Re: Google to launch PC operating system

[Rjack]

Rjack wrote:
> Will it be GPL licensed or the death of the GPL?
>
> http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/86b864c0-6b87-11de-9320-00144feabdc0.html?nclick_check=1

"Chrome OS Could Offend the Open Source Community

1. Chrome OS will include proprietary technologies

Linux still lacks a high-quality open source Flash plugin. Practically
the only choice for 100% site compatibility is to use Adobe's
proprietary plugin, so Chrome OS will need to license and include it
out of the box. HTML5 will lessen the need for Flash over time,
especially on video sites (and it's interesting that Chrome OS isn't
due until 2010, when HTML5 might have more of a foothold). However,
the Flash plugin is definitely required at the present time. How can I
keep up with Strong Bad's antics without it?

Then there are multimedia codecs. People are gonna want to play their
tunes and watch their movies. There are open source versions of most
popular codecs but to keep its nose clean and avoid litigation Google
will have to license the patents covering them. This will offend the
open source community, who see the software patenting system as broken
and corrupt.

It's not just a software issue. Linux also has a poor set of fonts. To
avoid users complaining about web pages looking crappy, Chrome OS will
need to include the standard Microsoft Web fonts (Arial, Times New
Roman, Courier etc.). It could probably do with including the more
recent Microsoft Vista fonts too. These can be freely licensed
(Microsoft was very careful to make this possible), and Google
certainly has the cash to do so. But such a move will undoubtedly
offend the community because the font packages won't be freely
distributable."

http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9135381/Chrome_OS_Could_Offend_the_Open_Source_Community?taxonomyId=122

Sincerely,
Rjack