Non-opensource drivers

Rocco Stanzione grasshopper at linuxkungfu.org
Sat Nov 25 17:13:57 GMT 2006


Thus spake Toby Smithe:
> > Question: should the same checkbox govern binary wireless drivers (e.g.)
> > too, i.e. turn off the restricted component altogether?
>
> No. This should be separate. People always need wireless more than fancy
> graphics.

This entire discussion is about open source/free software *principles*.  If 
it's more inconvenient to me to lack drivers for my wifi card than it is for 
my video card, the principle is the same, and the principle is what we're 
trying to address (or reconcile with policy).  I've always been a little 
surprised at how Restricted is handled, as far as this is concerned, and I 
think the simplest/easiest/best solution is to add an install-time option to 
enable or disable features from that repository, with a clear explanation of 
the purpose of the option (well-articulated earlier in the discussion) and 
the consequences of each choice.

Rocco Stanzione




More information about the ubuntu-devel mailing list