Freedombox
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I just learned about Freedombox (through the video posted by RootFarmer @https://trisquel.info/en/forum/phones-no-good: https://invidious.snopyta.org/watch?v=1SKpRbvnx6g).
It sound awesome but is it free software all the way through?
At https://www.freedombox.org/about/ it says that fdb is "powered by free software", that it is "a free and open source software system", and that "FreedomBox is a Debian Pure Blend". It just doesn't say whether they think of free as in freedom or as in free beer.
Anyone here who knows?
Apparently there may be no need to doubt the ideals and firmness regarding free software: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eben_Moglen
> is it free software
https://salsa.debian.org/freedombox-team/freedombox
The source software is free software.
You will have noticed, there is
freedombox software for several different
computers. Some of the computers require non
free software to work. About those
computers their freedombox software contains non free
software. On the download website, select
a computer. Then select wiki. The non free
status paragraph will tell you if the software
is free software.
Thanks.
Luckily my BeagleBoneBlack runs without blobs!
But not many computers does that!
(only BBB and Olimex?)
> (only BBB and Olimex?)
From those listed on Freedombox website, boards made by PINE64 (e.g. Pine A64, RockPro64) should also run without blobs.
Whether something can run without blobs is mostly a matter of what processor it uses. If some Rockchip, Allwinner or i.MX processor is used, then there's a chance it will be ok. Searching about free boot firmware support for particular processor model (and about free graphics driver for its embedded GPU) is what I usually do :)
I'm glad companies like PINE64 and Olimex use freedom-friendly processors in their boards, but at the same time I'm sad they so often include other freedom-unfriendly chips in their designs (like wifi in both companies' laptops or keyboard and touchpad controllers in Pine's). Luckily, their SBCs seem not to have such problematic secondary processors on them :p
It turns out that I misunderstood the information on Freedombox' homepage. All the listed sbc (except for RPi) run exclusively free software. The thing that makes BBB and Olimex unique is that theey are also fully compliant with the open source hardware definition.
Well, that's worth knowing. Still, some companies just don't bother getting the OSHW cetrification, even though their products are eligible. Someone from Olimex once wrote, that they're not certifying all their products because it's too cumbersome (don't want to spend time searching for that post now to give U a link, sorry)
While I would definitely prefer OSHW, my main priority now is OSS (i.e. free software).
Never mind the link, thanks.
There is also freedombone.net
Their differences, according to Freedombone, here:
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