Re: Debian Free Software (FSF) or Open Source? (was Re; non-cd...)
Much of this discussion has been more than adequately addressed by Manoj.
Thanks!
There are three points here that I would like to speak to:
On Sun, 28 Jun 1998, Kevin Atkinson wrote:
> I want a system that is free but not completly Open Source...
>
What "you" want, you will have to work for. We here at Debian don't do
that, but we are very happy to have our distribution used as a base on
which to build your "semi-proprietary" distribution. We do that by only
providing truely free software, so that when you use it for your
proprietary system, you will not have your profits sued away from you
because you used something that was "almost" free.
> And I in now way trying to tell you they you don't know what free
> software is. I am trying to say that I think that the debian critical
> for what to include on the official CD is to limiting and will not allow
> free software that is not based on truly free software never to become
> an "official" part of Debian.
>
No, you are telling us that you don't know what Free Software is.
"free software that is not based on truly free software" is DEFINED by the
DFSG as "not free". We put this stuff in contrib, and support it for those
folks who "need" it, completely within the guidlines of the DFSG. We will
never include it in main, because we are here to protect the freedom of
our end users, and putting such software into main would not do that.
> Truly I think Debian should be a good noncommercial distribution which
> included stuff that may not be truly Open Source but free enough, not an
> Open Source distribution of linux. However it is clear that not many
> other people want that.
>
Those of us who have been with the group for any length of time, have
heard this from "newbees" over and over. The only good that comes from
these discussions is a re-affirmation of our position, which helps to
educate those "relative newbees" who haven't yet seen the whole picture.
I support "Open Source" only to the extent that it represents Free
Software. Personally I don't use any other term to refer to such software
than "Free Software". The "Open xxx" phrase is more palitable to market
types, hense its use by Microsoft and others who, even the casual
observer, you would be hard pressed to view as "Free".
"may not be truely Open Source but free enough" sounds like "almost
pregnant" to me.
You are either free, or you arent'. All discussion of "almost free
software" is the camel trying to get his nose into the tent. (Arab
proverb: If you let your camel get his nose into the tent, you will find
yourself sleeping out in the cold sand.)
Unlike several others, I will choose a more positive way to make the
statement of my unwavering support of Free Software:
I will support the freedom of software with my live body, and my
contributions to that freedom. What you ask does nothing to protect the
freedoms I am struggling for, and no one will force me to support such an
undermining of my freedoms.
Debian is here to support that freedom. That is one of the primary reasons
I am here to support Debian.
Luck,
Dwarf
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