Re: ia64 port
I think this is dangerous. In the worst case, confidential information
could be contained in the mere existence of the binaries. For example,
suppose Intel has invented a new and secret floating point unit, the
"xo4" array processor. Intel gives you a program called "xo4.exe" which
they tell you will dramatically improve floating point performance when
you run it over your source code, and after doing so you will have to link
to the "xo4.dll" file which they also supply.
I can easily foresee a number of secret capabilities which the CPU might
possess which would be revealed by the existence of binaries, especially
as these binaries will likely have to be documented to be useful. For
example, suppose that you get a binary called "powerpc.exe" and they
bluntly tell you that this enables hardware emulation of the PowerPC CPU,
but that the existence of this capability is a strict secret.
As I said earlier, given the "Appendix H" strangeness where Intel tried
to make a trade secret out of the "VME" bit, anything is possible. It
would be really hard to make something like WINE work, to cite an obvious
example, if you are prohibited from using the "VME" bit because you are
not allowed to disclose its existence.
-- Mike
On 2000-05-26 at 02:20 -0700, Joey Hess wrote:
> Hm, as I read this, said confidential information is all contained in some
> binaries.
>
> If you don't look in the binaries, and you don't distribute the binaries, or
> distribute code linked to the binaries, have you not complied with all their
> obligations without infecting yourself?
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