maemo.org - Talk - Closed Source Packages in Maemo

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- - Closed Source Packages in Maemo (https://talk.maemo.org/showthread.php?t=31967)

Re: Closed Source Packages in Maemo

Quote:

Originally Posted by qgil (Post 334137)

In any case, feel free discussing the topic with them. :) Free software in the hardware adaptation layer is something that companies like Nokia would be also interested about.

See this blog post by Harald Welte, who has spent a lot of time discussing the topic with various chip makers. Selective quote:

Quote:

So despite senior R&D management at the chip makers understanding those dynamics, and knowing that they could achieve superior product quality, reliability, security and encourage innovation - the companies don't do it until the requirements show up on the major buyers shopping lists.
[...]
As a chip maker, you first and foremost concern should be to sell as many units as possible. You don't care what kind of software your customers use. You don't care where they get their software from, or what development methodology they use. So if you can take any step to encourage more alternatives and more competition/innovation on top of your chip, you can only gain market share, but not lose it. And if you don't gain market share, well, you didn't have to make any investment. So no matter what you do, you can hardly loose anything.

Nokia may not be interested in licencing Maemo to third parties at the moment, however there are now several Linux-based options available for device makers and therefore increased pressure for hardware that works with Free drivers out of the box. There's also a manufacturer or two that makes their own chips as well as devices. I expect the situation to improve dramatically over the next year or two :-)

Re: Closed Source Packages in Maemo

Yeah.. what does need to happen if, say, Motorola wants to make use of Maemo in one of their new device anyway?

Re: Closed Source Packages in Maemo

They would need to talk to Mer or roll their own distribution based on the open parts (and they couldn't call it Maemo for trademark reasons).

Re: Closed Source Packages in Maemo

Quote:

Originally Posted by qgil (Post 334137)

They make their money licensing and selling to companies like Nokia, who actually play by the business rules and won't create a team to reverse engineer their work. If you introduce a free software license to the mix you do need to have a look to your business plan in order to keep your profits or increase them.

In any case, feel free discussing the topic with them. :) Free software in the hardware adaptation layer is something that companies like Nokia would be also interested about.

I'm just confused by what you mean by licensing? How do you license hardware? Don't you just buy it? Or do you actually pay less if you don't use part of the chip or something? That would really be an awkward business model! :-)

Re: Closed Source Packages in Maemo

Quote:

Originally Posted by ysss (Post 334240)

Yeah.. what does need to happen if, say, Motorola wants to make use of Maemo in one of their new device anyway?

If Motorola wants to use "Maemo" on one of these phones, now they can.

For proprietary software/driver in Hardware layer:
They use their drivers for their hardware. This is not a problem.

For proprietary software in application layer:
They replace these proprietary software by FOSS equivalent. After Having redesigned the UI and, if required, add one or two fonctionalities and the same API.

In concluding, they will get a Maemo freer, more open and with more fonctionalities.

Nokia will not prevent copying of Maemo, even if it was 100% proprietary. The iPhone is an example: 100% proprietary and it exist Chinese copies.

Instead, Nokia should make "these copies" an advantage. This is why the GPL exists.

Re: Closed Source Packages in Maemo

@korbe: Ok, you've lost my trust when you mentioned about chinese iPhone copies. None of those run Mobile OSX.

I'm not sure if this is the right soapbox to make use to shout out your agenda, btw.

Re: Closed Source Packages in Maemo

An interesting point is GPL vs LGPL vs Some BSD/Apache/... licenses.

GPL for Maemo can work like it did for Qt and force competitors using your platform to only produce GPL apps and thus opening all their work to you because you control the API. The LGPL wouldn't give that advantage when you own all the source and can dual license to yourself.

Android though went in the other direction and used the Apache license which will allow carriers to embrace and extend Android, locking it down however they see fit for their own profit disregarding any previous contribution whatsoever. This will just create more apple-like lock-down in various carriers market.

Which for me is the worst of both world in a made to be expanded platform ...

Re: Closed Source Packages in Maemo

Quote:

Originally Posted by ysss (Post 334273)

@korbe: Ok, you've lost my trust when you mentioned about chinese iPhone copies. None of those run Mobile OSX.

I'm not sure if this is the right soapbox to make use to shout out your agenda, btw.

For the end user, this is OSX mobile or not, if it has the same appearance and same functionalities, it will not change anything for him.

Re: Closed Source Packages in Maemo

@korbe: I think you need to get your enlightenment\education elsewhere.. so I'm not going to continue this thread of conversation too long. But what you alluded as 'the same' in the chinese iphones example are just:

- casing appearance
- icons and home screen arrangement
- apps skins

That's about it.

I think that's a far cry from the serious licensing discussions we've had.

Re: Closed Source Packages in Maemo

Quote:

Originally Posted by ysss (Post 334284)

I have talked about the iPhone to demonstrate whatever restraint selected, we can not prevent copying.

Then thid is better transform copy to an advantage.

PS: I admit, the iPhone is not the best example.