Desktop Linux: Closed source VS open source

Desktop Linux operating system: Closed source VS open source-general Linux technology-Linux technology and application information. For more information, see the following. 0: w (5 (
[ENet Silicon Valley Power Paper] Most IT people will first vividly describe an open-source operating system kernel when talking about Linux, then there are some other software running on the Linux platform, which together constitute a free and open-source Linux server and desktop operating system. This description of Linux is quite accurate. Undoubtedly, it is the open source technology and Community cooperation that makes Linux a powerful force in the field of operating systems.

But when can we accept it-whether we like it or not-the closed source application will eventually be allowed to enter this "open" world? After all, this has been happening for so many years, even though Linux purists have been urging users to spend all their time.

In fact, in the Linux World, closed source code is used every day. One interesting thing is that most of us never really think about it.

Linux closed source --- this is not a new concept

Although the core of the Desktop Linux operating system (whether it is the release version) is driven by open-source code, they are often used together with some code that seldom attract attention-in fact, many Linux writers seem to have forgotten that the closed-source software and drivers are used by thousands of users on Linux desktops every day.

Specific firmware added from some Linux releases (used to ensure wireless compatibility) to the open-source software WINE that everyone is familiar with (WINE allows users to run Windows applications with source seals in a Linux environment), proprietary code occupies a place on the Linux desktop operating system.

In addition, if you do not have a Windows dedicated wireless driver, do most laptops originally designed for Windows get wireless connections? Closed source code has now become a very important part of the Linux desktop operating system.

If the code works normally, keep it.

One thing that happened recently-the famous display chip producer NVIDIA failed to provide its Linux-based graphics card driver source code, once again triggering hostility between open-source and closed-source users. However, unlike ATI, I have never encountered a problem when using NVIDIA's closed-source driver. Any problems have been solved by NVIDIA at a very fast speed.

So why is another problem?

In the past, Linux developers have expressed their concerns and concerns about "having to work around these NVIDIA drivers. The main reason is that they think in advance of some problems that may occur if the user chooses to install the NVIDIA graphics card driver.

Despite the concerns of Linux developers, I would like to point out that NVIDIA has always done quite well in error control and is hard to understand, although there are some problems with the license to shut down the source NVIDIA driver, Linux staff have been able to proceed smoothly.

Although any developer is frustrated by license issues with the NVIDIA driver, in fact, NVIDIA's closed-source drivers have been operating very well over the years and every user has benefited from this.

Don't get me wrong. I would like to see the source code for NVIDIA to develop its own graphics card driver like other open-source vendors. However, the Linux purist called out to boycott a supplier such as NVIDIA that actually supports the Linux platform. This is just a hope for future effect that has not yet surfaced.

For any closed-source software company that wants to get involved in Linux development, the negative effects of the above events will present a greater problem to them. Given that most software and hardware companies use closed-source software, the response of the closed-Source world to NVIDIA's decisions will seriously affect the development direction of hardware vendors who want to study Linx compatibility.

One thing to be sympathetic is that many hardware manufacturers will try to postpone R & D of open-source technologies as much as possible, because Linux developers are largely regarded as "heterogeneous" by the closed-Source world ".
Application consistency, rather than source code politics

No matter how people feel about the decisions made by companies like NVIDIA, in fact, there are some closed-source applications that are widely used in Linux environments. Furthermore, it is hard to explain that it seems that no one cares about the openness of these closed-source software. In fact, these software imposes very strict restrictions on the Code's effectiveness. Skype is a good example.

The Skype application provides a good VoIP client for Linux users and other popular operating system platforms. The VoIP software has powerful functions, clear phone calls, and smooth video playback. Therefore, although many open-source products such as Ekiga (which can be used in both Linux and Windows environments) have emerged in the market ), however, most people still choose to install a Skype VoIP client on their home Linux computers.

Although Ekiga with the odd name is similar to Skype, Ekiga is installed by default on many Linux distributions (such as Ubuntu, however, most users who want to use VoIP prefer Skype each time they select a product. Many of them are not concerned about how Skype is licensed. All they know is that everyone uses Skype.

Moreover, Skype can run on almost any platform you think. On the other hand, Ekiga was designed specifically for the Linux platform at the beginning, but was later modified to be applicable to the Windows platform, while the OS X operating system users of Apple were completely rejected by Ekiga.

To sum up, we can clearly see that Skype provides users with a series of consistency, and understanding this is critical. With a little understanding, you can better understand why more people will ignore Skype's open-source alternative Ekiga. Ekiga may provide more options than Skype, which many users desire. For example, Ekiga supports SIP and other protocols, while Skype only supports its own protocol-Period. Based on the number of users, it may be because of marketing that Skype users really don't care about the type of VoIP protocol they use for their communication.
Keep "open route"

When reading this article, you must realize that this is not an attack on Linux or open-source technology. This is very important. This article serves as the morning bell to arouse everyone's attention on software availability and practicality.

If possible, I would like to take a look at every challenge encountered by the Linux platform and how open-source software can cope with this challenge. However, when the world you live in is full of patented MP3, encrypted DVDs, 3D acceleration driver modules, and closed-source Windows Wireless drivers, you will soon realize that the closed source is still very real-no matter what operating system platform you use every day.

Of course, this will also have friction. If a closed source program on an operating system platform can bring enough value that can be felt, the user will be very happy to pay for it.

Perhaps the best example for users to buy closed-source software for the Linux operating system is a specific video editing application software-MainActor. MainActor is now out of service. It once provided great convenience to Linux users, but KDENLive, an open-source product similar to its function, is far from doing well.

For average users, MainActor is the best choice for them to learn video editing. Because it allows users of all technical levels to edit videos, the user interface is very friendly and the wizard is very detailed. Therefore, even when MainActor was launched, open-source products with similar functions were available on the market. However, these open-source products cannot meet the needs of most Linux users because their user interfaces are not friendly enough, either unstable or not suitable for professionals.

Is the source code a threat to the current Linux release?

When thinking about the closed-source problem of Liux desktop operating systems, one thing that must be kept in mind is that the Linux kernel itself must be "pure" and cannot be "attacked" by any closed-source technology ".

This means that the proprietary code will not suddenly begin to appear in the top level of Linux kernel development, which suddenly violates the Linux law we have been familiar with for a long time. Linux has never been truly threatened.

The most important code block that makes up the operating system has some security measures to ensure that it does not use code that is not authorized by open source. This does not mean that some Linux distributions do not use the Vanilla kernel or add any new features that are suitable for use. However, this has no impact on users who do not use these Linux distributions.

However, the source code has survived tensorily in Linux, and has been growing. As a Linux User, this is part of our daily life at some basic levels. Indeed, closed source code has become a considerable part of the existing Linux desktop operating system field, which is undeniable. However, how every Linux user responds to this fact is the result of their own ideological struggle.

[ This post was last edited by zgzzhanzhan at, September 16 ,.]