Ubuntu is not free.

[Ouattara Oumar Aziz]

> Once again: there is nothing wrong with having decent hardware and
> software support for Linux, we do not have to accept a world where we
> can't have these things. But to have them we do not need to violate the
> principles that made Linux what it is today and turn it into yet another
> proprietary infested OS. All we have to do is tell the owners of
> proprietary stuff to free it up and GET THEM TO DO IT.

Alan, sometimes proprietary stuff providers can't do it another way 
(They have to run their business too !) . Why do you think they bother 
putting some resources developing linux stuff their own? They could just 
let it be and just support windows AND it would be very easy and free of 
charge to release their spec and let linux developers do the job .
The point is that they want to provide somethings for the linux 
community and to prevent some sort of piracy, the only solution they 
sometimes got is just to develop it by themselves.

On this thread, people propose to make some pressure on manufacturers so 
that they can support Linux. I totally agree . But provide support  on 
Linux for their hardware doesn't mean opening their code.
We should thanks the ones that provide proprietary stuff for putting 
some effort helping Linux instead of blaming them for not opening their 
code.