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Open-Source Graphics Processor
71–78 of 78 posts
Re: Open-Source Graphics Processor
#72Isn't it the case that, for GPUs, the two biggest limitations are process improvement, and driver development?
One I have a GPU shader core, I can copy and paste until I run out of power transistors, interconnects, and bus bandwidth.
But without the process to drive that equation forward, I'm stuck in the '90s, and without GL (and ideally D3D) drivers, I can run no software.
This seems to have no answer to either that matters to normal people.
If a Linux desktop, phone, or tablet, with at least "integrated graphics" level performance, could be produced as open source, that might actually be interesting. But nothing here looks like that's going to happen.
Re: Open-Source Graphics Processor
#73Am I misunderstanding, or are the lower goals basically just a bounty? $200k to "polish" the code they already have? Sounds to me more like they are asking $200k to open-source code they already have.
That seems to be exactly correct, is that a problem?
Re: Open-Source Graphics Processor
#74As someone who has done a fair amount of OpenGL programming, I can honestly say that it's becoming a convoluted spec. It's no longer elegant or something that should be aspired to IMHO, YMMV. The principles are generally sound, just not the implementation or API. I would rather see an FPGA being used as a general purpose DSP with the ability to run shader code in software, perhaps inside a runtime written with Go or…
Intel tried exactly that with Larrabee. Didn't work out.
Re: Open-Source Graphics Processor
#75Am I misunderstanding, or are the lower goals basically just a bounty? $200k to "polish" the code they already have? Sounds to me more like they are asking $200k to open-source code they already have.
That seems to be exactly correct, is that a problem?
I don't know, is it? I thought Kickstarter was supposed to be for funding a project either currently in or soon to be in development, not making a group buy.
Re: Open-Source Graphics Processor
#76Earlier quoted context omitted.
That seems to be exactly correct, is that a problem?
I don't know, is it? I thought Kickstarter was supposed to be for funding a project either currently in or soon to be in development, not making a group buy.
I see this as a "get enough money together and we'll OSS it" effort. AFAIR this has happened for some game engine years ago, but I can't recall anything specific about that one.
Re: Open-Source Graphics Processor
#77OK I'm missing this completely. What problem is this solving ? I can't believe they have never seen a smartphone recently, so they know what cheapo hardware is capable of pushing nowadays. Yet this exists. So what is it that is exiting here but fly high over my head ?
There is a market for hardware that has gone out of production.
Consider a hospital with a million dollar work of scanner which was the latest tech on 2000. Today due to the effect of bath tub curve some parts are failing. (e.g. GPU in this case) the original silicon manufacturer has either gone out of business or stopped production. The hospital now has the option of either putting down the money for a new scanner or buying a third party replacement GPU(pin and functionality compatible drop-in) at a premium (What would have cost 10-20$ can be sold for 1k-10k$)
We do not need to fabricate a Y2K technology on the latest 16nm/28nm process. you can shop around to find the cheapest available process and use it.
Re: Open-Source Graphics Processor
#78What's up with people about open source X everything?
It's nice to be able to fix or contribute to every element of anything you use for one.
I guess my question is how does that fit into our current insurance policy and liability laws? For example, with so many things claim to be going to open source, if someone uses a 3d printer to make a screw to fix a car, and an accident occurs, what does it mean to the victim, insurance company, auto company and you?
Does open source actually innovate in areas like making cars? Does closed-source, private industry competition generate better innovation. Are there correlation and/or causation in either approach with new innovation? In other words, maybe it's nice to open discuss ideas but does actual implementation matters if it weren't open source? With software, we certainly have really terrible open source projects that people will use just because it's handy (I am looking at you pycrypto), but in the end we have to build another one. Whereas proprietary software may include custom "pycrypto" library that has private cryptanalysis done on it. It is still safe and useful.