Re: FYI: GNU Emacs Manual to be moved to non-free
Thien-Thi Nguyen (2003-05-15 09:25:06 -0400) :
> Roland Mas <lolando@debian.org> writes:
>
> The problem is that the rules (guidelines, actually) for deciding
> what is free and what isn't do not emanate from the users but
> from our constitution and social contract.
[OT: On the other hand, e-mail reply policies are explicitly
recommended by users, by way of the Mail-Copies-To headers. Please
respect that.]
> well, the laws in some countries are heading towards this same
> rigidity; who benefits?
This is a completely different thing. I'll admit my phrasing wasn't
totally explicit in what you quoted (although the rest of the message
does explain it), so I'll rephrase:
The problem is that the rules (guidelines, actually) for deciding
what we consider free enough to put in Debian, and what we don't, do
not emanate from the users but from our constitution and social
contract.
We are not restricting our users, like your remark seems to imply we
are. We are restricting ourselves. There's a big Debian stamp on the
Debian GNU/Linux distribution (red and swirly, of course :-). We mean
something by it, and people have recognised this position. Some even
appreciate it. You don't, but you are not restricted to using the
official Debian CDs. You are welcome to use the contrib and non-free
sections of the ftp servers. They are not endorsed as much by the
Debian Project, but you know they are managed by the same people with
roughly the same amount of care and quality.
> if you have read _diamond age_ (neal stephenson),
I haven't. So, no idea about your last questions.
Roland.
--
Roland Mas
A man walks into a bar.
Bang.
Reply to: