Re: [Madwifi-devel] Kernel patches.
Status: Beta
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From: Amit K. <aku...@me...> - 2004-03-31 23:21:16
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On Wed, 2004-03-31 at 14:45, Terry Simons wrote: > Amit, >=20 > I think the problem here is that some of the MADWifi code is=20 > proprietary/non-GPL, which makes putting patches INTO the kernel=20 > problematic (at least for the mainstream line). >=20 > It's more of a political problem than a technical one. >=20 > The problem isn't getting patches into the MADWifi tree, but patching=20 > the MADWifi tree into the kernel tree... At least that's how I read it.=20 > I could be wrong. :-) >=20 > - Terry Aaah. Now I understand.=20 Well, in the case of madwifi/nvidia/linuxant etc., kernel inclusion is not just a problem, its an impossibility AFAICT. So unless somebody can take the ar5k driver and merge it with the 802.11 protocol stack from madwifi, there is no hope of ever getting it included into the mainstream kernel. It is my understanding that one of the major reasons for a binary HAL was 802.11a (5GHz) support in AP mode that can interfere with military/air traffic radars and hence comes under FCC regulation. If that is the only reason (I am not sure), I wish they would separate the 802.11b/g (2.4GHz) parts and open source that. But I guess at this point it is wishful thinking more than anything else. /Amit --=20 .| Amit Kucheria |. ...| Wireless Systems Engineer |... .....| Metric Systems Corp., San Diego, CA |..... ......| www.metricsystems.com |...... |