ARM as a primary architecture

[Jon Masters]

Hi Kevin,

Thanks for your message.

On 03/22/2012 11:21 PM, Kevin Kofler wrote:
> Peter Robinson wrote:
> 
>> On Thu, Mar 22, 2012 at 2:28 PM, drago01 <drago01 at gmail.com> wrote:
>>> The only ones where this is possible right now are actually x86 based
>>> tablets. Even Windows 8 wont help here as MS mandates that the
>>> devices are locked with secure boot without having an option to disable
>>> it.
>>
>> No that is definitely not the case that it is x86 only,
> 
> Quite the opposite: M$ rules for "secure" boot are:
> * on x86 (or "non-ARM" in their wording) devices, it MUST be possible for 
> users to disable "secure" boot,
> * on ARM devices, it MUST NOT be possible for users to disable "secure" 
> boot,
> i.e. all ARM devices shipping Window$ will have restricted boot forced on 
> with no option to disable it.

To an extent, Kevin is perhaps right here. There is a version of the
Microsoft Logo requirements that implies that logo-conforming devices
cannot be shipped with Custom Mode enabled. I know Matthew, and many
others, are suitably involved in advocating for different positions.
That's all I'm going to say here without legal counsel. But let's put
this in context. There will always be locked-down devices that are
designed to make it difficult to run alternative Operating Systems,
there have been before Fedora ARM, and there will be afterward :)

We haven't been seriously discussing the idea of running Fedora on
cellphones - and I'm certainly not proposing that now! - but I would
note that nobody has said how terrible it is that Fedora ARM will not
run on iPhone without hacking, cracking, jailbreaking, rooting, or
whatever terms you like. A vertically integrated tablet shipped with
Windows 8 is the same thing - it's designed end-to-end as a single
embedded product. There are many other tablets out there not shipping
with Windows 8 today, and there will be many more in the future. Some of
those Windows 8 tablets will eventually run non-Windows OSes because it
is inevitable that someone, somewhere will find a way to do that.

So while I'll defend Kevin's comment here as valid input, let me say
that I would like to issue a call for civility, Kevin. Please, engage us
in a reasonable, serious conversation, or don't. I haven't replied to
your other messages because they are filled with vitriol. I suspect many
other people similarly ignore you (and perversely, I suspect you assist
in our cause of becoming a Primary Architecture by being so extremely
vocal in your unreasonable opposition of the concept). Anyway, I am very
willing to discuss with you, but only if you will agree to please
consider having that discussion in a civil manner.

Jon.