Open Source BIOS?

[Ted Roche]

I think the idea of an Open Source BIOS, where the source can be
reviewed by many and updated or modified and re-burned, is a great one.
A quick Google for "Open Source BIOS" leads to a number of interesting
links, including the FSF (http://www.fsf.org/campaigns/free-bios.html),
referencing LinuxBIOS (http://linuxbios.org/index.php/Main_Page), which
looks to me more like bootstrap code which goes on to load a firmware
package,  the OpenBIOS project
(http://openbios.info/Welcome_to_OpenBIOS); "Here you find several
implementations of IEEE 1275-1994 (Referred to as Open Firmware)
compliant firmware." and news that GIGABYTE has actually shipped a
motherboard with an Open Source BIOS: http://lkml.org/lkml/2007/2/21/490.

These sound like great projects worthy of support by those who believe
that Open makes better.

Has anyone got practical experience with these projects? I'd be
interested to hear how they are actually progressing from someone with
on-the-silicon experience.


-- 
Ted Roche
Ted Roche & Associates, LLC
http://www.tedroche.com