This patch should not have any functional changes.
It also groups the FAQ questions, history and Replicant
presentation in a way that follows the way it is split logically
and inside the rendered page.
Signed-off-by: Denis 'GNUtoo' Carikli <gnu...@cyberdimension.org>
---
about.php | 370 ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++----------
1 file changed, 303 insertions(+), 67 deletions(-)
diff --git a/about.php b/about.php
index cf63d46..e3147f8 100644
--- a/about.php
+++ b/about.php
@@ -1,73 +1,309 @@
<?php include("include/header.php"); ?>
<div class="container" role="main">
- <div class="page-header"><h2>About Replicant</h2></div>
- <div class="row">
- <div class="col-md-9">
- <p>Replicant is a <a
href="//www.gnu.org/philosophy/free-sw.html">fully free</a> <a
href="//www.android.com/">Android</a> distribution running on several devices,
a free software mobile operating system putting the emphasis on freedom and
privacy/security. It is based on <a href="http://lineageos.org/";>LineageOS</a>
and replaces or avoids every <a
href="//www.gnu.org/philosophy/proprietary.html">proprietary</a> component of
the system, such as user-space programs and libraries as well as firmwares.<br
/>Replicant aims to be an ethical system: it does not ship nor recommend the
use of non-free software.</p>
- <p>Many different devices are supported by Replicant,
to an extent specific to each device. Basic features such as graphics, sound
and telephony (if applicable) are supposed to be working for each device (if
not, developers are confident they will work soon).</p>
- <p>Replicant is a community-led effort, currently
driven by few developers. Not every piece of software in Replicant should be
expected to be fully-featured nor entirely reliable, even though developers are
trying their best.</p>
- <h3>History</h3>
- <p>Replicant was founded in 2010 as a way to gather
initiatives aiming to free the system running on the HTC Dream, the first
publicly-available Android device. The project was started by members of <a
href="//libreplanet.org/wiki/Group:LibrePlanet_Italia">LibrePlanet Italia</a>
and <a href="//sfconservancy.org/">Software Freedom Conservancy</a>. The first
usable version of Replicant was based upon Android 1.5 as released by the <a
href="//source.android.com/">Android Open Source Project</a>: after some work,
basic functionalities of the HTC Dream were working. Starting from version
2.2, Replicant stopped using AOSP as a base and instead started using <a
href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyanogenmod";>CyanogenMod</a>, which
contains support for more devices.</p>
- <p>Over time, various initial members of the project
retired, leaving Denis "GNUtoo" Carikli as the only active developer of the
project. However, in April 2011 Paul Kocialkowski, a user of Replicant, started
getting involved in development. After porting Replicant to version 2.3 on the
Nexus S and later on porting plenty more devices, Paul became the main
developer of Replicant and was doing most of the work on the project for
several years. In September 2015 Wolfgang Wiedmeyer started to contribute to
the project. He ported Replicant to version 6.0 on the Galaxy S3 and later on
ported more devices that were already supported by previous Replicant
versions.</p>
- </div>
- </div>
-
- <div class="page-header" id="faq"><h2>Frequently asked
questions</h2></div>
- <div class="row">
- <div class="col-md-9">
- <div class="panel panel-default"
id="only-free-software">
- <div class="panel-heading"><h3
class="panel-title">Is my device only running free software after I install
Replicant?</h3></div>
- <div class="panel-body"><p>While Replicant is a
fully free system, other components run aside the system, such as bootloaders,
firmwares and the modem operating system (if applicable). These components are
usually proprietary software. Some devices can also run free software
bootloaders: see the documentation specific to each device for more details.<br
/>For more information about these issues, read our <a
href="freedom-privacy-security-issues.php">freedom and privacy/security
issues</a> page.</p></div>
- </div>
- <div class="panel panel-default"
id="not-listed-install">
- <div class="panel-heading"><h3
class="panel-title">My device is not listed as supported, can I still install
Replicant?</h3></div>
- <div class="panel-body"><p>Replicant only runs
on the <a
href="//redmine.replicant.us/projects/replicant/wiki/ReplicantStatus">listed
supported devices</a>. Other devices have to be explicitly ported to Replicant:
specific drivers and configurations have to be written so that Replicant can
handle the device properly. It is not a good idea to try installing an image
for a device that has a similar name: it will fail and may damage the
device.<br />You are welcome to get in touch with us and start evaluating your
device as a next target for Replicant!</p></div>
- </div>
- <div class="panel panel-default" id="safe-data">
- <div class="panel-heading"><h3
class="panel-title">Is my data safe when stored on a device running
Replicant?</h3></div>
- <div class="panel-body"><p>While Replicant is a
fully free system, some proprietary components that are not part of the system,
such as bootloaders, may still be executed (the situation depends on each
device). These proprietary pieces have access to the data stored on the device.
