Finding the happy medium in FOSS
,----[ Quote ]
| Here are the four points, if you will, on which FOSS developers are pulled in
| different directions:
|
| * Free as in freedom.
| * Free as in beer.
| * Legal and ethical.
| * Usable and pragmatic.
|
| The differences are more philosophical than nuts-and-bolts.
|
| [...]
|
| Can we reconcile these four points? Similar to the saying, "Cheap, fast,
| good -- pick any two," FOSS is in a constant struggle to balance these
| issues.
`----
http://www.linux.com/feature/125321
It makes some good points.
Understanding The Free Software Philosophy
,----[ Quote ]
| Free Software may not be as visible in the media as its younger, breakaway
| sibling, `Open Source’. You seldom hear of GNU/Linux, compared to the
| frequency with which you read of the term `Linux’. But,quietly, and mostly
| away from the glare of publicity, a small group of committed techies is
| slogging hard in India, to make a difference through skill and commitment.
`----
http://playingwithsid.blogspot.com/2008/01/understanding-free-software-philosophy.html
Related and recent:
Interview with Richard M. Stallman
,----[ Quote ]
| It is important to know this because we will always face pressure, from those
| who are powerful and would like to take away our freedom, to surrender our
| freedom—and they frequently offer us something attractive in exchange. For
| instance, B’liar wanted to abolish the Rights of Englishmen, and to serve his
| American master, Bush, faithfully; so he offered Britons “protection” from
| this or that, plus the imagined idea that he influences his master on their
| behalf through the “special relationship”.
|
| The same thing happens in our field, too. Companies making consumer
| electronics products want to impose DRM on us; they want to do this in
| programs that they receive as free software, then pass them on to us in such
| a way that we do not have the freedom to change them. So they invite us to
| allow our software to be tivoized, and offer us, as an inducement, that our
| software will be “more popular” if we cave in.
|
| The only way to keep our freedom is to have the steadfastness to reject those
| tempting offers. We have to move to a license like GPL version 3 that will
| stop these tempters in their tracks.
`----
http://www.freesoftwaremagazine.com/articles/interview_with_richard_stallman
|
|
