From owner-freebsd-questions@FreeBSD.ORG Thu Dec 2 06:26:04 2010 Return-Path: Delivered-To: freebsd-questions@freebsd.org Received: from mx1.freebsd.org (mx1.freebsd.org [IPv6:2001:4f8:fff6::34]) by hub.freebsd.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 71925106564A for ; Thu, 2 Dec 2010 06:26:04 +0000 (UTC) (envelope-from smithi@nimnet.asn.au) Received: from sola.nimnet.asn.au (paqi.nimnet.asn.au [115.70.110.159]) by mx1.freebsd.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id E14D38FC14 for ; Thu, 2 Dec 2010 06:26:03 +0000 (UTC) Received: from localhost (localhost [127.0.0.1]) by sola.nimnet.asn.au (8.14.2/8.14.2) with ESMTP id oB26Q0Rn022067; Thu, 2 Dec 2010 17:26:01 +1100 (EST) (envelope-from smithi@nimnet.asn.au) Date: Thu, 2 Dec 2010 17:26:00 +1100 (EST) From: Ian Smith To: Jerry In-Reply-To: <20101201233603.5E9A610656E9@hub.freebsd.org> Message-ID: <20101202163648.A20283@sola.nimnet.asn.au> References: <20101201233603.5E9A610656E9@hub.freebsd.org> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Cc: freebsd-questions@freebsd.org Subject: Re: USB Thumb Drive X-BeenThere: freebsd-questions@freebsd.org X-Mailman-Version: 2.1.5 Precedence: list List-Id: User questions List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: List-Post: List-Help: List-Subscribe: , X-List-Received-Date: Thu, 02 Dec 2010 06:26:04 -0000 In freebsd-questions Digest, Vol 339, Issue 6, Message: 22 On Wed, 1 Dec 2010 15:59:30 -0500 Jerry wrote: > On Wed, 1 Dec 2010 12:36:43 -0600 > Ryan Coleman articulated: > > > As the page says, it's READ ONLY in Linux... kinda pathetic. Thanks, > > Microsoft, for changing things AGAIN so you cannot be shared safely > > with others. > > First of all, exFAT is a major improvement over FAT32 for Flash drives. So is UFS, especially if you use suitable parameters to makefs :) > The fact that it is apparently only READ ONLY in a Linux environment > has nothing to do with Microsoft but rather with the FOSS community at > large. They could either purchase a license, which of course they > won't; or they could reverse engineer a driver for it. That's rich, Jerry .. you expect FREE, OPEN SOURCE operating systems to pay Microsoft for a licence to implement a PROPRIETARY, CLOSED SOURCE, PATENT-PENDING filesystem? Or reverse engineer it and risk a lawsuit for patent infringement, should the US Patent Office rubber-stamp it? Ok, benefit of the doubt: how much would a licence to implement exFAT so it can be freely distributed with FreeBSD cost the FreeBSD Foundation? No real clues at: http://www.microsoft.com/about/legal/en/us/IntellectualProperty/IPLicensing/Programs/exFATFileSystem.aspx?pf=true but as an insider you should be able to get us some more solid info? > There is also this link on the page: > http://www.tuxera.com/products/exfat-for-embedded-systems/ > > Perhaps that might be of assistance. To the ability to freely distribute exFAT access with FreeBSD? Hardly. > In any case, I find using removable drives far easier on a Microsoft > machine anyway Unless you were being compensated for such inconvenience, it's amazing that you'd ever consider using anything other than 'Microsoft machines'. cheers, Ian