which processors have more free drivers/cotrollers?

1 réponse [Dernière contribution]
Megver83
Hors ligne
A rejoint: 12/21/2015

I mean, among Intel, AMD and ARM, which of them offer more free compatibility?

onpon4
Hors ligne
A rejoint: 05/30/2012

CPUs don't have drivers. Drivers are for devices attached to the computer, like printers. The CPU is the core of the computer system.

All architectures work without proprietary software in principle. It's the implementation that makes the difference. For example, Intel's processors are distributed in such a way that proprietary software is required to use them.[1] But there's nothing principally wrong, in a freedom sense, with x86 as an architecture.

Out of the three you mentioned, ARM is generally best when talking about new processors, but ARM processors distributed today are not without problems. The main problem with ARM stuff is it's usually distributed in a System-on-a-Chip (SoC), and inextricably bundled with various components (like a GPU and wireless adapter) that require proprietary software. This isn't as bad as what e.g. Intel does with Intel ME, at least in my opinion, but it's still a problem you tend to face.

[1] https://libreboot.org/faq/#intel