[CS-FSLUG] Philosophical Debate

[Ed Hurst]

Should Linux Have a Binary Driver Interface in the Kernel?

http://linux.slashdot.org/linux/05/11/08/1915218.shtml?tid=4&tid=8&tid=106

Big debate. It's been going on for years. Should the Linux kernel
present a stable binary driver interface? Right now, the drivers must be
coded to match each version of the kernel. Without the hardware driver
specs from the manufacturer, Linux drivers are just guesswork. They have
to be hooked into the kernel, and those writing the drivers have to
submit a patch to the kernel. It's a lot more complex than simply
working from a driver ABI. Thus, we end up with nVidia binary drivers
that are way behind the current hardware, and crash often enough to
leave a bit of bad blood between the FOSS Community and nVidia. At least
nVidia is trying, but it's certainly not optimal, because nVidia won't
let the kernel maintainers see the hardware specs for 3D acceleration.
I'm not absolutely certain, but I believe the FreeBSD kernel is the same
in that respect.

Would having a stable binary driver interface bring more hardware
drivers? Maybe. It depends on whether the hardware makers think it's
worth the trouble. With such a small market, it's quite certain to draw
an uneven response. So we end up divided into the usual two camps:

   - Orthodoxy: The excellence of the code and system operation comes
first. Don't care whom it inconveniences, it has to be right or it
wouldn't be Linux. What has been before is working fine, and we shall do
the same evermore. If that keeps Joe Sixpack and Grandma away from
Linux, that's their problem.

   - Accommodation: Linux won't grow and grab market share unless we
accommodate the user, which means indirectly accommodating the hardware
manufacturer's fear of giving up their trade secrets. We need to expand
the user base, or forever be a hobby OS.

Who's right? I admit I tend to favor the former. All the more so for
FreeBSD. This is because I view FOSS through the eyes of faith. I
understand "narrow is the path" following Jesus, and the logic of that
suits me. To find that in FOSS is comfortable and comforting. MS Windows
is an example of what accommodation looks like, in my mind. It results
in a hellish dependency and ignorance, and much waste of resources.

There was a time when I was frantically trying to drag everyone into the
Kingdom of God. I was so intensely aware of their desperate need of
salvation, I wanted to try anything at all that would get them on their
knees. Over the years, I began to see all those spiritual stillborns --
those convinced they were in, but could offer nothing of the Fruit of
the Spirit. They had no power to walk in the Spirit of the Lord. Now,
I'm willing to do all I can to put the Truth within reach, to make it
clear and simple, just as I am willing to write articles so clueless
folks can run FreeBSD. However, I won't make it simpler by making it
something less than it really is.

It saddens me so many people choose death. Nonetheless, if I choose Life
for them, it won't be Life. It has to be their choice. So it is in
computing: If they really need their computer to work, they need it bad
enough to do it right. They need to learn FOSS and become a minor
expert, or pay someone else to do it for them. Otherwise, they don't
*need* it. Just as $3 worth of God won't change you, casual computer use
doesn't justify reaching for that Linux box at the computer store. Yeah,
it's usually cheaper than the one that says "Windows." Instead of
dollars, you pay with your time and attention.

Elitism sneers at Joe Sixpack and Grandma. I don't sneer, but I can't
help them. I'm called of God to help people who really need their
computer and what it does for them, just as I'm called to show people
Christ is not a simple addition to your daily routine. Mine is not a
ministry of making you feel all better about things. I really can't see
it any other way.


-- 
Ed Hurst
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