4 ms·
A valid concern, but x86/x86_64-based Chromebooks have a F/OSS BIOS and drivers -- for example, Google went out of their way to contribute the relevant bits to
by cbhl 13y ago
A valid concern, but x86/x86_64-based Chromebooks have a F/OSS BIOS and drivers -- for example, Google went out of their way to contribute the relevant bits to coreboot.
Installing GNU/Linux on such systems is straightforward and well-documented (flip the physical or virtual developer switch; enable USB boot from a shell; boot installer or OS from USB) too.
Proprietary firmware means dealing with stupid things like hard-coded checks for "Windows Boot Manager" or "Red Hat Enterprise Linux" in UEFI firmware (http://mjg59.dreamwidth.org/20187.html http://mjg59.dreamwidth.org/20187.html).
- dave1010uk 13y agoThat's good to know. So are we now saying that proprietary software on a device is fine, as long as it can easily be replaced with fully open source software?
- cbhl 13y agoI personally think that the proprietary software on Chromebooks is a means to an end -- the functionality provided by the proprietary software appeases retailers enough to get them to sell it.
- dave1010uk 13y agoAgreed. This is definitely good progress, but (going back to the bug report) this issue hasn't been completed yet, so should still be open.