Quote:
Originally Posted by LeFrettchen
Drivers can be quickly developed only if the manufacturer shares hardware drivers...
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The OpenBSD project, in particular, has auditing concerns over
all code which is integrated into the kernel. Code which is not available results in unknown blobs, & this practice can potentially jeopardize the overall stability & security of the system. The project
will consider integrating in new devices where manufacturers publicly release sufficient documentation for drivers to be written.
Otherwise, devices have to be reverse engineered, & this process is very slow as development progresses through a lot of trial & error.
Part of
harishankar's concern is the fact that the Linux community is more commerce-centered & will integrate blobs into that kernel which due to non-disclosure agreements will not disclose source code. Yes, this may mean that community may have faster access to more devices, but the public no longer has an opportunity to review the ramifications of the source code, nor fully substantiate system stability. In general, the *BSD community does not condone this practice.
Fundamentally, the essential difference between the communities is philosophical. The public benefits from having different options available so they can choose which best fits their needs. This is really what needs to be focused upon when comparing one community to another.