Re: General Resolution: Removing non-free
On Thu, Jun 08, 2000 at 03:47:10AM -0400, Thomas Bushnell, BSG wrote:
> > People who release non-DFSG software are not enemies of Debian (unless
> > they declare themselves to be or act in a similiar manner). Please
> > re-read the social contract, point 5. Debian does not include non-DFSG
> > software, but we configure it and have it available for users to obtain
> > conveniently for those who choose this, and it is a choice.
>
> Yes, it is a choice, and the users who use it and the Debian
> developers who package it are not enemies but usually friends. I
> myself am a user of some packages from non-free.
>
> But the software companies who produce these packages, sometimes in
> direct competition with free software, are our enemies.
I'd really like to see a stat on how many packages in non-free are actually
produced by a commercial entity; I'd be willing to wager that it's less than
10% of all of non-free. Most of the *useful* packages in non-free are
almost-free, that is, they are bound by one particular restriction that
makes them incompatible with the DFSG. I can name a few --
pine
tripwire
satan
qmail (and pretty much all other djbware)
cyrus
unzip
unarj
mysql
The propnents of this measure are attempting to "spin" this into a
"End commercial software vendors' free ride", argument when, except for
a few packages, this is more a "we don't like your license, get the fuck out"
measure.
--Adam
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