Hence, they represent a risk for security.<br />On telephony-enabled devices,
if the modem is poorly isolated from the rest of the device, it may also be
able to compromise the data stored on the device and apply software changes.<br
/>Despite being fully free, Replicant may also be exposed to security issues
that were not disclosed and/or fixed yet, like any operating system. Just as
well, installing third party applications may bring security issues, especially
if they come from untrusted sources. Of course, installing any proprietary
application creates a risk for security.</p></div>
- </div>
- <div class="panel panel-default"
id="safe-communications">
- <div class="panel-heading"><h3
class="panel-title">Are my communications safe when using a device running
Replicant?</h3></div>
- <div class="panel-body"><p>Communications made
using the public mobile telephony network should be considered unsafe by
nature, as the mobile telephony operator is always able to record and track
these communications and is often legally allowed to do so. In addition, it was
shown that in some cases, these can be intercepted as a result of the weak
encryption in use. Safe communications can be achieved using encryption over
the Internet (e.g. through mobile data networks).<br />However on
telephony-enabled devices, if the modem is poorly isolated from the rest of the
device, it may be able to access the microphone of the device or access the
communications data unencrypted, making any kind of communication
unsafe.</p></div>
- </div>
- <div class="panel panel-default"
id="missing-hardware-features">
- <div class="panel-heading"><h3
class="panel-title">Why are some hardware features missing on
Replicant?</h3></div>
- <div class="panel-body"><p>Most of the time,
hardware features are driven by proprietary software in LineageOS. While
Replicant is fully free, these proprietary parts are either replaced or avoided
in Replicant. Such parts being avoided instead of replaced is the result of
missing free software support for that hardware. It happens because developers
failed to write free software support for that hardware, as a result of
incomplete or missing documentation from the manufacturer, lack of time to
perform reverse engineering or generally speaking, lack of proper resources.<br
/>Keep in mind that writing free software replacements is a technically complex
task that does not always succeed, especially when the manufacturer doesn't
communicate how to use the hardware.</p></div>
- </div>
- <div class="panel panel-default"
id="replicant-different-lineageos">
- <div class="panel-heading"><h3
class="panel-title">How exactly is Replicant different from
LineageOS?</h3></div>
- <div class="panel-body"><p>Replicant uses
LineageOS's source code as a base. It is rebranded to provide the Replicant
look and feel (wallpapers, logos) and parts of the code are reworked to remove
anti-features that can spy on the user. Most importantly, Replicant does not
include any of LineageOS's proprietary components (programs, libraries,
firmwares) and instead provides free software replacements for some of these.
