🚀 go-pugleaf

ryan@ra.cs.umb.edu (Daniel R. Guilderson) writes:
> One thing that separates the so-called GNU ideal from the current
> trend is that the GNU ideal makes room for software hoarders.  If you
> don't like the way the GNU philosophy works, there is nothing
> preventing you from developing proprietary software and distributing
> that any way that makes your heart happy.  Whereas current software
> hoarding philosophy wants to stop GNU with the barrel of a gun.

You're muddling together the questions of user interface copyrights and
patents (which do threaten GNU), and of selling software for money (which
shouldn't be any threat to GNU).

Attacking the former is the job of the LPF.  I'm tempted to say that
attacking the latter is the job of the FSF, but I'll just get flamed by the
True Believers.

I agree with the LPF but not the FSF.  I think the majority of people not
working for big corporations agree with the LPF, but want to keep selling
hoarded software.  So I contend that the majority of software hoarders have no
wish to stop GNU.

> I can't speak for rms but personally I would be happy if everyone
> adopted the GNU philosophy but if they don't I wouldn't try to force
> them.

Well, that's not the impression I got from talking to rms.  I think he wants
to stop people from hoarding software; not just ask them to stop or
out-compete them, STOP THEM.  Hence the restrictions in the GPL.

> On the otherhand, so far it has been working pretty well.

I don't know; I've not seen much free software which is anything like as good
as the best commercial products; gcc is the only real exception I'm aware of.


mathew