Bug#383403: closed by maximilian attems <maks@sternwelten.at> (Re: Bug#383403: linux-2.6: includes nondistributable and non-free binary firmware)

[ldoolitt@recycle.lbl.gov]

Maks -

On Thu, Aug 17, 2006 at 12:48:15AM -0700, Debian Bug Tracking System wrote:
> On Wed, Aug 16, 2006 at 05:17:34PM -0700, Larry Doolittle wrote:
> > Package: linux-2.6
> > Severity: serious
> > Justification: Policy 2.1
> 
> how about if you check for duplicate bug reports!
> see #242866 for same style.

I'm aware of #242866, and I'd be happy to work within
that report.  Something about it seems broken, however,
because RC-buggy linux-2.6 packages keep making it into
testing.  Is it obvious how to keep this from happening,
without starting a new bug attached to linux-2.6?

> > The following 59 files, found in Debian's linux-2.6_2.6.17.orig.tar.gz,
> > apparently contain software in binary form, for which Debian has no
> > corresponding source code.  Debian policy states that "The program
> > must include source code, and must allow distribution in source code
> > as well as compiled form." Therefore Debian must not distribute these
> > files.
> 
> you give zero prove that they are not register code,

Huh.  Have you actually looked at the files in question?
I don't actually care what the data is called.

Take a near-random example: drivers/scsi/qlogicpti_asm.c
1. The file represents approximately 18482 bytes of binary
data.  Nobody enters that in hex without machine help.
2. The file name refers to "asm", commonly understood
shorthand for "assembler", the process of (or program for)
converting human-legible code to such binaries.
3. Similar binaries from the same manufacturer, that
are downloaded to boards serving a similar function,
are provided with assembly source code.

If you find any of those 59 files that does _not_ look
like it was machine-generated from source code at some
point in its history, or find comments from the author
explaining how they wrote those files from scratch by
typing in hex numbers, please let me know so I can
correct my inventory.  If you can even show hints that
a file is miscategorized, I would be happy to participate
in constructive discussion.

Your throwaway one-liner above is not a good start.

    - Larry