On Wed, 7 Dec 2016 12:11:10 +0000 Simon Hobson <li...@thehobsons.co.uk> wrote:
> Renaud (Ron) OLGIATI <ren...@olgiati-in-paraguay.org> wrote: > But then, this is all getting well off-topic for the list and the > thread. The point remains - neither patents nor DMCA are relevant. Indeed we are getting well offtopic. In fact, patents weren't part of the discussion until someone brought them in in an attempt to scuttle my suggestion of having a "free software only (y/n)" switch on installation. Also not part of the discussion: I never said the original poster's problem was lack of proprietary drivers. Look back at the thread: I said that *in addition to* the OP's problem, and once again, the same guy who brought patents into the mix asserted that I had falsely diagnosed the OP's problem. Speaking of this same guy, it turns out he's the only one in the whole thread who consistently prioritizes free software purity over getting the thing installed without booting System Rescue CD, chroot installing, and then going out and scavenging the necessary driver. And guys like this were exactly what I was talking about: I award him the Ralph Nader Screw Your Constituancy Award, because in removing that last 1% of nonfree (legal but nonfree) software, he sends most people with problematic wifi or video to Ubuntu, or perhaps to Mac or Windows. Yeah, that's good for Free Software. At one point the guy gave me the following suggestion: ================================================= If your vision of Devuan is something like Ubuntu, with every kind of software ditched-in just for the sake of attracting unsuspecting victims into it's snares, I think you'd better direct your efforts into Ubuntu of like Gnome or Unity based distribution. ================================================= OK fine, for sure for sure. And I have the following suggestion for him: If you prioritize a state of pristine Free Software purity over everything else, including the ability to install 99% Free Software without undocumented experimental incantations, then I suggest you direct your attention toward never-blob distros like Dragora, Linux-libre, or Trisquel. And you'd better buy hardware from System76 or Penguin Computing. Oh wait a minute: Those double-priced computers are guaranteed to work with *Ubuntu* or "Linux Pre-Configured using the empkernel to provide full hardware support." Better hope that empkernel is blobless. Because the one-issue-voter redefined my position during this thread, let me make my position perfectly clear: * I completely support the OP's assertion that the installer must contain and bestow all the free software necessary to install via hardware that can work with free software. * IN ADDITION TO, and in now way contradictory to or trying to diagnose what was said by the OP, I support the availablility of nonfree wifi, video, mouse and keyboard drivers and firmware, to the extent that it's legal, so that the user can, if he chooses, install easily. I think such availability should be switchable early in the install. * Because most wifi software sucks, I suggest Devuan roll its own CLI software, for the installation, that iwlist wlan0 scanning lists the access points, takes the ssid and password, and then appends the result of wpa_passphrase to the bottom of /etc/wpa_supplicant/wpa_supplicant.conf. In my experience this is the most reliable way to get wifi running for a given access point. * I also suggest we default to, or at least give the option for, public DNS resolvers such as 8.8.8.8 and 8.8.4.4. * The perfect is the enemy of the good. SteveT Steve Litt November 2016 featured book: Quit Joblessness: Start Your Own Business http://www.troubleshooters.com/startbiz _______________________________________________ Dng mailing list Dng@lists.dyne.org https://mailinglists.dyne.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/dng