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S3TC Now Golden For Linux & Open-Source?

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  • S3TC Now Golden For Linux & Open-Source?

    Phoronix: S3TC Now Golden For Linux & Open-Source?

    Many Phoronix readers have written in asking about the news this week concerning HTC joining the Open Invention Network. In particular, many Phoronix readers are interested in HTC joining OIN due to their acquisition of S3 Graphics earlier in the year and the accumulated graphics IP portfolio...

    Phoronix, Linux Hardware Reviews, Linux hardware benchmarks, Linux server benchmarks, Linux benchmarking, Desktop Linux, Linux performance, Open Source graphics, Linux How To, Ubuntu benchmarks, Ubuntu hardware, Phoronix Test Suite

  • #2
    This is real good news.

    Comment


    • #3
      Sounds like S4TC is about to be released, making S3TC irrelevant. I've been around the block a few times. Every time we attain a victory, it turns out to be irrelevant to the present day.

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      • #4
        I doubt that the Mesa developers will accept S3TC because of an agreement not to sue people for using this on Linux. Linux is only one of the many kernels that they support.

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        • #5
          Originally posted by Shining Arcanine View Post
          I doubt that the Mesa developers will accept S3TC because of an agreement not to sue people for using this on Linux. Linux is only one of the many kernels that they support.
          For the Mesa devs the Linux kernel is by far the most important one, if not the only one, since, as you might recall, they even got rid of DRI1 stuff that creates problems for non-Linux OSes like BSD & Solaris.

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          • #6
            Originally posted by sbergman27 View Post
            Sounds like S4TC is about to be released, making S3TC irrelevant. I've been around the block a few times. Every time we attain a victory, it turns out to be irrelevant to the present day.
            Perhaps, but the next time that HTC issues patents that would otherwise negatively affect Linux, Linux will be protected.

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            • #7
              I'm sorry but I do not understand. This patent falls under this "action"?
              How can we verify this?

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              • #8
                Nice. This and the aspm power squash on the same day.

                Comment


                • #9
                  Originally posted by stalkerg View Post
                  I'm sorry but I do not understand. This patent falls under this "action"?
                  How can we verify this?
                  Here you go:



                  OIN? grants patent license to licensee

                  – All OIN patents and applications for all products

                  Licensee grants patent license to OIN?

                  – All licensee patents and applications for the Linux System

                  Licensee grants license to other current and future licensees

                  – All licensee patents and applications for the Linux System
                  HTC has become an OIN licensee.

                  Therefore, HTC grants license to other current and future (OIN) licensees: All licensee patents (all HTCs patents) and applications for the Linux System

                  Therefore, any of the 280 companies who are members of the OIN have just been granted a license from HTC for all patents held by HTC which are applicable to Linux.

                  This cross-licensing is why OIN is described as a "network". The way that the "may not sue other OIN compnies" bit works is that all of the OIN companies license each other. They all have licenses for each others patents.

                  Here are the 280 companies:



                  Any company amongst this list is licensed to use its own patents (of course) and also all of the patents applicable to Linux from the other 279 companies.

                  This amounts to a lot of patents, BTW.
                  Last edited by hal2k1; 11 November 2011, 04:53 AM.

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                  • #10
                    And when a Linux application happens to be compatible with BSD?

                    I think they won't blame Mesa devs for this, given the Linux compatibility that exists within BSD. But it may be true that the BSD people get problems with this. Anyway, this is already a great step forward for open-source graphics.

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