linux-kernel - Re: DRM drivers with closed source user-space: WAS [Patch 0/3] Resubmit VIA Chrome9 DRM via

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Message-ID: <20090721002835.5a85a2aa@lxorguk.ukuu.org.uk>
Date:	Tue, 21 Jul 2009 00:28:35 +0100
From:	Alan Cox <alan@...rguk.ukuu.org.uk>
To:	Matthew Garrett <mjg59@...f.ucam.org>
Cc:	Christoph Hellwig <hch@...radead.org>,
	DRI <dri-devel@...ts.sourceforge.net>,
	Linux Kernel list <linux-kernel@...r.kernel.org>
Subject: Re: DRM drivers with closed source user-space: WAS  [Patch 0/3]
 Resubmit VIA Chrome9 DRM via_chrome9 for upstream

> I think "tightly integrated" could do with some clarification here. 
> qcserial was accepted despite not being functional without a closed 
> userspace component - an open one's since been rewritten to allow it to 

It got as far as staging with a good deal of complaint. I am not sure it
would have gotten further unfixed (with my serial/tty maintainers hat
on ;)). That however was about firmware - so a lot less tightly coupled.

> work. Do we define "tightly integrated" as "likely to cross the GPL 
> line" (potentially the case with Poulsbo, not the case with qcserial), 
> or is it a pragmatic issue? What about specialised hardware drivers that 
> only have closed applications?

Ultimately - ask a lawyer, ultimately this is a question about works and
copyright boundaries. If the hardware has only some specific proprietary
app then it sounds to me like it's not a general kernel interface so
probably isn't a good interface anyway, let alone what the code may do.

Alan
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