I have three hard drivers, CD-recorder and DVD-recorder.
Each of them has firmware. Nobody's complaining it's closed source.
I do not understand why audio and/or video card driver can't be closed source -
to me it's just like the above mentioned firmware, just the devices sit on a different bus -
PCI and not IDE.
Of cource, open source drivers are better, but why all the fuss if closed source firmware
is silently accepted ?
Since you are considering switching to Linux - I wouldn't recommend Mandriva - still using
it, but their quality is only getting worse.
I wouldn't recommend RedHat FC either.
I really like MEPIS, and I am seriously considering switching to SUSE.
P.S. I've been using Mandrake/Mandriva since 1998 or so.
When I'm saying signals change more or less whenever they want, I mean there is no generating clock to relate their changes to and thus to avoid interference created by signal changes.
With modern frequencies connectors in chips behave to big extent like transmission lines.
I worked as VLSI designer and STA (Static Timing Analysis) methodology engineer, so I hope I know what I'm talking about.
One should remember that clockless design poses two huge difficulties:
1) verification (both logical and timing); 2) in-chip noise.
Clocking allows oscillations created by generating edges to fade out before the sampling edge.
In clockless designs signals change whenever they want in a sense, so sampling may occur while the noise (parasitic oscillations) is still high, and wrong values will be stored/used.
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I have three hard drivers, CD-recorder and DVD-recorder. Each of them has firmware. Nobody's complaining it's closed source. I do not understand why audio and/or video card driver can't be closed source - to me it's just like the above mentioned firmware, just the devices sit on a different bus - PCI and not IDE. Of cource, open source drivers are better, but why all the fuss if closed source firmware is silently accepted ?
Since you are considering switching to Linux - I wouldn't recommend Mandriva - still using it, but their quality is only getting worse. I wouldn't recommend RedHat FC either. I really like MEPIS, and I am seriously considering switching to SUSE. P.S. I've been using Mandrake/Mandriva since 1998 or so.
I like Mepis; the newest release is expected on July the 10th or so - nice way to remind about the distro :-).
Look, I tried to be short in my post.
When I'm saying signals change more or less
whenever they want, I mean there is no
generating clock to relate their changes to
and thus to avoid interference created
by signal changes.
With modern frequencies connectors in chips
behave to big extent like transmission lines.
I worked as VLSI designer and STA (Static
Timing Analysis) methodology engineer,
so I hope I know what I'm talking about.
One should remember that clockless design
poses two huge difficulties:
1) verification (both logical and timing);
2) in-chip noise.
Clocking allows oscillations created
by generating edges to fade out before
the sampling edge.
In clockless designs signals change whenever they
want in a sense, so sampling may occur while
the noise (parasitic oscillations) is still high,
and wrong values will be stored/used.