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The "Bloody Mess" That Is Intel's Poulsbo Driver

Posted by kdawson on from the how-not-to dept.

AdamWill writes "Phoronix writes about the mess that is the Linux support situation for Intel's new graphics chipset, the GMA 500 — aka Poulsbo. Near the end they refer to my own post on the topic ('Okay, so after a whole day spent bashing around at this crap, I can very confidently and conclusively say, it's utterly broken'). Intel has a reputation as one of the most clued-up open source-friendly hardware companies, but if they can't sort out the mess surrounding the driver for this chipset — which is already used on the Dell Mini 12 and Sony Vaio P, and will be used on many future Intel-based systems — that reputation will take a serious hit."

7 of 231 comments (clear)

  1. Reputation? by clang_jangle · · Score: 5, Interesting

    I thought the intel video chipset reputation was already something like "it sucks, ATI or nvidia are much better choices".

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    1. Re:Reputation? by Pinky's+Brain · · Score: 3, Interesting

      Really though, you'd think Intel would negotiate an IP license which would allow them to release good drivers. It seems IMG should be getting ready to release some sort of Linux drivers around this time though ... perhaps this will address the GMA500 situation too?

      http://groups.google.com/group/beagleboard/browse_thread/thread/ec1427fdb8f9ef8d/14af5abb79383525?lnk=gst&q=POWERVR#14af5abb79383525

    2. Re:Reputation? by Sockatume · · Score: 3, Interesting

      My understanding is that it's not for 3D gaming. The GMA500 performs poorly on that front but it supports a lot of video decode features that are AWOL in the GMA945 etc.

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      No kidding!!! What do you say at this point?
  2. Wonder if this is one of the reasons? by HangingChad · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Microsoft threatening Intel unless they knock off the Linux integration. Now, all of a sudden, Intel is having all kinds of problems with their Linux drivers.

    Coincidence or anti-competitive behavior in action?

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    1. Re:Wonder if this is one of the reasons? by Pecisk · · Score: 4, Interesting

      I think it is more about the lines of "omg, there is new sublaptop market here, quick, we need solution. Damn, our video chip uses too much power. Ok, there is some niche chip which could suit us. But there is lot of NDA and proprietary stuff. Heck, let's ride with it and see if it sticks. If not, we will abandon a driver."

      It is clearly a totally different video card with different chip (which have closed parts not developed by Intel). So it ends there where usually such drivers goes - to trash can.

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    2. Re:Wonder if this is one of the reasons? by pestilence669 · · Score: 3, Interesting

      I argue for coincidence. First of all, even Microsoft relies on Linux for their infrastructure. As much as they try, it's just not possible to do many "things" on Windows. I wish I was allowed to go into more detail. Intel does realize the importance of solid Linux support. They are a leader in this area in ways they simply don't have to be. To snub Linux could compromise their foothold on the embedded market, which is significant. It's just not possible that this is intentional. Mistakes happen. I blame the outsourcing, which was probably some middle-manager's perceived ticket to promotion and praise. Companies this big can't always put their best resources on EVERY project. Since Slashdot has made this problem known, I can't imagine it'll exist for more than 30 days. The Slashdot effect is a great motivator in shifting corporate priorities. Seriously. I hate Intel. I do. In this case, however, I don't see that they've done much wrong. They will most likely issue a massive fix and add this component to their maintenance queue. Priorities.

  3. Re:Bit of a tangent by Creepy+Crawler · · Score: 4, Interesting

    I'd agree. I had a rather nasty return on a DV6990 HP laptop. It was trash, but that's aside the point.

    I went and bought a T61, all intel down to the graphics card. Better wattage drain and complete open source drivers. Ubuntu detects everything on here, with exception to the HD APS system, which I can do without (it drains batt 2w extra).

    And then, I find out that Intel releases everything about their 3d system.. And because of that, Linux devs are working on a Graphical Memory Manager, called GEM. Come to find out, it only works for Intel because they're soo open. They know they sell hardware, not their drivers.

    Hopefully, AMD/ATI will follow and do the same. Wonder where that leaves nVidia...

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