Return-Path: Received: (majordomo@vger.kernel.org) by vger.kernel.org via listexpand id S1751073AbWCJIDJ (ORCPT ); Fri, 10 Mar 2006 03:03:09 -0500 Received: (majordomo@vger.kernel.org) by vger.kernel.org id S1751914AbWCJIDJ (ORCPT ); Fri, 10 Mar 2006 03:03:09 -0500 Received: from mail.gmx.de ([213.165.64.20]:17043 "HELO mail.gmx.net") by vger.kernel.org with SMTP id S1751073AbWCJIDI (ORCPT ); Fri, 10 Mar 2006 03:03:08 -0500 X-Authenticated: #428038 Date: Fri, 10 Mar 2006 09:03:04 +0100 From: Matthias Andree To: linux-kernel@vger.kernel.org Subject: Re: [future of drivers?] a proposal for binary drivers. Message-ID: <20060310080304.GA14650@merlin.emma.line.org> Mail-Followup-To: linux-kernel@vger.kernel.org References: <200603081151.33349.jk-lkml@sci.fi> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Disposition: inline In-Reply-To: X-PGP-Key: http://home.pages.de/~mandree/keys/GPGKEY.asc User-Agent: Mutt/1.5.11 X-Y-GMX-Trusted: 0 Sender: linux-kernel-owner@vger.kernel.org X-Mailing-List: linux-kernel@vger.kernel.org Content-Length: 1576 Lines: 33 On Wed, 08 Mar 2006, Anshuman Gholap wrote: > if there was binary allowed (with any license) maybe dlink themself > would build a driver, make documentation and provide it on CD, just > see how much effort would be saved and in end he would get more time > to treat his patients. And you assume doctor would care to compile the kernel himself in his working hours, rather than ask the NOC staff of $hospital to do that for him? You expect Linux would ship with these binary drivers for any device? All major Linux distributions (including Turbo, Red Hat and Fedora, Novell, SUSE and Opensuse, Debian, Ubuntu, Gentoo) could work out a single way of installing drivers? Interesting. > I have thousands of similar scenarios. Even I wont mind the luxury of > making hardware just working and not going to google>>download src>>if > bug/error found>>go to forums post thread>>hang on irc and bug > ppl>>get more things compiled done >>if work then enjoy>> or wait for > the philanthropic coder to solve bug and release new ver. That coder needs to be provided with full specs, and that is what usually does not happen, because then the hardware isn't as easily exchangable to save 0.003 US$ per device, many vendors fear their "intellectual property" (as though thoughts had property rights, brains have...). -- Matthias Andree - To unsubscribe from this list: send the line "unsubscribe linux-kernel" in the body of a message to majordomo@vger.kernel.org More majordomo info at http://vger.kernel.org/majordomo-info.html Please read the FAQ at http://www.tux.org/lkml/