[olug] [OT] Video Card Recommendation

[Adam Lassek]

Well, it's more complicated than that. The NVIDIA driver comes in two
pieces: one, a linux-specific 'shim' which links against kernel headers and
is GPL licensed, and second, a binary-only driver which is also used on
Windows and Mac OS, and thus not a derived work of Linux.

The point of contention is how the GPL shim interacts with the binary
driver. Linus seems to err on the side of having functioning hardware and
tolerates this, although he would obviously prefer GPL drivers.

On Sun, Nov 29, 2009 at 11:16 PM, T. J. Brumfield <enderandrew at gmail.com>wrote:

> On Sun, Nov 29, 2009 at 7:29 PM, Luke-Jr <luke at dashjr.org> wrote:
> > "Modules" are just a Linux word for a binary patch. Linux is not a micro-
> > kernel, nor does it make any linking exceptions other than for userland.
>
> Incorrect. I can call the Nvidia kernel module without having to
> recompile my kernel, because the module is not a patch to the kernel.
> Just as the bootloader loads the kernel, and the kernel loads
> userland, the kernel can load and unload modules. That doesn't make
> modules merely a patch against the kernel.
>
> The driver API itself is designed to be open for anyone to call, even
> for proprietary modules.
>
> > They've been 'caught' plenty, just not sued.
>
> Caught? Linus uses proprietary video modules himself (or did at least)
> since he has gone on record of saying he always buys Mac hardware. He
> has mentioned directly using proprietary video modules in the past. It
> isn't like this is some great secret work by Nvidia that no one has
> noticed.
>
> They haven't been sued because it isn't a violation. The FSF does go
> after every violation it finds. I believe the FSF said recently they
> find a GPL violation almost daily, and they try to pursue all of them.
>
> -- T. J. Brumfield
> "I'm questioning my education
> Rewind and what does it show?
> Could be, the truth it becomes you
> I'm a seed, wondering why it grows"
> -- Pearl Jam, Education
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