Can we discuss machines who can be useful as libre systems, free from Intel ME disease?
Hopefully they meet this conditions:
>no over 500 dollars (Libreboot X200 starts at 574)
>they don't require soldering or mods for use. Just install you FSF blessed distro and you're happy
I think that old Powermac G5 can meet these conditions.
What do you think, /g/?
>>54869885
This looks great. Is it possible to put a 1080p screen on it?
https://minifree.org/product/libreboot-t400/
>>54869960
do they actually sell any of these? can i buy used thinkpads and put libreboot on them and resell them on ebay for a huge markup?
>>54869885
G5 needs closed source Open Firmware.
>>54869885
There's that power8 mobo /g/ was masturbating over a few weeks ago. being Stallman-grade free and non-botnet is one of the main design objectives, they advertise it on the site.
It is most decidedly *not* under $500 though.
>>54870072
Sauce? It's that firmware replaceable?
Does have issues like Intel ME?
>>54870207
>I have to shit in every thread where an apple product is show
I don't care about benchmarks. I care about freedom. You can have you hyper threading and the NSA spying your chinese cartoons.
>>54870207
>every thread where apple is mentioned
>every fucking day
I wish the mods would permaban this fag.
>>54870294
>I don't mind Intel ME spying my ass every day
>>54869993
Yes. If you can find a buyer. The problem is that most people into the whole "freedom" thing will do it themselves, because it's more about the fun of having a system than the actual philosophy.
>>54870327
>toys
>a powerpc workstation without Intel ME who doesn't cost a leg
It's like you enjoy the NSA cook.
>>54870356
Why do you ask questions yourself?
>>54870097
Where?
>>54870310
Naw nigga, you're the one who's got his shit fucked. Now that Steve Jobs is gone, their systems are jails for their users AND they look like trash... cans. Picture related.
>>54870415
>no mods, no soldering
>just turn on and install you favorite FSF blessed distro
What part of that you didn't understood?
>>54870388
https://www.raptorengineering.com/TALOS/prerelease.php
think the price was something like $3500
>>54870415
>apple paying to shill old and unsupported hardware
What?
>>54870489
:^)
>>54870489
But I can flash a 1MB bios anon.
>>54870543
>stop discussing things I don't like
No.
>>54870549
https://youtu.be/4--cG8h52Ps?t=26s
>>54870560
--> >>54870472
>>54870571
No, thanks.
>>54869885
Which can be useful**
- sincerely, a cunt
>>54870356
Do you hate apple for a specific reason or do you do it because it makes you look cool on Facebook? How old are you?
>>54870611
>119 USD
You can get G5 for free.
Anyway, if you don't like Apple, what about IntelliStations with PowerPC processors?
>>54870628
Why the fuck everyone assumes that if a guy mentions a PowerPC Apple to install linux on it, because Jewtel botnet it's an Apple lover?
>>54870207
This doesn't even make sense in this thread you DUMB FUCKER
>>54869960
What about ARM based computers?
Raspberry Pi (1, 2, 3)?
The're not that powerful, but for a simple browsing + email machine (for communication) they're good enough.
I mean the russians use ARM powered computers.
Is (low power) ARM a cheap alternative to Intel or this expensive Power8 mainboard?
>>54870713
>because everyone want's to solder shit to install a open source bios.
>>54870768
I think it's ok, but my boner killer will be the lack of inputs and not sata shit.
>>54870713
>>54870777
Fucking samefags.
>>54870777
>not supporting libreboot
What's wrong with you?
>>54870940
>>54870977
You don't have to work at microsoft callcenter, Mohandas?
>>54870789
banana pi? It has S-ATA.
And if there's a bad situation:
> US government goes into insane TRUMP-overload mode
> fucks all citizens
> the rest of the world follows
> freedom is about to die
I don't think you'd be very concerned about a fast s-ata solution or a fast processor. I think these devices are somewhat like the "Freedom Box".
Everyone should buy one!
Raspberry Pis can be battery powered + (small) screen can also be battery powered.
--> in case of emergency (corrupted US gov. / flood / drought / fire ...), combined with a HAM radio equipment + "packet radio", Raspberry Pis would be the ideal communication devices.
