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On Fri, May 24, 2013 at 10:04 AM, Gordon Henderson <gordon+lug@xxxxxxxxxx> wrote: > BIOSes can be re-flashed. As can microcontrollers. Even the boot-code for > the Pi - that's "fixed" on the SD card, but loaded into the GPU - where do > you draw the line? All of those things can be reflashed, so if the software you're loading on them isn't free software, you have given some of your autonomy to a third-party. You can buy hardware that runs a BIOS or bootloader that you can control with free software. Some microcontrollers too. For the Pi, I'd hope people are working to reverse engineer the proprietary firmware and replace it with free software. Nobody is saying that people who don't have 100% freedom are bad or stupid -- I know sometimes that is presumed to be the case. The reality is, all RMS and the FSF are really saying is: "Proprietary software takes away your rights to independently control your computing. Here are some products are guilty of this." -- The Mailing List for the Devon & Cornwall LUG http://mailman.dclug.org.uk/listinfo/list FAQ: http://www.dcglug.org.uk/listfaq