Re: should these be reworded?
On Tue, Jul 29, 2008 at 04:45:14PM +1000, Javier Candeira wrote:
> Kevin Mark wrote:
> > On Thu, Jul 24, 2008 at 11:52:19PM -0700, Steve Langasek wrote:
> >> On Thu, Jul 24, 2008 at 03:17:21PM -0400, Kevin Mark wrote:
> >>> "Our priority is our users" might have originally been "Our priority is
> >>> our male users",
> >> Put your hands in the air and step away from the crack pipe.
> >>
> >>> Could a suggestion to: "make your software more inclusive of different
> >>> users based upon gender, race, etc. when possible" sound too forcefull?
> >> Yes. For best results, send patches.
> >
> > At least i got a few useful replys before steve came by with his usual
> > comments.
>
> Oh, but I think that's completely fair. If a work is free, why should the
> developer be working for you, when anyone could change it?
I do not believe I made a statement suggesting someone force anyone. I
try to appreciate the volunteer nature of free software communities. I
would only like people to 'consider' the effect that their work can have
in fostering a wider view of humans beyond contentional steriotypes or
maybe just providing options that allow the inclusion of
non-white-males.
>Do you write to publishers asking that Madame Bovary or Anna Karenina
>be changed into men, or Quijote or Hamlet be changed into women? They
>could well do it, you know, the text is in the public domain. But so
>could you, and publish it yourself (or try to convince them to publish
>it).
Public domain works could be remixed if someone wished and people
have created new version of works with changes to bring freshness to the
work or to make other points. Just recently in New York there was a
version of 'Cat on a hot tin roof' with an all African-American cast, and it got
wonderful reviews. But I am limited my question to Free Software and
more specifically ones that have graphics that show avatars or
representation of beings. And software is a place where things are far
more easily changed than with a real world book publisher and the cost
is only in terms of the software designers desire to alter perception.
>
> I keep being told that sending patches is a better way to gain an upstream's
> heart than asking for features. This should apply to games characters'
> genders as much as to anything else.
If I was able to write patches of Debian quality, I'd consider doing so.
But I only wish the developer to consider using their talent to make an
impact beyond just make a program, to strech their imagination and
consider some user who only sees one type of game character and make
them think about a world where there is diversity and do their coding to
enable that kind of freedom.
>
> On a side note, but wholly on topic in this thread, there are fabulous games
> with radically well-portrayed women as main characters. Not many, but let me
> cite two: Beyond Good and Evil's Jade is a green-haired teenager saving the
> world (and his uncle, who is a pig: don't ask). Dino Crisis portrays a
> female special forces operative whose proportions do not look enhanced with
> a bicycle pump; she looks... human.
>
> Beyond Good and Evil is now cheap-ish, and runs reasonably well on wine!
> (after tweaking).
> http://appdb.winehq.org/objectManager.php?sClass=version&iId=7929
>
> Also, the first two Tomb Raider games were fantastic games, said it once
> already, but I will repeat it as much as it needs. The first one is now
> being remade with more modern tech, and I plan to play it again.
>
> J
>
Thanks for the game tips.
Cheers,
K
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