Closed Source in Desktop Linux

As someone who has been using Debian GNU/Linux (a notedly strict distribution in the sense of Open Source purity) as the only operating system on my desktop for almost 6 years, I can safely say that I have a wealth of experience regarding the interactions between Closed Source software and a popular Desktop Linux offering.

Matt Hartley, author of ”Closed Source vs. Open Source in Desktop Linux”, has done a rather good job of assessing the role Closed Source software is playing on the Linux desktop. However, there are a few points that would benefit from an alternate point of view.

The summary of his article is that closed source code plays a viable role in the Linux infrastructure, that NVIDIA’s driver initiative shouldn’t meet with hostility while Skype is paraded, and that software purists shouldn’t push “closed source software companies looking to take a dip in the Linux development waters” for fear of scaring them away.

As the typical young, male, Computer Science graduate, I am a member of a strong demographic who want high-quality, cheap, effective solutions. We enjoy entertainment, and have a tendency to spend too much time on the computer. Linux offers a great price point, is a powerful learning tool, and is a high-quality product; the only thing missing for many is the entertainment opportunities. Sure, there are numerous Open Source, native Linux games. However, I shouldn’t be limited in my options merely based on principle. Wine, the Open Source set of Windows compatibility libraries which “enables your computer to run Windows applications”, allows me to run software (even Open Source Windows software) which would otherwise not be available to me.

With the gaming world as my oyster, and a hint from my profile page, you might be able to guess my game of choice: World of Warcraft. With 10 million subscribers and counting, it “holds the Guinness World Record for the most popular MMORPG” (Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game). With a fresh Wine installation, World of Warcraft is perfectly delighted to install, update, and run - provided I have the required OpenGL capabilities in my video drivers.

Everyone likes things to be a certain way, and if you are an advocate of Open Source software - as I clearly am - you want to be able to maintain a pristine system. Though it pains me, I do regularly use the NVIDIA video driver (making sure to reinstall every time libc6 is updated because it breaks the installation). I would be delighted if NVIDIA would open up their drivers, and it is our duty as consumers to inform them of what we want. A boycott does nothing but leave use stranded with an ATI card, with which I have never had a good experience. The quality of the drivers that NVIDIA provides is stellar, especially considering the price: free. Sadly, there is no official Debian repository for simple installation or upgrading.

Skype, on the other hand, does provide a Skype Debian repository. However, the parade ends here. I’m tired of Skype. The issues surrounding unauthorized bandwidth sharing, the QT library, and the fees related to Euro currency exchanges turned me off to it a long time ago. For anyone who wants to be free of the old GTK 1.x libraries and not have the menagerie of QT libraries, being forced to install these old libraries just because you want Skype or are still using XMMS is more than I’m willing to put up with.

Ultimately, when someone joins the Open Source software swimming pool, but they’re just putting their feet in, it makes the game of Marco Polo a whole lot less fun. While I appreciate the attempt, you should expect that we’ll ask time and again for you to just jump in the pool and commit fully to providing the same level of service that we expect. Purists shouldn’t stop us from being able to enjoy our choice of entertainment, and Closed Source vendors should make plans to support more than just a single operating system. The tools are out there, and code that is more portable tends to be more cleanly written. NVIDIA, Skype, and other Closed Source Linux software providers are able to survive with Closed Source because there isn’t a better solution. However, in the Linux community, a non-free or Closed Source application like Cedega (nee WineX) will fall by the wayside once the community friendly version is in the pole position.