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Re: It's Time to Talk About Free Software Again



Gregor Hoffleit wrote:

> Certainly this is what Debian is about, but then, wouldn't it be fine
> if OSI could install a different word for the same thing, targetted at
> the POV of business people ?

There seems to be a myth going around that business people won't like it
if we talk about freedom.  The fact is that the Republican party in the
US (the conservatives, for you non-USers) has been making political hay
by talking to business people about freedom for years.  Business people
*love* freedom!

Forget the software vendors for a second.  Let's go after the software
*users* in the business community.  If we win them over, the vendors
will pretty much *have* to go along.  The *users* have been hearing
vendors talk about "open" this and "open" that for ages, and aren't
impressed by the word "open" anymore.  It's been attached to too many
failures over the years.

I vote for turning the "Op*n S*urce" trademark over to The Open
Group(!), and then forgetting it ever existed.

ESR's supposed insight -- that the business community doesn't want to
hear about freedom -- is simply wrong.  Yes, it is VERY MUCH time to
talk about free software again!

"Do you really want some other company to dictate the way you do
business?  Take back control of your business with free software. 
Because you need the freedom to operate *your* way."

Ok, I'm not an ad man, but you get the idea.  :-)
-- 
Chris Waters   xtifr@dsp.net | I have a truly elegant proof of the
      or    xtifr@debian.org | above, but it is too long to fit into
http://www.dsp.net/xtifr     | this .signature file.


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