'm curious about this sudden SUSE push and the recent deals with Novell and Microsoft. I'm curious as to what is going on behind the scenes... is Microsoft working on a linux GUI? Something even more sinister? Or perhaps it is just a coincidence... but then again I don't believe in those.

    --
    Get a web developer
    1. Re:microsoft connection? by swokm · · Score: 3, Interesting

      I think everyone has to admit that if Novell plays their cards right, they have a real shot at eventually winning a large portion of the enterprise desktop as well as the back end. IMHO. I like SUSE quite a bit, anyway. And I think AMD sees that a possible low-power platform win over Intel (those'll be harder and harder to come by).

      As for MS... they think of Vista as their linux GUI, don't they? ;) If I had that much money, I'd invest in ever competitor too... you never know.

      BTW, made account to thank the OP for not linking to their blog about a magazine blurb about TFA. That gets old fast.

      --
      datapharmer, tragically nice sig.

    2. Re:microsoft connection? by apokryphos · · Score: 4, Insightful

      The Microsoft deal on interoperability and customer patent protection is still ongoing but more in the background these days. The real "new push" is coming from Novell's relationship with IBM (and AMD, like this story; and I'm sure you know about Dell). For example IBM and Novell just launched a Big Green Linux Initiative, or how IBM, Novell Team to Tap Open Source App Servers, and the list goes on (see LWE announcements, or Google News). Novell is really trying to push Linux on the server -- and just as importantly -- the desktop into the Enterprise, and they're making major deals with large OEMs (that is, AMD, IBM/Lenovo, Dell) to make it happen.

  2. To AMD: by pajeromanco · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Save your hardware infrastructure and give me a god damn free driver.

    Signed,

    ATI user.

    --
    Now I am sad.
    1. Re:To AMD: by Zantetsuken · · Score: 4, Insightful

      No - I don't even care if its free (F/LOSS free). As long as it fucking works and gives me 3D hardware acceleration under Linux on my laptop, I'll be happy (Radeon xpress 200m)...

    2. Re:To AMD: by BESTouff · · Score: 3, Insightful

      No - I don't even care if its free (F/LOSS free)

      You already had your non-free driver, it's called frglx. It kind of worked for some cards, but exactely because it's NOT Free, it's never been improved to work on newer kernels, with newer Xorg techniques (compositing, randr, ttm, etc.), or with all kind of cards.

      If one day ATI releases another version of their proprietary monster for the card of your choice, you'll have no warranty it'll work the year after. Just because you didn't care.

  3. That's real nice... by kilgortrout · · Score: 4, Insightful

    but if you really want to help give us some open source drivers for ati graphics cards or at least closed source ones that don't totally suck.

  4. Leading Edge by Iam9376 · · Score: 5, Funny

    AMD has helped sponsor the progress of openSUSE with leading-edge hardware and development expertise.


    So they donated Intel processors?
  5. Excellent Question! by cyphercell · · Score: 4, Interesting

    I was just thinking the same thing, the past several days have been very dynamic in the way of licensing/FOSS in big business. We have sun, bittorrent, mysql, amd, proprietary AV systems, a DUI driver wins code, NewYorkCountryLawyer, Dell with on-board virtualization, openSuse, and well I'm sure I'm missing something somewhere because /. has had a good story every couple of hours for a few days now. It's almost scary. Ooh, Linux kernel developers coming under fire for not paying enough attention to the desktop, too. Anyone know how Vista is doing these days?

    --
    Under the influence of Post-Cyberpunk Gonzo Journalism
  6. Re:How is the build service different from apt by spyowl · · Score: 5, Informative

    How is this different than apt-get, or even just using Google to search for packages?


    You missed the part where it's a build service for developers. If you are a developer and have used or looked at their tools and interface, you'll find it will save you a lot of time, hassle and resources - write your software, upload it, and have it packaged and readily available for multiple distributions on multiple architectures. Your package has dependencies that have been updated by their developers? No problem, the service will automatically trigger to rebuild your package using the updated dependencies. Read more here.
  7. Re:Debian GNU/Linux by T-Ranger · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Novell hasn't had the greatest year. I guess if they sell of one of their two or three corporate jets, and Debian picks it up, then Debian may begin to impress the likes of AMD.

  8. Re:it's MS Linux isn't it? by houghi · · Score: 4, Informative

    so SUSE takes a big share of the market, it's just ms windows box being swapped for a microsoft linux, or am I missing something with the ms-novell thing?


    Yes, the fact that the MS-Novell deal was about SLES and interopreability, not about making RPM and DEB packages on a remote machine (because that is what the Build Service is in the end)

    AMD doesn't care who owns linux, I guess they bet MS-Novell will sell lots of linux where everyone else failed


    Sure AMD does not care. Perhaps they just use it, because for them processors are cheap and that is the cheapest way to get advertisement.

    All packages are build on an olmost daily basis (e.g. for Factory, that resulted in the now out Beta 1 for openSUSE 10.3) and that needs a bit of power that Novell did not have.

    Perhaps AMD will use it as a way to tell people: You want to switch to Linux? Well, we sponsor Novells Build Service, so we are the best choice.

    It is strange to see that Linux is winning and everybody is scared of it. Why? Do you WANT it to be an OS for just geeks?
    --
    Don't fight for your country, if your country does not fight for you.
  9. That's a problem with linux.. by brxndxn · · Score: 4, Funny

    I would very much prefer them to support Debian rather than openSUSE.

    Well I'd rather them support Ubuntu and my friend would rather Redhat. My dog likes Gentoo because he loves compiling.

    Every time a company tries 'throwing a bone' to the open source community and chooses a system to support (which will inevitably filter to the other distros), the linux geeks go, "But wait.. I like this distro instead."

    Just be happy; it's linux.

    --
    --- We need more Ron Paul!
  10. Re:SUSE by apokryphos · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Yeah, sure, SUSE is a pseudo open-source project which an incredibly significant percentage of the open-source community is working on. Like who? Developers of probably 70% of the applications (and a higher percentage of software) that you regularly use. Like what, you say? Heard of KDE? Heard of GNOME? Heard of OpenOffice.org, the Linux kernel, GCC, ALSA, Compiz? Yes, it's often hard to not use them. :-)

    The tagline of the story is perfectly applicable here: money-where-mouth-is. You really don't want SUSE in the OSS community? Put your money where your mouth is: start ripping out all the contributions that they put in. :)

    Anyway, at least be sure that your hate is justified, which it most probably isn't.