Re: [Libreboot] Re (2): Libreplanet keynote questions

[Daniel Tarrero]

On Thu, Mar 17, 2016 at 12:03:24PM -0700, address@hidden wrote:
> The following is meant to be positive rather than negative.
> 
> From: Daniel Tarrero <address@hidden>
> From: Xavi Drudis Ferran <address@hidden>
> From: Denis 'GNUtoo' Carikli <address@hidden>
> Date: various
> 
> > ... keynote of this year's Libreplanet.
> 
> > ... what difference can make ...
> 
> > ... most used setup (to my knowledge) to resist such attacks
> > consists in:
> > - An FSF certified computer with libreboot.
> > - GRUB in the BIOS flash, that can open encrypted rootfs.
> > - The full rootfs (including /boot) ...
> >  ...
> 
> > ... uefi boot system comming, self signed boot roms ...
> 
> I admire the vigour in developing Libreboot, GRUB, rootfs 
> and etc.  Yet, in the long term, my confidence is really 
> in the approach advocated by Niklaus Wirth and associates. 
> For example much of the difficulty in auditing a Linux 
> software results from the immense size of it.  I'm not 
> convinced that more will really bring improvement.  What's 
> needed is less software and more efficiency.
> 
> Bear in mind that many wonderful gadgets were developed to 
> improve steam locomotives.  A few remain in museums.  The 
> rest are long gone to the steel furnace.
> 
> Regards,             ... Peter E.
> 
> 


i agree, the more you know, the safer you are. So i also tend
to this "less is more" in terms of security.

i also see the "growing difficulty" in audditing open software
as time passes and sources keep growing. But hey, the fact is
that you can, and in the most propper way: reading the source,
knowing the compiler, reading the source of the compiler.

and you can fix or modify, now or later, and compile and run.
i dont know nothing better :)

there are privative software pieces bigger than the whole
GNU+Linux distribution (recent examples in my work, Adobe stuff
or 10Gb games). This are closed, never auditable.

also i see this "sofistication vs simplicity" around features in
software all the time. in the thinking process sometimes you start
with a "brain storm" where all ideas are wellcome, just to have a
clear overview of what is possible. Then you take the best, order
them, etc...


maybe think about software than can audit software (AI?) 8)
the fact we cant today doesnt imply we cant tomorrow.

good morning folks!
D