View Single Post
  #2   (View Single Post)  
Old 30th January 2013
jggimi's Avatar
jggimi jggimi is offline
More noise than signal
 
Join Date: May 2008
Location: USA
Posts: 7,977
Default

Quote:
...it appears to be caused by a kernel driver for Samsung...
Obligatory, from http://www.openbsd.org/lyrics.html#39
Quote:
...Blobs are vendor-compiled binary drivers without any source code. Hardware makers like them because they obscure the details of how to make their hardware work. They hide bugs and workarounds for bugs. Newer versions of blobs can weaken support for older hardware and motivate people to buy new hardware.

Blobs are expedient. Many other open source operating systems cheerfully incorporate them; in fact their users demand them.

But when you need to trust the system, how do you check the blob for quality? For adherence to standards? How do you know the blob contains no malicious code? No incompetent code? Inspection is impossible; you can only test the black box. And when it breaks, you have no idea why.
Reply With Quote