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by geezerjay
2959 days ago
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> System76 works with upstream manufacturers (like, yes, Clevo for laptops) to determine what types of products to develop, including their specifications, design, etc. for months up to a release. These products do not exist before we enter into these conversations. What do you mean by "products"? Is it a particular combination of a specific barebones Clevo laptop installed with specific components (make+model) picked by System76? > Once that has been determined, designed, and goes into production, we start on firmware. We ensure all components are working together and with the Linux kernel (often requiring changes to the components' low level interactions with the OS, since the upstream components themselves are often manufactured with the assumption they will be used by Windows). What do you mean by "ensure all components are working together"? Do you mean check whether a component is already supported by linux and in case the support is iffy the System76 staff picks some other component (make+model) that's better supported? |
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It's kind of a case-by-case basis. But some products, like the Galago Pro and new Oryx Pro, are the result of years of working with our partners to even develop a certain class of computer. For a long time, Clevo wasn't even interested in a thin and light aluminum machine (much less a sane HiDPI resolution), but we worked with them to get that into production. The display resolution in particular was a win for us, as they had originally planned to go with a 3840×2160 display, but at 13", it was too-dense for most of our customers without fractional scaling. So we had them source a 3200×1800 display, which is just right. And when our customers and fans wanted a slimmer bezel on that machine, we released the 14" version with the same exact chassis but a bigger display and smaller bezels.
>What do you mean by "ensure all components are working together"? Do you mean check whether a component is already supported by linux and in case the support is iffy the System76 staff picks some other component (make+model) that's better supported?
Some components—like a DAC or Ethernet chipset—are not always directly chosen by System76; it's a decision our partners make when the product goes into production. Much of the time those components work perfectly fine out of the box in Linux, but sometimes it requires some firmware or driver work to get it working perfectly, usually if the component itself was only originally developed for and tested against Windows.