[Discuss] Misuse of "Open Hardware" term?

Tsvetan Usunov, OLIMEX Ltd usunov at olimex.com
Thu Feb 12 06:20:19 UTC 2015


> As for including the files for KiCad, they include the Gerbers files which is the industry standard.

Gerbers are not sources, to make Open Source Software analogy Gerbers 
are derivative work from the sources, like compiled binary blobs from 
the source files, you can use them, but you can't learn, study, modify 
etc. unless you have the sources i.e. CAD files.

BOM also is derivative work from the sources, I don't know if it's so 
important to generate BOM when you have the source files, it's matter of 
one command run.

 >Regarding the Pi, it may not claim to be open source hardware but is 
 >touted by media as open source hardware, see examples like this (
 >http://opensource.com/life/14/10/reviewing-new-raspberry-pi-b-board).

this just shows how even people who like OSHW do not understand it quite 
well :)

Tsvetan



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