Hi everyone,
My name is Nick Bowes and I'm looking to create a small (got to start somewhere) Foss-only computer build and supply business. To make that viable, I need a free bios implementation for one or two new mobos, and coreboot seems to hold the most promise. I'm interested in doing this in the hope that I can help the foss community get away from the emerging and likely pervasive UEFI stupidness thats coming. As you probably know better then I do, creating alternatives to the things that cause us all problems is the only way to truely solve them.
Having heard recently that Google released coreboot updates for both Sandy Bridge and Ivy Bridge chipsets, I thought now would be a good time to ask this mailing list a few questions about the viability of funding some development.
As a future small distributor of foss-only computers and likely a one man band to start with, I would need to keep things very simple. That means creating a product line (if you can call it that) of perhaps only 3-5 different desktops/laptops in total. Idealy I'd like to offer a range of 3 itx desktops, Ivy Bridge i3 i5 i7, or, Trinity A6 A8 A10, and one or two laptops, one budget, one highend.
So, if you don't mind, and this is the right place(if it isn't, please point me in the right direction) I'd like to ask you all...
1. What do you all think the requirements will be for replacing UEFI on future mobos. Will it likely be a case of switching out the bios chip or just flashing it?
2. What % of flashes resulted in bricked mobos? Do most new boards come with a backup chip which can restore life after a failure?
3. Can anyone reccomend a possible target ivy bridge or Trinity itx mobo for coreboot development? Perhaps one that's already being worked on?
4. If we can identify a good itx mobo for the desktop line-up, would someone here be able to asses how much time a fairly full featured and reliable implementation of coreboot would take to develop?
note: to me "fairly full featured would be to have all the fundamentals up and avaliable for the OS to pick up, such as pci-e usb 3.0, hdmi, sata 3, wifi, and working reliably.
5. Is there any special requirement for getting amd/nvidia gfx cards working with coreboot?
6. Which hardware have you found to be the simplist to fully implement coreboot on, and which hardware (if any) should be considered a no go?
7. What type of computer would most on this list be interested to develop coreboot for. As in, if you were going to buy a desktop or laptop today, or in the near future, what combination of hardware would you go for?
8. What do you think about the viability of a kickstarter campaign to raise development funds. Has anyone tried this yet?
I would truely love to distribute computers which run entirely on free software. Unfortunately, I'm no developer so If funding some development is the only way I can achieve this, I will find a way to do it.
I look forward to any insights you provide.
Thanks Nick