The rest of the system is also adapted so that the free software replacements
can run correctly.</p></div>
- </div>
- <div class="panel panel-default"
id="replicant-based-omnirom">
- <div class="panel-heading"><h3
class="panel-title">Why is Replicant based on LineageOS instead of <a
href="//omnirom.org/">OmniROM</a>?</h3></div>
- <div class="panel-body"><p>LineageOS supports
more devices than OmniROM, which makes porting a new device to Replicant
easier. On top of that, most if not all devices that are currently supported by
Replicant are not in OmniROM. OmniROM's general position may be more friendly
towards free software, but it still ships with proprietary software.</p></div>
- </div>
- <div class="panel panel-default"
id="shipping-proprietary-components">
- <div class="panel-heading"><h3
class="panel-title">Why doesn't Replicant ship with proprietary components when
free replacements are missing?</h3></div>
- <div class="panel-body"><p>Replicant is a free
software project and thus does not encourage nor enforce the use of proprietary
software. Shipping proprietary software is a way of taking the decision for the
user to use proprietary software, which is not an ethical nor respectful thing
to do.</p></div>
- </div>
- <div class="panel panel-default"
id="installing-proprietary-components">
- <div class="panel-heading"><h3
class="panel-title">Why doesn't Replicant guide users through installing
complementary proprietary components?</h3></div>
- <div class="panel-body"><p>Replicant is a free
software project and thus does not encourage nor enforce the use of proprietary
software. Providing instructions to install such components is a way of
encouraging the use of proprietary software, which is not an ethical thing to
do.</p></div>
- </div>
- </div>
- <div class="col-md-3">
- <div class="list-group">
- <a href="#faq" class="list-group-item
active"><span class="glyphicon glyphicon-question-sign"></span> Frequently
asked questions</a>
- <a href="#only-free-software"
class="list-group-item">Is my device only running free software after I install
Replicant?</a>
- <a href="#not-listed-install"
class="list-group-item">My device is not listed as supported, can I still
install Replicant?</a>
- <a href="#safe-data" class="list-group-item">Is
my data safe when stored on a device running Replicant?</a>
- <a href="#safe-communications"
class="list-group-item">Are my communications safe when using a device running
Replicant?</a>
- <a href="#missing-hardware-features"
class="list-group-item">Why are some hardware features missing on Replicant?</a>
- <a href="#replicant-different-lineageos"
class="list-group-item">How exactly is Replicant different from LineageOS?</a>
- <a href="#replicant-based-omnirom"
class="list-group-item">Why is Replicant based on LineageOS instead of
OmniROM?</a>
- <a href="#shipping-proprietary-components"
class="list-group-item">Why doesn't Replicant ship with proprietary components
when free replacements are missing?</a>
- <a href="#installing-proprietary-components"
class="list-group-item">Why doesn't Replicant guide users through installing
complementary proprietary components?</a>
- </div>
- </div>
- </div>
+
+ <div class="page-header"><h2>About Replicant</h2></div>
+
+ <div class="row">
+ <div class="col-md-9">
+ <p>
+ Replicant is a
+ <a href="//www.gnu.org/philosophy/free-sw.html"> fully free</a>
+ <a href="//www.android.com/">Android</a> distribution running on
several
+ devices, a free software mobile operating system putting the emphasis
on
+ freedom and privacy/security. It is based on
+ <a href="http://lineageos.org/";>LineageOS</a> and replaces or avoids
+ every
+ <a href="//www.gnu.org/philosophy/proprietary.html">proprietary</a>
+ component of the system, such as user-space programs and libraries as
+ well as firmwares.<br />Replicant aims to be an ethical system: it does
+ not ship nor recommend the use of non-free software.
+ </p>
+ <p>
+ Many different devices are supported by Replicant, to an extent
specific
+ to each device. Basic features such as graphics, sound and telephony
(if
+ applicable) are supposed to be working for each device (if not,
+ developers are confident they will work soon).
+ </p>
+ <p>
+ Replicant is a community-led effort, currently driven by few
developers.
+ Not every piece of software in Replicant should be expected to be
+ fully-featured nor entirely reliable, even though developers are trying
+ their best.
+ </p>
+
+ <h3>History</h3>
+
+ <p>
+ Replicant was founded in 2010 as a way to gather initiatives aiming to
+ free the system running on the HTC Dream, the first publicly-available
+ Android device. The project was started by members of
+ <a href="//libreplanet.org/wiki/Group:LibrePlanet_Italia">
+ LibrePlanet Italia
+ </a> and
+ <a href="//sfconservancy.org/">Software Freedom Conservancy</a>.
+ The first usable version of Replicant was based upon Android 1.5 as
+ released by the
+ <a href="//source.android.com/">Android Open Source Project</a>:
+ after some work, basic functionalities of the HTC Dream were working.
+ Starting from version 2.2, Replicant stopped using AOSP as a base and
+ instead started using
+ <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyanogenmod";>CyanogenMod</a>,
+ which contains support for more devices.
+ </p>
+ <p>
+ Over time, various initial members of the project retired, leaving
+ Denis "GNUtoo" Carikli as the only active developer of the project.
+ However, in April 2011 Paul Kocialkowski, a user of Replicant, started
+ getting involved in development. After porting Replicant to version 2.3
+ on the Nexus S and later on porting plenty more devices, Paul became
the
+ main developer of Replicant and was doing most of the work on the
+ project for several years. In September 2015 Wolfgang Wiedmeyer started
+ to contribute to the project. He ported Replicant to version 6.0 on the
+ Galaxy S3 and later on ported more devices that were already supported
+ by previous Replicant versions.
