It does not really matter if this is "modified" or "based". Any derivate work from a GPL project is GPL'ed.
Our modifications will of course be GPL'ed, too, and will be available in full accordance to the GPL.
The idea of an x86 emulator in the firmware is that it is considered the firmware's task to initalize the hardware, including graphics cards. I don't think it makes sense to boot with a disabled screen - actually being able to see what is happening (including error messages) is a definitive advantage.
That is all I am going to say about this. If you want to discuss this, contact me
privately
