[EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: > On Thu, 15 May 2008, Steve Holton wrote: > >> On Thu, May 15, 2008 at 8:03 PM, Seth Woodworth <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >> wrote: >> >>> Let's look at this with a slightly different lens before we blow up >>> on NN >>> and Microsoft. >>> >>> What does this agreement equate to? And what are the alternatives to >>> Microsoft? >>> >>> If the XO was running a completely closed source stack with no >>> documentation on hardware, how would the Linux community feel? They >>> would >>> feel that they were being shut out and not allowed to run whatever >>> software >>> they wanted to or develop. This is something the linux community has >>> speared hardware companies over for years. >> >> >> ...and to which the free software (linux) community would respond with a >> reverse engineering effort, at it's own (collective) expense, and rather >> quickly have a solution. If turnabout is fair play, let Microsoft >> adopt the >> free software community response as well. >> >> (When Cisco modified their WRT54G hardware so that Linux could no longer >> run, the response was to strip-down the gnu/linux stack even more >> until it >> would run again.) >> >> It's doubtful the free software community would do what Microsoft is >> demanding: asking the manufacturer to add 5-10% to the cost of the >> hardware >> to facilitate their efforts, nor would the free software community >> charge a >> $3.00 license fee for the use thereafter. > > I missed where the hardware was being changed and the cost going up to > support this. what I read was that the boot firmware was being modified > so that it could dual-boot into windows. > > please point me at the additional cost involved. > > David Lang
from: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/16/technology/16laptop.html?_r=2&oref=slogin&oref=slogin "Windows will add a bit to the price of the machines, about $3, the licensing fee Microsoft charges to some developing nations under a program called Unlimited Potential. For those nations that want dual-boot models, running both Windows and Linux, the extra hardware required will add another $7 or so to the cost of the machines, Mr. Negroponte said." Simon _______________________________________________ Devel mailing list Devel@lists.laptop.org http://lists.laptop.org/listinfo/devel