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submitted 4 months ago* (last edited 4 months ago) by Zeon@lemmy.world to c/linux@lemmy.ml

Hello everyone,

I've been wondering, why has no one built an entirely free (as in freedom) computer yet? For humans to be unable to share each other's knowledge to build one of the most important technologies ever created for society, how is it that we have yet to have full knowledge about how our systems operate?

I get that companies are basically the ones to blame, and I know there are alternatives like the Talos II by Raptor Computing, but still, how do we not have publicly available full schematics for just one modern computer? I'm talking down to firmware-level stuff like proprietary ECs, microcode, hard drive/SSD firmware, network controllers, etc. How do we not have a fully open system yet?

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[-] greengnu@slrpnk.net 14 points 4 months ago

They already did: https://www.commanderx16.com/

you just probably want something better.

and that is the problem building higher performance requires more advanced lithography and that is expensive and until recently was not even an option for a hobbyist (without taking a mortgage on their house).

Given current stagnation, you need only wait about 10 years for that viable option.

[-] amminadabz@sh.itjust.works 4 points 4 months ago

According to the website, not open source. There are licensing issues with what remains of Commodore.

this post was submitted on 06 Feb 2024
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