Re: DFSG Macromedia Director File?
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>>>>> "Mitch" == Mitch Blevins <mblevin@debian.org> writes:
[SNIP]
Mitch> 1) Anybody know of Free tools that can manipulate
Mitch> Macromedia Director files?
Mitch> 2) Anybody know of a Free(DFSG) plugin that can play it?
Sorry, can't help you there, other than refer you to freshmeat (though
I'd wager this is not something you need to be told).
Mitch> The next questions are meant to create long, drawn-out,
Mitch> off-topic discussions:
Mitch> 3) Is software Free if the tools to manipulate it are not?
Mitch> 4) Is software Free if the supporting software or platform
Mitch> needed to run it is not?
Yes, long, drawn out... can we move this to debian-discuss? (HINT to
the list managers)
Mitch> Number 3 above seems obvious, but I am not sure about
Mitch> number 4. Because VIM for WindowsNT seems Free to me, even
Mitch> though it only runs on a non-Free platform.
In what way is 3 obvious for you? My first reaction is, "No, it's not
free when the tools are not". But on second thought... let's build a
scenario:
You have an app A that is actually a binary data file for some other
app B (like B=MMDirector, A=TypingTuto).
Now app B is non-free. => app A is also non-free.
But what if app B can be cloned as a free app, without any technical
or legal problems (app A does't depend on any proprietary hardware
and the structure of app B (the data file) is not protected by any
copyright or similar).
Come to think of it... we have (or rather, had) such a case before
(I think): what about Java? Without a free Java runtime, are free
Java programs still free?
I'd consider such an pseudo-app non-free as long as no free
interpreter (and manipulator) were being done. The free replacement
would not have to be finished, but in the process of being done.
HTH, BIDI ;-)
Bye, J
- --
Jürgen A. Erhard eMail: jae@ilk.de phone: (GERMANY) 0721 27326
MARS: http://members.tripod.com/~Juergen_Erhard/mars_index.html
SPACE: Above And Beyond (http://www.planetx.com/space:aab)
Win32 has many known work arounds. For example, Linux.
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