Example for "the rest of the world following US":
> USA wants ID everytime someone buys a prepaid SIM card
> weeks later: germany does the same
> pretending to fight terror --> in reality it's to take away more freedom
> normies won't notice, because there will be some fake terrorists that get atteintion in the media to show how effective this method (banning free SIM cards) is!
(src: http://www.heise.de/newsticker/meldung/Ausweispflicht-bei-Prepaid-SIMs-Kabinett-bringt-Anti-Terror-Paket-auf-den-Weg-3224166.html)
"Ausweis" = ID
(use botnet-google-translate for translation into freedom speak (i.e. english))
>>54871112
>using libreboot
I want to use OpenBSD.
>>54870279
I'm a bit curious, are the Rasberry Pi's and other microcomputers usually free as in freedom?
>>54869885
I plan to install Libre once Zen comes out and I retire my old Xeon from gaymen or if I get a dirt cheap FX setup during the Zen Mass Upgrade that will ensue. It is crazy that all the new chips have a Self Destruct feature and remote access that is controlled by the manufacturer, hackers and other unknown parties.
>>54871652
The Raspberry Pi boots the Broadcom VideoCore IV first, which has a proprietary ROM that chain loads two proprietary VC4 firmware blobs off the microSD, that run the ThreadX (commercial) RTOS, that manages all the peripherals on the SoC, loads Linux into the ARM cores, and starts them.
However Broadcom eventually were convinced to release some docs and some code for parts of the VC4, and there's an open toolchain for the VC4 and an engineer working on open, blobless booting (after the internal ROM, of course, but that's actually ROM) and some open GPU firmware for it (running on the ARM side, instead of the current open GPU drivers which pass commands via mailbox to the VC4 blob).
So... no, but almost yes: blobless boot sorta works now, video doesn't, last I heard, but it's a work in progress.
More movement than anyone ever got out of Broadcom before. Kudos to the Pi Foundation.
What about VIA boards? People barely ever talk about them.
>>54870294
http://www.libreboot.org/docs/hcl/index.html#supported_list
>>54871914
No one talks because these are shit.
you know that you can disable the management engine in your BIOS right
i mean the idea is kind of neat but as a non-enterprise computer user I don't need that shit on or use it either
>>54871032
last I heard IDs for prepaid cards in the US is generally a joke. the clerks just put in John Appleseed on main street.
In europe when I bought prepaid SIMs they scanned a copy of my US passport
>>54871976
The proprietary freedom hating BIOS is still non-free and you can't know whether it is actually disabled.
Most proprietary freedom hating BIOSes only make ME invisible to the host OS. The hardware backdoor is still active.
>>54869885
>no botnet putah
Asus C201 4Gb Chromebook
ARMv7 - rk3288 4-core cpu
Libreboot (readonly via hardware screw)
TP-LINK TL-WN722N (ATH9K_HTC)
linux-libre fully deblobbed kernel
debian8 jessie (armhf port) + xfce4
8+ hours shitpost time on battery
1. no intel botnet
2. no firmware binary blobs
3. write-protected bios compiled from source
Get 'em while you still can, anons.
>>54870135
Open Firmware is to New World PowerPC machines what BIOS/EFI is to x86 PCs. Apple's implementation isn't open source, and there's nothing I know of yet to replace it. Can't use Coreboot/libreboot, they only support x86/x86_64
AFAIK it's not signed like intel ME or microcode, so it can be replaced, it's just nobody's done it yet.
>paying 500 dollars for prehistoric shit
Retards!
>>54872410
> DO NOT BUY THIS LAPTOP YET!!!!!!!!!!! This is intended mainly for developers at the moment (libreboot developers, and developers of libre GNU/Linux distributions).
https://libreboot.org/docs/hcl/c201.html
how bad is it? (not working, kind of working, usable)?
>>54872410
>debian8 jessie (armhf port)
This laptop currently has zero support from libre distros. Parabola theoretically supports it, by installing Arch first and then migrating to Parabola ...
https://libreboot.org/docs/hcl/c201.html
>>54869885
I would go with a Sun Blade or some crap like that (I not sure if it is as new as the PPC Mac, but it wold be less overpriced).
