On Friday 14 August 2009 13:33:34 Rubén Rodríguez Pérez wrote: > There is an ongoing discussion at the FSFLA and SolAR lists[1] to decide > if the ability of the linux kernel to request non-free firmware should > be removed or changed, if the whole drivers should be deleted, or if it > is enough to remove the offending firmware files and discourage its use. > > As this issue affects all distros, and the conversation was also > generating some complaints from the list administrators, I'd like to > start a new thread here. > > I'll try to summarize the ideas in a neutral way: > > -Linux includes some -GPL'd- modules that load firmware files into the > devices. Most of that files are non free, and most of them are required > to get the device working. All the free distros exclude that files. > > -Older linux-libre versions -still in use in several distros- remove the > non-free blobs embedded in .c and .h files. External non free firmware > files are also deleted. Other cleaned linux versions work this way. > > -Newest linux-libre versions remove not only the embedded blobs, but > also the ability of the modules to request non-free firmware files.[2] > > The questions that came from that include: > > -Is enough to remove the non-free firmware files from the distro and > discourage its use? > > -Should GPL modules that are useless without the non-free firmware files > be removed? >
I think that the GPL modules should not be removed, because if "we" have them, "we" can develop free GPL firmwares, "we" need the hardware to experiment, what do u think? > -Should they be kept, but disabling the file load call? > > -What is enough to comply with the Guidelines for Free System > Distributions? [3] > > Note that this issue was already discussed in January by Richard > Stallman, Alexandre Oliva et. al. at the linux-libre lists[4], leading > Alexandre to implement one of the discussed solutions in the linux-libre > deblobber. Other solutions are possible, so this new thread should focus > on what is _enough_ to achieve a fully free kernel. > > 1: > http://lists.ourproject.org/pipermail/solar-general/2009-August/ > http://www.fsfla.org/pipermail/discusion/2009-August/ > > 2: > http://www.fsfla.org/svnwiki/selibre/linux-libre/#2009-03-21 - gen2 - > 2.6.28-libre1 released at [[http://www.fsf.org/associate/meetings/2009/| > Libre Planet 2009]] > > 3: > http://www.gnu.org/philosophy/free-system-distribution-guidelines.html > > 4: > http://www.fsfla.org/pipermail/linux-libre/2009-January/thread.html -- Marcos Guglielmetti Usuario de Musix GNU+Linux www.musix.org.ar
