linux-kernel - Re: mea culpa on the meaning of Tivoization

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Date:	Mon, 18 Jun 2007 09:22:26 +0200
From:	Hans-Jürgen Koch <hjk@...utronix.de>
To:	Alexandre Oliva <aoliva@...hat.com>
Cc:	Alan Cox <alan@...rguk.ukuu.org.uk>, Ingo Molnar <mingo@...e.hu>,
	Daniel Hazelton <dhazelton@...er.net>,
	Linus Torvalds <torvalds@...ux-foundation.org>,
	Greg KH <greg@...ah.com>,
	debian developer <debiandev@...il.com>, david@...g.hm,
	Tarkan Erimer <tarkan@...one.net.tr>,
	linux-kernel@...r.kernel.org,
	Andrew Morton <akpm@...ux-foundation.org>,
	Chris Friesen <cfriesen@...tel.com>,
	Bernd Schmidt <bernds_cb1@...nline.de>,
	Robin Getz <rgetz@...ckfin.uclinux.org>,
	Rob Landley <rob@...dley.net>,
	Bron Gondwana <brong@...tmail.fm>,
	Al Viro <viro@....linux.org.uk>
Subject: Re: mea culpa on the meaning of Tivoization

Am Montag 18 Juni 2007 02:56 schrieb Alexandre Oliva:

> 
> Anyhow, AFAIK software in ROM is not non-Free Software.  That it's
> impossible to modify/replace/whathaveyou it is not the result of a
> restriction that someone is imposing on you.
> 
> It's the difference between "you can't fly because you don't have
> wings" and "you won't fly because I've tied your wings".  With tied
> wings, you're evidently not free to fly any more.  But if the problem
> is that you don't have wings, if you're free and sufficiently
> creative, you may be able to invent baloons, airplanes, rockets et al
> and overcome the barriers that nature poses for you.
> 

So, if a manufacturer used a ROM instead of a flash memory with the
intention to make software modifications impossible, then it is bad,
and when he did it for economical reasons, then it is a "natural barrier"?

Your tied-up-wings comparison is simply not valid. Or, more precisely,
you will usually not be able to tell whether you don't have wings or
if they're tied. Hardware design decisions of a manufacturer should
never be the subject of a software license.

Hans
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