AMD Revamps Their Linux GPU Focus

In an attempt to improve their Linux support, AMD has refreshed their GPU support under the OS. The only word that comes to mind is “finally”, and I am sure I am not alone in that thinking. Our good friends at Phoronix have exhaustively posted content about the upcoming releases and also more information about what you should be expecting.

First, you can see what the new driver will be offering, complete with revamped control panel. If you want performance numbers, they have got those as well, for R300/R400, R500 and also tests with their high-end HD 2900XT offering. Lastly, is AMD going to open-source the fglrx driver? It’s hard to decipher, but it sure sounds promising! It’s great to finally see AMD coming out of their hole and getting appropriate drivers developed. NVIDIA has dominated Linux gaming for a while, but now they have some actual competition. Finally.

The official AMD press release states: “In the coming months AMD also plans to accelerate efforts to address the needs of the open source community as well.” But what does this mean? Are they opening up the fglrx driver? Are they providing specifications? Are they just making a better binary blob so the open-source community will just want reverse engineer it more?

Source: Phoronix