+ </p>
+ </div>
+ </div>
+
+ <div class="page-header" id="faq">
+ <h2>Frequently asked questions</h2>
+ </div>
+
+ <div class="row">
+ <div class="col-md-9">
+
+ <div class="panel panel-default" id="only-free-software">
+ <div class="panel-heading">
+ <h3 class="panel-title">
+ Is my device only running free software after I install Replicant?
+ </h3>
+ </div>
+ <div class="panel-body">
+ <p>
+ While Replicant is a fully free system, other components run aside
+ the system, such as bootloaders, firmwares and the modem operating
+ system (if applicable). These components are usually proprietary
+ software. Some devices can also run free software bootloaders:
+ see the documentation specific to each device for more
+ details.<br />
+ For more information about these issues, read our
+ <a href="freedom-privacy-security-issues.php">
+ freedom and privacy/security issues
+ </a> page.
+ </p>
+ </div>
+ </div>
+
+ <div class="panel panel-default" id="not-listed-install">
+ <div class="panel-heading">
+ <h3 class="panel-title">
+ My device is not listed as supported, can I still install
Replicant?
+ </h3>
+ </div>
+ <div class="panel-body">
+ <p>
+ Replicant only runs on the
+ <a
+ href=
+ "//redmine.replicant.us/projects/replicant/wiki/ReplicantStatus">
+ listed supported devices
+ </a>.
+ Other devices have to be explicitly
+ ported to Replicant: specific drivers and configurations have to be
+ written so that Replicant can handle the device properly. It is not
+ a good idea to try installing an image for a device that has a
+ similar name: it will fail and may damage the device.<br />
+ You are welcome to get in touch with us and start evaluating your
+ device as a next target for Replicant!
+ </p>
+ </div>
+ </div>
+
+ <div class="panel panel-default" id="safe-data">
+ <div class="panel-heading">
+ <h3 class="panel-title">
+ Is my data safe when stored on a device running Replicant?
+ </h3>
+ </div>
+ <div class="panel-body">
+ <p>
+ While Replicant is a fully free system, some proprietary components
+ that are not part of the system, such as bootloaders, may still be
+ executed (the situation depends on each device). These proprietary
+ pieces have access to the data stored on the device. Hence, they
+ represent a risk for security.<br />
+ On telephony-enabled devices, if the modem is poorly isolated from
+ the rest of the device, it may also be able to compromise the data
+ stored on the device and apply software changes.<br />
+ Despite being fully free, Replicant may also be exposed to security
+ issues that were not disclosed and/or fixed yet, like any operating
+ system. Just as well, installing third party applications may bring
+ security issues, especially if they come from untrusted sources. Of
+ course, installing any proprietary application creates a risk for
+ security.
+ </p>
+ </div>
+ </div>
+
+ <div class="panel panel-default" id="safe-communications">
+ <div class="panel-heading">
+ <h3 class="panel-title">
+ Are my communications safe when using a device running Replicant?
+ </h3>
+ </div>
+ <div class="panel-body">
+ <p>
+ Communications made using the public mobile telephony network
should
+ be considered unsafe by nature, as the mobile telephony operator is
+ always able to record and track these communications and is often
+ legally allowed to do so. In addition, it was shown that in some
+ cases, these can be intercepted as a result of the weak encryption
+ in use. Safe communications can be achieved using encryption over
+ the Internet (e.g. through mobile data networks).<br />
+ However on telephony-enabled devices, if the modem is poorly
+ isolated from the rest of the device, it may be able to access the
+ microphone of the device or access the communications data
+ unencrypted, making any kind of communication unsafe.
+ </p>
+ </div>
+ </div>
+
+ <div class="panel panel-default" id="missing-hardware-features">
+ <div class="panel-heading">
+ <h3 class="panel-title">
+ Why are some hardware features missing on Replicant?
+ </h3>
+ </div>
+ <div class="panel-body">
+ <p>
+ Most of the time, hardware features are driven by proprietary
+ software in LineageOS. While Replicant is fully free, these
+ proprietary parts are either replaced or avoided in Replicant. Such
+ parts being avoided instead of replaced is the result of missing
+ free software support for that hardware. It happens because
+ developers failed to write free software support for that hardware,
+ as a result of incomplete or missing documentation from the
+ manufacturer, lack of time to perform reverse engineering or
+ generally speaking, lack of proper resources.<br />
+ Keep in mind that writing free software replacements is a
+ technically complex task that does not always succeed, especially
+ when the manufacturer doesn't communicate how to use the hardware.
