NVIDIA Denies Opening Up Its Driver

[phoronix]

Phoronix: NVIDIA Denies Opening Up Its Driver

Yesterday we reported on the Linux Foundation's message they have issued on the behalf of more than 140 kernel developers: Binary-only kernel modules are harmful and undesirable. While no vendor was singled out in this message, the biggest hardware manufacturer that has yet to provide any real level of open-source support is NVIDIA Corporation. Over the past few months, however, we've received word from our sources that NVIDIA may be planning an open-source strategy...

http://www.phoronix.com/vr.php?view=NjU0NQ

[ethana2]

I'd donate money to fund a third party army of reverse engineers.

Buy a bunch of people a recent nvidia card, have them produce public domain docs of every transistor down to the HDCP implementation..
get nvidia's high end cards blacklisted by windows vista for any and all secure high definition media playback...

[Redeeman]

Originally Posted by ethana2

I'd donate money to fund a third party army of reverse engineers.

Buy a bunch of people a recent nvidia card, have them produce public domain docs of every transistor down to the HDCP implementation..
get nvidia's high end cards blacklisted by windows vista for any and all secure high definition media playback...

if you know of such an effort, a sort of dedicated warfare against nvidia, please please let me know, ill happily support it

[duby229]

Sorry but I dont think some of the sentiments in that article are entirely realistic, or for that matter even close... Sounds like propaganda against the kernel developers to me. How would properly and completely supporting an open driver cause workstation users to pack up and move to another OS? Really? I would like to try and understand the logic behind that.

I would like to try and steer clear of subjective ideologies, and instead stick with facts. Fact 1: The only limitations to the open drivers are the ones that ATi artificially imposes. Fact 2: It is only the artificially imposed limitations that would prevent workstation users from adopting open drivers.

Seems pretty cut and dry to me. If properly and completely supported, an open driver can and will be better then any closed driver could possibly be. Ever. How would a stable and functional open driver, drive workstation users away? Seriously, I'd like to try and understand the logic behind this reasoning.

[ethana2]

It wouldn't be a war against nvidia so much as it'd be an effort to remind them that they're /hardware/ vendors, and they should keep it that way.

I think it's worth it for every linux user with an nvidia card to pay the cost of the card as donation to such an effort, because a gpu is only as good as its drivers....

I'm getting an Ubuntu Dell w/ nVidia GeForce 8400m GS soon (no ati option), so for me, such a donation would be around $150.

[Redeeman]

well.. it SHOULD be warfare, they deserve it..

But again, if you hear of some effort, please inform me

[ethana2]

Redeeman: we don't want to completely alienate the company while there's still some hope of them coming around.

[Malikith]

Originally Posted by ethana2

Redeeman: we don't want to completely alienate the company while there's still some hope of them coming around.

Not with the 4870 just around the corner... Wait till you see what that thing can do. Hahaha , but on the warfare part, I'd give it a little more time. Just a little more, but not much.

[Redeeman]

Originally Posted by ethana2

Redeeman: we don't want to completely alienate the company while there's still some hope of them coming around.

nvidia has had plenty of chances, if i had the means, i'd gladly invalidate hdcp capability of all current nvidia products, thats not nearly as big a punishment as they deserve.

[ethana2]

Theirs is what used to be the mindset of everyone, even ati and intel at some point in the past-- i would attribute their problems to obselete thinking rather than malevolence. If they really hated us we'de have no drivers at all.