But flashing the X200 Libreboot by yourself is easy, there is no need to not do it and is a better alternative to most old non-x86 computers.
>>54870768
>>54871032
>>54871652
I think the RPi need a non-free firmware to boot, without this firmware it is useless, I saw somewhere that there was someone trying to rewrite this firmware, but i don't think it was working wet.
also: https://www.fsf.org/resources/hw/single-board-computers
>>54871191
Someone was able to Boot some BSD on a X200 running libreboot, lurk in the mailing lists (also on /r/libreboot)
>>54871914
There are some boards on coreboot.org, but I don't think people are working on them this much
>>54872909
Debian 8 works fine on the c201. Follow the libreboot instructions for building the flashrom. Easiest method is to spin up a VM (trisquel) with required packages just for the job.
Then follow the debian docs.
https://wiki.debian.org/InstallingDebianOn/Asus/C201
Basically, you enable developer mode, then boot from a microsd or usb disk prepped with debian and partitioned correctly. Once you are comfortable with running from sd/usb, you can move your install over to onboard flash and blow away chromeos.
Partitioning and kernel stuff on ARM is different than X86. Kernels are stored in partitions and marked with priority levels.
http://www.libreboot.org/docs/install/c201.html
https://chromium.googlesource.com/chromiumos/third_party/kernel/+/chromeos-3.14/
http://www.fsfla.org/pipermail/linux-libre/
http://packages.trisquel.info/belenos/all/open-ath9k-htc-firmware/download
>>54873078
I thought WiFi was not working on the C201, what happened?
>>54873167
The onboard wifi is non free. You can make it work but what is the point if it needs a firmware blob you can't trust?
The TPLINK TL-WN722N wifi module has open firmware. I stuck mine on the back of the screen with a short usb adapter cable. There are other modules available that use the same chip. The TL-WN722N is readily available on amazon for about $12.
https://github.com/qca/open-ath9k-htc-firmware
https://h-node.org/wifi/view/en/357/Atheros-Communications-Inc--AR9271-802-11n
>>54873245
>USB
>>54873245
Ok I didn't noticed, the issue still is marked on the libreboot page.
>>54873167
What is pic related?
An ownmade Laptop?
>>54873502
Limited edition of the Novena
>>54873502
https://www.crowdsupply.com/sutajio-kosagi/novena
>>54871956
GNU/Linux makes shitboxes pretty bearable. If you're not prepared to shell out 3.5k for a TALOS workstation board, I think a little sacrifice for freedom is reasonable if you're really committed.
>>54873543
Is the "just the board" Version REALLY ENTIERLY FREE?
- no blobs for wifi ...
- no backdoors in processor (Freescale iMX6 )
>>54870072
You can view all the source in the OFW Forth environment you dipshit.
No it's not copyleft Free Software but you sure can poke around in there.
>>54870207
That article is misleading Wintel shill trash.
>>54870310
The mods are responsible for 80% of the shitposting on this board. They want to ruin every non-sponsored thread.
However the sponsored /g/ threads will see this kind of shitty bait cleaned instantly.
REALLY MAKES YOU THINK
You can Libreboot your own X200 if you're not a knuckle-dragger. Get one off eBay for $150.
>>54870628
It's literally a Dell shill.
You can summon him by trashing the Dell XPS craptops.
>>54873641
The wifi is a Atheros card (works well with free software). The CPU is more or less well documented. The BIOs is U-Boot (free software BIOs). I think it is more or less on the same level of some computer running Libreboot. I just don't have a FSF approved distro running, but it can run Debian without non-free software.
>>54873867
FSF does not dictate what's free and what's not anyway.
>>54870768
It's not entirely free
Some of the CPU stuff requires non-free firmware
>>54873898
Promoting non-free software is not good, they do have a point when they don't approve Debian for maintaining a non-free software repository and point it to some people, but they also recognize that Debian does promote free software and they do keep the "official" Debian repository free software only.
>>54874013
I use Funtoo with all Free Software. FSF will never endorse it, and frankly I don't care.
>>54874125
Yes. Yes it is.
