Re: Will the XO-4 need nonfree firmware
Users can't get them unlocked where I know and the (volunteer) development community couldn't obtain development keys, but I'm not totally sure about that. My main information source is the olpc-uruguay mailing list and I can't affirm something like that without a stronger evidence. John might have them... When I was in Uruguay and investigated this question, I concluded that the users could get their machines unlocked but that most of them were not asking the right people. If there is clear evidence of GPL violation -- such as, They said to ask XYZ, we asked XYZ, and here's the response we got -- the FSF could take action. Vague reports of GPL violations are as unhelpful as vague bug reports as far as fixing things is concerned. -- Dr Richard Stallman President, Free Software Foundation 51 Franklin St Boston MA 02110 USA www.fsf.org www.gnu.org Skype: No way! That's nonfree (freedom-denying) software. Use Ekiga or an ordinary phone call ___ Devel mailing list Devel@lists.laptop.org http://lists.laptop.org/listinfo/devel
Re: Will the XO-4 need nonfree firmware
It's true. In Uruguay the laptops distributed by Plan Ceibal only allow to boot signed builds without root access. The biggest part of the software can be used and modified with freedom but not inside those laptops. What I was told in Uruguay when I brought this up is that users can get them unlocked if they ask. -- Dr Richard Stallman President, Free Software Foundation 51 Franklin St Boston MA 02110 USA www.fsf.org www.gnu.org Skype: No way! That's nonfree (freedom-denying) software. Use Ekiga or an ordinary phone call ___ Devel mailing list Devel@lists.laptop.org http://lists.laptop.org/listinfo/devel
Re: Will the XO-4 need nonfree firmware
PS: If you want to spend time on the freedom of OLPC products, first get the FSF staff to enforce the GPL on OLPCs. Major OLPC customer countries are still providing hundreds of thousands of laptops full of GPLv3 binary software to kids who can't examine, replace, or get the matching source for that software. These laptops are locked down with Secure Boot, with a remote disable switch (time-limited leases), and also shipped with root access disabled, so the owner can't even do simple software edits or upgrades. Please tell us specific evidence; then we will do what we can. It may be hard to enforce copyrights in those countries, but in order to try, we need clear-cut evidence. -- Dr Richard Stallman President, Free Software Foundation 51 Franklin St Boston MA 02110 USA www.fsf.org www.gnu.org Skype: No way! That's nonfree (freedom-denying) software. Use Ekiga or an ordinary phone call ___ Devel mailing list Devel@lists.laptop.org http://lists.laptop.org/listinfo/devel
Re: Will the XO-4 need nonfree firmware
They would need to get an external USB network device. Are there completely free USB network devices, from your PoV? The question is whether the device requires installation of nonfree software. Several years ago, when I used an XO, I used a USB WiFi device which didn't require any. I have not checked recently whether they are still made. A free USB network device would mean something else -- a device whose plans, including any preinstalled firmware, are released under a free license. We don't need to insist on that. (I want to write an article about the free hardware issue, but I don't have time to explain now.) All we need is a network device that can be used without installed nonfree software. I am curious, why if the cards are not easy to obtain? If they were easy to obtain, the machine without one would specifically invite people get that card in order to make it complete. -- Dr Richard Stallman President, Free Software Foundation 51 Franklin St Boston MA 02110 USA www.fsf.org www.gnu.org Skype: No way! That's nonfree (freedom-denying) software. Use Ekiga or an ordinary phone call ___ Devel mailing list Devel@lists.laptop.org http://lists.laptop.org/listinfo/devel
Re: Will the XO-4 need nonfree firmware
Yes, the XO-4 will need a nonfree firmware program copied by the operating system into the wireless device. That is disappointing news. It means we won't be able to endorse it. The 8686 firmware is also in the Debian non-free package firmware-libertas. (What a perverse name!) These steps might be placed in the boot script of the operating system in order to avoid nonfree infection of an operating system distribution. To make it ok, it would have to be buried inside the hardware such that the user and the system don't touch it at all. It is possible to do that, but it might take some extra hardware. Is it possible to make the circuit such that the internal wireless device can easily be removed or permanently disabled without breaking the rest of the machine? If so, we could endorse machines modified in this way. -- Dr Richard Stallman President, Free Software Foundation 51 Franklin St Boston MA 02110 USA www.fsf.org www.gnu.org Skype: No way! That's nonfree (freedom-denying) software. Use Ekiga or an ordinary phone call ___ Devel mailing list Devel@lists.laptop.org http://lists.laptop.org/listinfo/devel
Re: Will the XO-4 need nonfree firmware
In that case, this machine without that card might be an option for people who want laptops they can use in freedom. They would need to get an external USB network device. If someone sells them without the card (NOT with the card separately packaged), under another name, and if the cards are not easy to obtain, that could be a product we could endorse. -- Dr Richard Stallman President, Free Software Foundation 51 Franklin St Boston MA 02110 USA www.fsf.org www.gnu.org Skype: No way! That's nonfree (freedom-denying) software. Use Ekiga or an ordinary phone call ___ Devel mailing list Devel@lists.laptop.org http://lists.laptop.org/listinfo/devel
Will the XO-4 need nonfree firmware
Previous models of the XO have needed nonfree firmware programs which were not buried inside peripherals, but rather were installed as part of the operating system and had to be copied by it into the peripherals. Because of this, when I used the original XO, I could not use its network interface. Will the XO-4 need any of these? If not, the FSF might be able to endorse it. -- Dr Richard Stallman President, Free Software Foundation 51 Franklin St Boston MA 02110 USA www.fsf.org www.gnu.org Skype: No way! That's nonfree (freedom-denying) software. Use Ekiga or an ordinary phone call ___ Devel mailing list Devel@lists.laptop.org http://lists.laptop.org/listinfo/devel
