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Most modern computers come with a non-free BIOS etc. I wonder if this bill could be used to order companies like Intel and AMD to make changes to that proprieta
by jensen123 11y ago
Most modern computers come with a non-free BIOS etc. I wonder if this bill could be used to order companies like Intel and AMD to make changes to that proprietary code? When I first heard Richard Stallman talk about a free BIOS, that sounded kinda extreme. It no longer sounds very extreme.
- na85 11y agoGuaranteed Intel has already done so.
- Arnt 11y agoSubstantiate that, please. Or your guarantee isn't worth the bits it's stored as.
- Zigurd 11y agoThat kind of absolute demand is just as useless. One might just as well ask "Where is the code and the audit?" And until we have that we are left with a strong motive on the part of snoops to force Intel and every other technology provider to create back doors. Moreover there is evidence that at least some makers of mobile baseband systems included the ability to parse and execute special commands to turn phones into room bugs. This was revealed in a federal case against mafia activity. So it's not unprecedented for very large technology companies to comply with requests of that nature and keep them confidential.
- Arnt 11y agoSorry, I suppose I'm guilty of the same thing that I objected to. I didn't mean that as an absolute demand. Rather, I disapprove of the absolute x-sucks attitude, along the lines of "guaranteed Intel did <name bad thing>, after all <some other bigco> did <some other bad thing>".