Re: Bug#239952: kernel-source-2.6.4: qla2xxx contains non-freefirmware

[Theodore Ts'o <tytso@mit.edu>]

On Fri, Mar 26, 2004 at 03:40:16PM -0500, Nathanael Nerode wrote:
> In that case, I see no reason for Debian to claim to its users that QLogic
> binaries are free, which Debian does by putting these binaries in "main".
> 
> Distributing them in "non-free" is fine if they're legal to distribute.

This is fine, until we start getting users complaining that Debian
doesn't work on their system because the new installer include
non-free by default.

So if we start putting firmware in non-free, it will pretty much
guarantee that Debian will have to keep distributing non-firm (as was
affirmed in the recent vote), and the installer may very well have to
change to at least offer non-free to be added to
/etc/apt/sources.lists.  This is especially true if (as is very
likely) more and more hardware use OS-loaded firmware.

So ironically enough, the position of the firmware-is-evil fanatics
will likely enshrine the continued existence of non-free, and what's
more, cause non-free to have to be included by default during the
install process.  

						- Ted