Milions of people do all kinds of stupid stuff around the world.Wheelerof4te wrote:^What about it? Millions of people are using their laptops bought since 2008. all around the world.
I don't know. I wrote that sentence on a 2008 laptop using 2017 software.Are we supposed to use only hardware before the 10's in order to run 2017 software?
That's like saying: "if you are concerned with how the modern food industry treats animals, why don't you go and eat non-animals. Oh yeah, because they don't exist". Not only does it exist, the premises are just as wrong and absurd as the conclusion. If you are concerned about something bad, certainly you should be allowed to talk about it even if you cannot currently act upon it...Wheelerof4te wrote:If you are concerned with non-free firmware blobs, why are you buying non-free hardware? Oh, because the truly "free" hardware doesn't exist.
I think that this line of though it just wrong. 100% wrong. First of all, it's not about free hardware, but about open software. Open software does not need any hardware at all, and it does not need free hardware either. Second, there are indeed huge projects out there to create 100% free software stack and now also free/open hardware. For example, there are RISC-V based projects that intend to build and sell processors that are 100% open in the sense that the actual hardware can be reproduced by any one at home without a license or braking a patent and also without software copyright (for example, LowRISC, a not-for-profit community-driven organisation http://www.lowrisc.org/) Arduino is now coming out with a RISC-V based model also (although the had to pult it onto a Tensillica chip for whatever reason). So it is not only a phantasy or an ideal it is a real existing thing.Wheelerof4te wrote:Can't we all just face the fact, companies that generate profit (Intel, AMD, Broadcom, Realtek etc.) are the ones who build the hardware? If you think some company which is funded with donations only will one day build the free hardware, then you are hopelessly mistaken.
This whole 80% of the people argument is a bit off because no one here was addressing the 80% of the people, your elderly father is not participating in this discussion. This was a point answering a Debian user who wanted 100% free software.Wheelerof4te wrote:World ain't like that, and 80% (an understatement at best) of people don't care about any of the quirks happening inside their laptops. They just want something they bought with money to work, and work fast.
I realize what you are saying that companies want to and need to protect their latest tech stuff from other competitors. I see this and approve of this. I think that new 3D-graphics things and VR can be closed. I'd just like there to be the option to not have to use those (as I don't need them). Also, how is something like the Intel ME protecting the companies cutting edge tech? It's just not.