Messages in this thread | ![/](/images/icornerl.gif) | | Date | Wed, 08 Jan 2003 10:46:59 -0500 | From | Mark Hounschell <> | Subject | Re: Why is Nvidia given GPL'd code to use in closed source drivers? |
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Jesse Pollard wrote: > > On Wednesday 08 January 2003 06:28 am, Mark Hounschell wrote: > > Helge Hafting wrote: > > > Valdis.Kletnieks@vt.edu wrote: > > > > On Tue, 07 Jan 2003 10:08:00 +0100, Helge Hafting > <helgehaf@aitel.hist.no> said: > > > > > loss. Giving away driver code (or at least programming specs) > > > > > wouldn't be a loss to nvidia though - because users would still > > > > > need to buy those cards. > > > > > > > > It would be a major loss to nvidia *AND* its customers if it were > > > > bankrupted in a lawsuit because it open-sourced code or specs that > > > > contained intellectual property that belonged to somebody else. > > > > > > Perhaps their driver contains some IP. But I seriously doubt the > > > programming specs for their chips contains such secrets. It is > > > not as if we need the entire chip layout - it is basically > > > things like: > > > > > > "To achieve effect X, write command code 0x3477 into register 5 > > > and the new coordinates into registers 75-78. Then wait 2.03ms before > > > attempting to access the chip again..." > > > > > > Something is very wrong if they _can't_ release that sort of > > > information. > > > Several other manufacturers have no problem with this. > > > > Aren't nvidias' chipsets really owned by SGI. It think there is some deal > > nvidia has with SGI that prohibits nvidia from opening up their driver and > > chip set info. It's looking like SGI might be gone soon. Maybe if they > > disappear, nvidia can do what they want??? > > Think they sold it to Microsoft....
I think what they sold to MS was some part of "OPENGL" software not anything hardware related.
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