[coreboot] SeaBIOS and the Geode LX framebuffer

[Jordan Crouse]

On 04/10/08 21:59 -0400, Kevin O'Connor wrote:
> On Fri, Oct 03, 2008 at 02:16:27PM +0200, Stefan Reinauer wrote:
> > Carl-Daniel Hailfinger wrote:
> > > You'd need a VGA emulation VSA and AFAIK that piece of software is not
> > > available as open source due to an interesting rights situation.
> > >   
> > Alternatively you could build a VGA option rom that initializes VGA on
> > the Geode. The hardware dependent code is in libpayload already. It just
> > needs to be integrated in something like "vgabios"
> > 
> > http://www.nongnu.org/vgabios/
> 
> Just a random note - I think it should be possible to port the above
> "vgabios" project from bcc to gcc - similar to how SeaBIOS was ported.
> The gcc compiler produces much better code than bcc (even after all
> the 32bit prefixes are added), and a port to gcc should make adding
> chip specific functions much easier.
> 
> I'm not an expert on VGA, but I think it may be possible to implement
> a bare bones vgabios with only a couple of chip specific functions
> (eg, initialization and mode switching).  Given the recent
> availability of specs from AMD and Via, there is a possibility that on
> board VGA could be completely handled with open source code.

Not just a possibility - but a certainty.  Geode could be ported in a
matter of hours. 

Jordan

-- 
Jordan Crouse
Systems Software Development Engineer 
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc.