AMD Backs openSUSE with Huge New Infrastructure

apokryphos writes "AMD has helped sponsor the progress of openSUSE with leading-edge hardware and development expertise. "AMD is helping to ensure that the openSUSE Build Service continues to be an important collaboration and development platform for developers of all distributions," said Terri Hall, AMD vice president of Commercial Systems Marketing. Are these continued announcements of huge support from large OEMs an indication of a new era?"

To AMD:

[pajeromanco]

Save your hardware infrastructure and give me a god damn free driver.

Signed,

ATI user.

That's real nice...

[kilgortrout]

but if you really want to help give us some open source drivers for ati graphics cards or at least closed source ones that don't totally suck.

Re:microsoft connection?

[apokryphos]

The Microsoft deal on interoperability and customer patent protection is still ongoing but more in the background these days. The real "new push" is coming from Novell's relationship with IBM (and AMD, like this story; and I'm sure you know about Dell). For example IBM and Novell just launched a Big Green Linux Initiative [zdnet.co.uk], or how IBM, Novell Team to Tap Open Source App Servers [tmcnet.com], and the list goes on (see LWE announcements, or Google News). Novell is really trying to push Linux on the server -- and just as importantly -- the desktop into the Enterprise, and they're making major deals with large OEMs (that is, AMD, IBM/Lenovo, Dell) to make it happen.

Re:To AMD:

[Zantetsuken]

No - I don't even care if its free (F/LOSS free). As long as it fucking works and gives me 3D hardware acceleration under Linux on my laptop, I'll be happy (Radeon xpress 200m)...

Re:Debian GNU/Linux

[T-Ranger]

Novell hasn't had the greatest year. I guess if they sell of one of their two or three corporate jets, and Debian picks it up, then Debian may begin to impress the likes of AMD.

Re:To AMD:

[the_brobdingnagian]

I don't care about drivers from them. I want good and public documentation of the hardware.

Re:To AMD:

[BESTouff]

No - I don't even care if its free (F/LOSS free)

You already had your non-free driver, it's called frglx. It kind of worked for some cards, but exactely because it's NOT Free, it's never been improved to work on newer kernels, with newer Xorg techniques (compositing, randr, ttm, etc.), or with all kind of cards.

If one day ATI releases another version of their proprietary monster for the card of your choice, you'll have no warranty it'll work the year after. Just because you didn't care.

Re:To AMD:

[Tovok7]

No - I don't even care if its free (F/LOSS free). As long as it fucking works and gives me 3D hardware acceleration under Linux on my laptop, I'll be happy (Radeon xpress 200m)...

You should care because only a free driver really ensures that it "fucking works" now, tomorrow and even in a few years when AMD dropped support for the driver because the card is no longer sold. A free driver has the big advantage that we (you, me, everybody) can fix and improve it and give the improved driver away to the community, so everybody benefits.

Re:openSuSE and the GPL ..

[krgallagher]

What's the whole point of openSUSE again. If the GPL is such an onerous license then why don't Novell strip all GPL licensed code from SUSE Linux, after all, what's only valuable is the kernel, right 'elsewhere' ...

You should have read the next paragraph:

The Software is a modular operating system. Most of the components are open source packages, developed independently, and accompanied by separate license terms. Your license rights with respect to individual components accompanied by separate license terms are defined by those terms; nothing in this Agreement (including, for example, the "Other License Terms and Restrictions," below) shall restrict, limit, or otherwise affect any rights or obligations You may have, or conditions to which You may be subject, under such license terms.

The paragraph you quoted only applies to any proprietary Novel code. Novel actually has a good record of releasing anything of value to the opensource community. This is however a beta not a release. Let's see what happens in the full release.

Re:SUSE

[apokryphos]

Yeah, sure, SUSE is a pseudo open-source project which an incredibly significant percentage of the open-source community is working on. Like who? Developers of probably 70% of the applications (and a higher percentage of software) that you regularly use. Like what, you say? Heard of KDE? Heard of GNOME? Heard of OpenOffice.org, the Linux kernel, GCC, ALSA, Compiz? Yes, it's often hard to not use them. :-)

The tagline of the story is perfectly applicable here: money-where-mouth-is. You really don't want SUSE in the OSS community? Put your money where your mouth is: start ripping out all the contributions that they put in. :)

Anyway, at least be sure that your hate is justified [opensuse.org], which it most probably isn't.