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drivers DB and id/ info registration



My biggest itch in our free software world is drivers.

I guess that Microsoft has a standard submission process whereby third
party hardware manufacturers submit product ids, name strings, and
possibly drivers, for default inclusion in eg. WindowsXP.

I read somewhere recently that Knoppix has a "hardware information
submission page" or something, and I know there is linux-printing.org.

My question:

Does it make sense to set up a centralized website/ DB where hardware
manufacturers and individuals can submid hardware info, and that is
widely advertised to hardware companies around the globe?

This would allow eg. Linux kernel to at least print out hardware name
given its ID (eg. that is detected via standard PCI, USB or whatever
hardware level protocols), even if no driver is available.

It would allow for specifications submission as well, and/ or contact
information.

It would allow for driver submission as well as licensing information.

It would be distribution- and kernel- neutral, and serve as a single
centralized location for such information that all relevant parties
could rely on, and therefore require just that one location for
submissions, and therefore hopefully result in more, and more timely,
submissions, to help our free software OS kernels (HURD, Linux, *BSD,
and any others).

If so, what are the key contact points to engage the relevant members of
our community in starting such a discussion.

If not, where is the current centralized location of such information
that I am missing.

TIA
Zenaan



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