>>54873867
>The CPU is more or less well documented
Well all these freedom respecting platforms still have one drawback:
How can you be sure that the processor built into them is EXACTLY the one described by the doc. ????¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿
The manufacturer could still add other backdoors to the system. One would have to inspect the real hardware, i.e. opening a processor and checking if it is built exactly as described in the doc.
The Blade 2500 is one of the best SPARC-based desktops you can get your hands on, same hardware as the all-aluminum Ultra 40s /g/ jerks off to in aesthetics threads but 10x cheaper because they aren't as desired by hipsters who want to destroy them to fit their shitty i3 gayming rig inside.
Not sure about the flavor of Open Firmware they use though, and GNU/Linux support on their workstations is better than most, but still shitty.
Is it worth picking up a Power7 server? I have the coin.
>>54870207
>benchmarks for a decade-old chip
who gives a shit
besides, G5s will still work well enough for pretty much anything you'd want to do on a "libre" system unless you're autistic about compile times, in that case just pair it with a SPARC T2 box or something as a build server
>>54874566
really depends on what you'd want to use it for, that shit's obviously not going to be suitable for "desktop" usage but it would obviously make a very nice mostly-free server
>>54874628
My intended use would be as a workstation.
Basically somewhere between 2006 and 2009 you can draw a line in the sand for American hardware tech.
Depending on the market you could push that backdoor date back a few years more...
Home field advantage, NOBUS and its ilk.
What a sad situation.
>>54874671
then probably no, modern POWER systems aren't designed to be used that way, hell you'd be lucky to get onboard video which even then would be the bare minimum and likely will have no upgrade path
if you really want to go the POWER desktop route without dumping three grand for a Talos you'd be better off sticking around and waiting for a POWER Intellistation to show up
>>54874985
Thanks Anon.
>>54874671
A regular desktop with a Xeon or two would serve you better since your software is able to run on it.
>>54875494
the entire point of this thread is to explore alternatives to x86 platforms that are riddled with undocumented hardware and binaries
>>54869885
>Everyone hates AMD
>I own AMD FX6300 and I'm free from shitty UEFI and Intel ME, and performance is good enough for me
>>54873850
You can get one predone on ebay for 260 canadian, too. Way cheaper than the "professional" one.
>>54869885
I got one of these, it's not nearly as pozzed as I thought it'd be.
Runs Dwarf Fortress anyway!
OpenFirmware is kickass. Not "Free" but you can examine and alter the whole system and redefine any words you care to. Also it has support for assembly code built in.
http://www.firmworks.com/QuickRef.html
>>54875967
Wrong image, sorry.
>>54875813
x86 isn't the problem per se, it's the extra shit that different vendors have been sticking onto it like iAMT / vPro.
>>54875813
not that guy but the best part about threads like this is people like you would NEVER be able to audit the code you run to any extent, much less understand the hardware side. you try to ride your high horse of MUH OPEN SOURCE when in the end all you do is wait for other people to do the work to say 'all clear'. you just sit around waiting to hear what you want, while glaring bugs like shellshock sit in plain sight
>>54875997
totally agree, just saying that the whole thing was that this thread is about non-x86 stuff
>>54876046
get yourself a tissue and another shoulder to cry on
personally I don't even give a shit, I like these threads because non-x86 hardware excites me
>>54873010
>DDR420
>>54873898
this.
>tfw Gentoo with ACCEPT_LICENSE="-* @FREE"
you don't need to use gNewSense to be free
>>54869885
bumpero
>>54870623
I dont even own a single Apple product, and you didnt reply to my question.
As confirmed, youre just another one of those guys who hate apple because it 4 fagz xd memes
>>54877415
Exactly. Same with Funtoo.
So what's a relatively free, low cost, non-x86 system?
>>54881367
Maybe something like OrangePi? I don't like how it's powered.
>>54877415
>>54879644
>Gen/Funtoo can into freedom with ACCEPT_LICENSE="-* @FREE"
Except that there is no guarantee that the license variable in the ebuilds "reflect reality". I prefer complimenting that with a hardened profile and a make.conf with USE="deblob".
>>54881367
Sun SPARC T1/T2 system or some shit SBC
>>54870800
>nido
Fuck off.
>>54884482
Cry moar.
>>54872761
I think I have a new project for summer then.
>>54870800
Who are those semen demons?