+ </p>
+ </div>
+ </div>
+
+ <div class="panel panel-default" id="replicant-different-lineageos">
+ <div class="panel-heading">
+ <h3 class="panel-title">
+ How exactly is Replicant different from LineageOS?
+ </h3>
+ </div>
+ <div class="panel-body">
+ <p>
+ Replicant uses LineageOS's source code as a base. It is rebranded
to
+ provide the Replicant look and feel (wallpapers, logos) and parts
of
+ the code are reworked to remove anti-features that can spy on the
+ user. Most importantly, Replicant does not include any of
+ LineageOS's proprietary components (programs, libraries, firmwares)
+ and instead provides free software replacements for some of these.
+ The rest of the system is also adapted so that the free software
+ replacements can run correctly.
+ </p></div>
+ </div>
+
+ <div class="panel panel-default" id="replicant-based-omnirom">
+ <div class="panel-heading">
+ <h3 class="panel-title">
+ Why is Replicant based on LineageOS instead of
+ <a href="//omnirom.org/">OmniROM</a>?
+ </h3>
+ </div>
+ <div class="panel-body">
+ <p>
+ LineageOS supports more devices than OmniROM, which makes porting a
+ new device to Replicant easier. On top of that, most if not all
+ devices that are currently supported by Replicant are not in
+ OmniROM. OmniROM's general position may be more friendly towards
+ free software, but it still ships with proprietary software.
+ </p>
+ </div>
+ </div>
+
+ <div class="panel panel-default" id="shipping-proprietary-components">
+ <div class="panel-heading">
+ <h3 class="panel-title">
+ Why doesn't Replicant ship with proprietary components when free
+ replacements are missing?
+ </h3>
+ </div>
+ <div class="panel-body">
+ <p>
+ Replicant is a free software project and thus does not encourage
nor
+ enforce the use of proprietary software. Shipping proprietary
+ software is a way of taking the decision for the user to use
+ proprietary software, which is not an ethical nor respectful thing
+ to do.
+ </p>
+ </div>
+ </div>
+
+ <div class="panel panel-default" id="installing-proprietary-components">
+ <div class="panel-heading">
+ <h3 class="panel-title">
+ Why doesn't Replicant guide users through installing complementary
+ proprietary components?
+ </h3>
+ </div>
+ <div class="panel-body">
+ <p>
+ Replicant is a free software project and thus does not encourage
nor
+ enforce the use of proprietary software. Providing instructions to
+ install such components is a way of encouraging the use of
+ proprietary software, which is not an ethical thing to do.
+ </p>
+ </div>
+ </div>
+ </div>
+
+ <div class="col-md-3">
+ <div class="list-group">
+ <a href="#faq" class="list-group-item active">
+ <span class="glyphicon glyphicon-question-sign"></span>
+ Frequently asked questions
+ </a>
+ <a href="#only-free-software" class="list-group-item">
+ Is my device only running free software after I install Replicant?
+ </a>
+ <a href="#not-listed-install" class="list-group-item">
+ My device is not listed as supported, can I still install Replicant?
+ </a>
+ <a href="#safe-data" class="list-group-item">
+ Is my data safe when stored on a device running Replicant?
+ </a>
+ <a href="#safe-communications" class="list-group-item">
+ Are my communications safe when using a device running Replicant?
+ </a>
+ <a href="#missing-hardware-features" class="list-group-item">
+ Why are some hardware features missing on Replicant?
+ </a>
+ <a href="#replicant-different-lineageos" class="list-group-item">
+ How exactly is Replicant different from LineageOS?
+ </a>
+ <a href="#replicant-based-omnirom" class="list-group-item">
+ Why is Replicant based on LineageOS instead of OmniROM?
+ </a>
+ <a href="#shipping-proprietary-components" class="list-group-item">
+ Why doesn't Replicant ship with proprietary components when free
+ replacements are missing?
+ </a>
+ <a href="#installing-proprietary-components" class="list-group-item">
+ Why doesn't Replicant guide users through installing complementary
+ proprietary components?
+ </a>
+ </div>
+ </div>
+ </div>
</div>
<?php include("include/footer.php"); ?>
--
2.31.1
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