Currently, there's a lot of hype around Android on ARM-based netbooks, a type of netbook arriving later this year. However, despite the obvious choice for Android and other Linux systems, NVIDIA has openly stated their preference for... Windows CE. ARM and Asus are also quite sceptical about Android on ARM netbooks.
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Member since:2006-10-24
Sometimes being "pragmatic" means realizing that the fastest implementation isn't the "best" and unused features don't contribute to somethings "bestness". I have been completely pragmatic in my purchasing decisions and recognized that my needs could be met elsewhere.
This had the added benefit that I didn't have to support a company who undermines the very foundations on which Linux has achieved its modest successes. But for the record, I never said this made them "evil". Please have that discussion with someone who actually called them evil.
In closing, shooting yourself in the foot in the name of pragmatism is neither smart, nor pragmatic.
Member since:2007-02-17
No, they don't. Your information is sadly quite out of date. nVidia proprietary drivers for Linux have been horrible for at least two years now. KDE4 exposed dreadful performance of nVidia Linux drivers for 2D hardware acceleration ... nVidia's Linux drivers were decelerators. For most of this year, nVidia have been pushing out new versions of their Linux driver on average every couple of weeks trying to fix their myriad problems, and sometimes there have been up to three or four versions in a single week.
Perhaps, if you have a nVidia card and you wish to run Linux, then you could possibly use the Nouveau Driver.
http://www.phoronix.com/scan.php?page=article&item=ubuntu_904_nouve...
The Nouveau Driver is the default for nVidia cards in fedora 11.
http://www.phoronix.com/scan.php?page=news_item&px=NzE3OA
This driver is hopefully about to become supported for kernel mode setting:
http://www.phoronix.com/scan.php?page=news_item&px=NzMzMA
thanks to the efforts of the open source ATI driver development teams.
Edited 2009-06-19 02:53 UTC
Member since:2007-12-10
Well, my information is out of date as well, but the GP's post is I remember it as well. The fact that KDE4 revealed a low performance case doesn't invalidate the rest of the generally really great performance the drivers have.
Put another way: can you name the drivers faster with more features than the NVidia ones?
Member since:2005-06-30
My infomation is out of date? Yeah, tell me about it. Right now, my main rig is running Ubuntu Linux 64-bit with a brand new GTX 260. Guess what? Everything is fine. The driver got some quirks, but it's good enough for 3D development.
Using the Nouveau driver? Sure, I am really looking for its 3D rendering capabilities. People must have rated up your comment as "funny".
Many people are cheering for ATI because of their support for open-source. I must admit that I have considered their hardware before getting my new card. Unfortunately, there's no FOSS driver with OpenGL 2.0 capabilities. We're in 2009, not 1997. Sure, they are working on it, but when will it be ready? I don't want GLSL in 2012.
Member since:2005-07-06
Well, they probably got the best OpenGL drivers for Linux in terms of features and performance... Sure, there are corporations that are definitely more friendly with open-source, but at least I'm not stuck with 3D performance from 2003/2004.
It might be true that NVIDIA delivers the best binary blobs for Linux. If raw power is something you really need (other than the brag factor), then there may be no way around NVIDIA, but...
Sometimes, you have to be pragmatic. It's not because they don't completely embrace your cause that they are "evil".
...sometimes being pragmatic is also looking at long term effects. NVIDIA isn't evil, they just don't care about FOSS. When you do care about FOSS, you'd see that NVIDIA isn't advancing the platform. At best they are dead weight. At worst they are slowing progress in free and open graphics, because their closed drivers diminish the pool of users who use free drivers and therefore there is less of a population to push the open solutions forward.
A few years back, there was no easy way around NVIDIA. The only open solution was Intel and that required buying a completely new computer for the IGP (not particularly economic when you already have a decent machine). Now that AMD/ATI opened up and Intel is also working on discrete graphics, it might be that supporting NVIDIA isn't that pragmatic anymore.
In light of recent developments, NVIDIA only supports Linux nominally by glueing Windows drivers on top of the Linux kernel. This does nothing to support long term Linux/X.org development. That is why my recent purchases are ATI based cards. Even if the whole Linux/X.org and ATI drivers thing is in heavy flux right now and 3D is virtually non-existent, I know when things calm down, I'll be better off with my open infrastructure.
Member since:2005-06-30
Perhaps that's not a bad idea, because pushing immature solutions would only frustrate people...
You're absolutely right. The keyword is when. Like I mentioned previously, the current infrastructure doesn't support OpenGL 2.0, let alone 3.0. It might be supported tomorrow, like it could be supported in three years. If you're happy with virtually "non-existent 3D", that's cool. Obviously, that's not my case.
Getting back on topic, I wonder why some fanatics claim that nVidia don't give a flying duck about Linux when they are providing a driver that is quite usable for (some? many? most?) users. If they really didn't cared about it, there would be no driver at all.
Member since:2005-07-17
Sometimes, you have to be pragmatic. It's not because they don't completely embrace your cause that they are "evil".
Seriously the number of times Micro-Soft has f--ked Nvida over (every other version of Direct X, Xbox payments, Xbox 360, etc) and the problems they've had dealing with Microsoft's partner Intel locking them out of future Atom chips... but Nvidia keeps going back on their knees like a well-battered bitch (dog or woman)
The only drivers needed for Android (for their netbooks) are drivers for Tegra chips.... Nvidia already has good solid Linux Kernel driver experience in house, hell they probably used Linux as the test platform. I'd bet Google is giving hardware devs more control over the end product not to mention credit. What interesting apps run under CE? that don't run under Linux? If you're expecting devs to flock to your platform, why not choose the forward thinking platform, not one that's had 10 years and never made it. Microsoft has already chosen Intel/Atom as the platform to support Win7 and Intel shut Nvidia out of that game next round. Microsoft's already said "netbooks" run Windows so what Nvidia's selling won't get any help from trying to sell CE on it.
Like a smooth talking wife beater Microsoft "really loves" Nvidia this time and Nvidia is sure things will be way better.
Member since:
2005-06-30
Well, they probably got the best OpenGL drivers for Linux in terms of features and performance... Sure, there are corporations that are definitely more friendly with open-source, but at least I'm not stuck with 3D performance from 2003/2004.
Sometimes, you have to be pragmatic. It's not because they don't completely embrace your cause that they are "evil".