AMD is buttering up the Linux desktop camp by announcing details of a major scheme to support the open-source development community for ATI Radeon graphics chips on Linux desktops.
AMD plans to provide an open-source information and development package supporting the ATI Radeon HD 2000 and Radeon X1000 series of graphics processing units (GPU) on Linux desktops. To speed up the process, it has teamed up Novell’s Suse Linux engineering division.
The initial release includes source code and hardware specifications to allow the open-source community to collaborate on 2D graphics drivers. In the coming months, AMD promises to work with developers to enable 2D, 3D and video playback acceleration to boost the overall graphics performance of Linux-based PCs.
Nat Friedman, chief technology and strategy officer for open source at Novell, explained why this is a big deal for Linux users: “The lack of open-source drivers for graphics hardware has long been a major obstacle for Linux developers and Linux desktop users,” he said.
“Our aim is complete: open-source drivers for all video hardware. Today’s announcement brings us one step closer. The initial drivers will allow open-source developers to make the Linux experience even better on desktops, laptops and workstations, and we look forward to contributing this code to X.Org.”
Phil Hester, chief technology officer at AMD, said: “AMD has a proven track record of collaboration with
the software eco-system to support the needs of the open-source community. We’re now demonstrating
our commitment to respond to the needs of the open-source community and adopt a consistent approach across CPU and GPU technologies. By supporting open-source drivers
on our ATI Radeon graphics processors we accelerate innovation across the AMD platform.”
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