Stallman calls for action on Free BIOS

[bemildred]

The Free Software Foundation's Campaign for Free BIOS

In 1984 the GNU Project set out to make it possible to operate a computer in freedom--to operate it without any non-free software that would deny the user's freedom

At the time, the obstacle to this was simply the operating system. A computer won't run without an operating system, but all the modern operating systems of 1983 were proprietary, user-subjugating software. There was no way to use modern computers in freedom. We set out to change the situation by developing a free software operating system, called GNU.

When the kernel Linux became free software in 1992, it filled the last gap in GNU. The combined GNU/Linux operating system achieved our goal: you could install it in a bare PC, and run the computer without any installed non-free software.

Strictly speaking, there was a non-free program in that computer: the BIOS. But that was impossible to replace, and by the same token, it didn't count.

FSF

Also, here is the LinuxBIOS page:

http://www.linuxbios.org/

[Deja Q]

1. Compaq cloned IBM's BIOS, got sued, and still won the lawsuit.

There should be no qualms with a free BIOS, certainly.

[Syrinx]

2. did RMS and the gang ever get the HURD kernel working and stable?

They've been working on that for years and years. I finally stopped following it.

[bemildred]

3. A quote from the linked FSF page:

"When the kernel Linux became free software in 1992, it filled the last gap in GNU. The combined GNU/Linux operating system achieved our goal: you could install it in a bare PC, and run the computer without any installed non-free software."

I don't think HURD is going anywhere, but I don't keep up much.

Edit: You can google HURD to read their opinion of where they are.