AVR-Chat

On Fri, 2009-11-20 at 16:05 +0000, Leon wrote:
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> --- In AVR-Chat@yahoogroups.com, Luke Whitmore <lwhitmore@...> wrote:
> >
> > This is pretty interesting. I suppose intellectual property law is
> > bound to rear it's ugly head when FPGAs are considered. I wonder if
> > there's an open-source movement producing designs in the commons for
> > FPGA devices? AFAIK, Atmel have always been very good to the
> > open-source community - how can they adapt once FPGA use becomes
> more
> > ubiquitous?
> > 
> What if a very fast processor like an XMOS chip is used to emulate an
> AVR, say. With 400 MIPS and eight concurrent 100/50 MIPS hardware
> threads available on a $7.50 chip, it should run AVR code much faster
> than the real thing. I can't see any legality problems doing that,
> it'c conceptually the same as emulating an AVR on a PC.

This is very true, but once lawyers become involved common sense is
sometimes thrown out of the window.

        eg. What if I could copy my current favourite CD and send it to
        you electronically, instead of lending it to you like I usually
        do... conceptually it's the same :)

Although, from David Kelly's reply it sounds like some basic freedoms
have already been established in terms of microprocessor design.

<rant>

As the constraints of physical material erode (and technologies fully
converge) in just about every case, I suppose what we're left with is
IP.  The problem I have is with the property part.  If something takes a
certain amount of time to create, the author should be paid for the
service rendered - not for coming up with the idea first.

I'm rambling a little, and I'm going off point - but I hope that society
learns a fair and just way to make money from IP, because otherwise
we'll end up living in a pretty grim reality.

</rant>

> Leon
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