Re: consider a b43-firmware package like this?
John W. Linville wrote:
The "approved" firmware for use with the b43 and b43legacy
drivers
comes from the OpenWRT website, where it is provided as part of larger
MIPS binaries. AFAIK Broadcom has never bothered OpenWRT about this,
yet neither have they offered an explicitly stated license for this
practice.
The MIPS binaries from the OpenWRT site in turn come from packages
distributed by wireless AP vendors in order to comply with the GPL.
The MIPS binaries are pre-compiled in those packages, but they are
clearly intended to be linked into Linux kernels to run on those APs.
In my mind, this at least implies intent that it is alright to
redistribute these binaries.
I know what you mean there; my laptop has a Broadcom-based wireless
card, and I had to get the firmware. Incidentally, did you know that
older Broadcoms still need the stuff produced by the old
bcm43xx-fwcutter? Mine does, for example.