On Sun, Jun 28, 1998 at 03:04:01AM -0700, Steve Lamb wrote:
> On 28 Jun 1998 03:48:20 -0500, Manoj Srivastava wrote:
> > You just don't get it, do you?
> I do get it, better than you do.
...and so on.
Debian's about free software. Free as in Open Source. Free as in the
Debian Free Software Guidelines. Free as in you can copy it, sell it,
change it, and do just about anything you might reasonably want with it.
Debian's also about making the best operating system out there. One that
does everything just about anyone might want it to. One that whips the
pants of anything else out there. One that Just Plain Kicks Butt.
Debian's also about hacking around on computers which a bunch of other
cool people who share common goals. Common goals like making free software
more common, or making Unix, Linux, or computing in general better. It's
about wasting time on IRC, calling people names in arguments that your
average J. Random Pedestrian wouldn't understand more than five words of.
Debian's about a few other things as well, but the above three are why
I'm here, and I feel fairly safe in asserting that they cater for the
vast majority of everyone else too.
Now this may just be me -- I'm sure it isn't, but it nevertheless might be
-- but I don't see why we're discussing compromising one of our goals to
further another. We've got over 300 people actively maintaining packages
for Debian, we've got huge bunches of people turning purple holding their
breath for hamm to be officially released, we'll apparently be the base
of the Linux Standard Base, and we've even got a high degree of comraderie
with both RedHat and the FSF.
So forgive me if I think it's pretty moronic to be discussing compromising
our goals, idealistic and unachievable as they may appear, when we're
already well on our way to achieving them.
If people would like to suggest ways in which we can better meet our
goals, whether becoming more "free", "better" or both, then please, feel
free to start a thread, but if all you've got to say is "you're heading
down the wrong track", then please, don't. You're free to believe it,
but, quite frankly, we don't.
Cheers,
aj
--
Anthony Towns <aj@humbug.org.au> <http://azure.humbug.org.au/~aj/>
I don't speak for anyone save myself. PGP encrypted mail preferred.
``It's not a vision, or a fear. It's just a thought.''
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