Librem Linux Laptop Drops NVIDIA Graphics But Still Coming Up Short Of Goal

[phoronix]

Phoronix: Librem Linux Laptop Drops NVIDIA Graphics But Still Coming Up Short Of Goal

Last month I wrote about the Librem 15 as an open-source Linux laptop to the firmware, albeit it showed a number of shortcomings. Since then there's been a number of updates and other news sites are reporting on this "open-source friendly laptop", while here's my latest thoughts on this high-end Linux laptop...

http://www.phoronix.com/vr.php?view=MTg3MTI

[efikkan]

All three major vendors use proprietary firmware for their GPUs/CPUs/APUs, so dropping an Nvidia GPU for "openness" would make them hypocrites. Including an discrete GPU were the only thing which made this laptop interesting, since compact quality laptops without shared memory and microstuttering is hard to find these days.

[blackiwid]

All three major vendors use proprietary firmware for their GPUs/CPUs/APUs, so dropping an Nvidia GPU for "openness" would make them hypocrites. Including an discrete GPU were the only thing which made this laptop interesting, since compact quality laptops without shared memory and microstuttering is hard to find these days.

Sorry you are just wrong! yes the reason they even thought to include a nvidia grafics card is a good idea, was that they can argue that you can use the free driver, but the free driver for nvidia is the worst of the 3. so for the targeted audience:

"Librem 15: A Free/Libre Software Laptop That Respects Your Essential Freedoms"

that will not install the proprietary driver its a very bad watt/pfs and money/fps experince to have such gpu included. This included nvidia gpu is only interesting for people that want to install the proprietary driver. for that there are most likely cheaper/better laptops.

[brosis]

All three major vendors use proprietary firmware for their GPUs/CPUs/APUs, so dropping an Nvidia GPU for "openness" would make them hypocrites. Including an discrete GPU were the only thing which made this laptop interesting, since compact quality laptops without shared memory and microstuttering is hard to find these days.

You know what? They also use proprietary firmware in keyboard controllers and various chips. So what? Firmware is few kilobytes big and is strictly for controlling hardware.
So your argument is invalid.

Nvidia however ships with 100 megabyte BLOB driver, who needs modprobe SUID tool to load, that basically jeopardizes any security benefit of running Xorg not as root. Not to mention it plugs directly from userspace to hardware busses via just this driver (backdoors). So no, they are not hypocrites.

[efikkan]

Sorry you are just wrong! yes the reason they even thought to include a nvidia grafics card is a good idea, was that they can argue that you can use the free driver, but the free driver for nvidia is the worst of the 3. so for the targeted audience:

"Librem 15: A Free/Libre Software Laptop That Respects Your Essential Freedoms"

that will not install the proprietary driver its a very bad watt/pfs and money/fps experince to have such gpu included. This included nvidia gpu is only interesting for people that want to install the proprietary driver. for that there are most likely cheaper/better laptops.

You are completely disregarding the basic freedom for each user to utilize the hardware to their needs. Nvidia's official driver implements more open standards than the so called "open" driver, and is thereby granting more freedoms to the user. That's a simple fact. When someone is willing to give up most other freedoms in order to access some of the source code, then it becomes a matter of ideology, not pragmatics. Unfortunately most Stallman-fans are unable to see straight and are blinded and don't realize that many of them run the mother-load of evilness themselves: EFI, and yet they spread their hatred for Nvidia because of a small blob, obviously they are not able to realize all the drivers rely on proprietary firmware.

Selling a such pricey laptop without a proper GPU is like selling a Ferrari without a proper engine.

[log0]

You are completely disregarding the basic freedom for each user to utilize the hardware to their needs. Nvidia's official driver implements more open standards than the so called "open" driver, and is thereby granting more freedoms to the user. That's a simple fact. When someone is willing to give up most other freedoms in order to access some of the source code, then it becomes a matter of ideology, not pragmatics. Unfortunately most Stallman-fans are unable to see straight and are blinded and don't realize that many of them run the mother-load of evilness themselves: EFI, and yet they spread their hatred for Nvidia because of a small blob, obviously they are not able to realize all the drivers rely on proprietary firmware.

Selling a such pricey laptop without a proper GPU is like selling a Ferrari without a proper engine.

Bwahaha, so I want to utilize my hardware with an OS/Kernel not supported by the "small blob". Is nvidia going to provide a driver for me, or are you?

[Hamish Wilson]

All three major vendors use proprietary firmware for their GPUs/CPUs/APUs, so dropping an Nvidia GPU for "openness" would make them hypocrites.

I seem to recall that Intel graphics work just fine out of the box on Trisquel GNU/Linux, so I think you are wrong there about Intel.

https://trisquel.info/en/wiki/configure-2d-and-3d-graphics-acceleration

[oibaf]

AFAIK Intel is the only graphics chipset with fully supported free graphics driver, nvidia is also blob free on older chips with nouveau.

[blackiwid]

You are completely disregarding the basic freedom for each user to utilize the hardware to their needs. Nvidia's official driver implements more open standards than the so called "open" driver, and is thereby granting more freedoms to the user. That's a simple fac

But thats not the freedom they marketing on, they dont marketing on freedom to use as much as possible proprietare software with most features. if thats your idea of freedom nice, but then you dont marketing that as freedom because in this sense every nvidia laptop has most freedom, the freedom of features lol...

Again when they market that as freedom pc or whatnot they mean, what the fsf means with it. And again it makes no sense to marketing freedom like you want to, because basicly every pc has this kind of freedom you define, maybe not most tablets and chromebooks maybe...

[tuxd3v]

AMD A10 2014 APU option ?

They can release a version with a AMD A10 2014 APU, and will be a less final price target...and you get a better graphics card...

But it have to support AMD Enduro, to get better battery, when you don't need too much graphic power...

This option sounds to me much more balanced than a i7, because then you end without power graphics option...

A A10-7400P APU or even the A8-7200P sounds good, especially the first one :P

So does they will offer a similar setup with it?