[ Date Index ] [ Thread Index ] [ <= Previous by date / thread ] [ Next by date / thread => ]
Neil, Very well spoken (or written). Jon On 25/03/07, Neil Williams <linux@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote: > On Sun, 25 Mar 2007 16:04:11 +0100 > "Ben Goodger" <goodgerster@xxxxxxxxx> wrote: > > > On 3/25/07, Matt Lee <mattl@xxxxxxx> wrote: > > > > > > Ben Goodger wrote: > > > > > > > How about freedom of choice? > > > > > > To speak of the freedom to take away the freedoms of others is > > > absurd. > > > > > > Ubuntu provides users the freedom to more > > easily limit their own freedom as they see fit. > > Ben, you're talking about freedom as it relates to you, today. > > Matt is talking about the implications for tomorrow. > > If free software is not provided to replace all proprietary code, the > free software users of tomorrow do not have the freedom to choose free > software - take that one stage further and if proprietary code usurps > free software today, it REMOVES freedom from tomorrow's users - they > won't have access to the free alternative because it ended up with bit > rot from too little usage. Proprietary code that is promoted over and > above a free software alternative takes freedom away from those who > want to use the free alternative in the future because the free > alternative might not develop fully. > > Please, Ben, think of tomorrow's users as well as the needs of today. > What suits you today could come back to haunt you tomorrow. > > It is better to use a LESS functional free software alternative TODAY > in the hope of improving it, than to use a proprietary version today > and pay lip service to the needs of others in the future. > > You cannot realistically hope to improve the free software alternative > if you don't even use it and using a proprietary version only > encourages the propagation of that proprietary version. > > A little sacrifice today is not a lot to ask. > > > Yes, and in doing so provide their users with more freedom of choice. > > I don't agree with promoting opera, because it's crap, but if a user > > wants it then it should be provided as neatly as possible. > > Now that there are very strong free software alternatives, Opera is > less of a problem but, in general, promoting the proprietary is bad > news for the free alternative. > > -- > > > Neil Williams > ============= > http://www.data-freedom.org/ > http://www.nosoftwarepatents.com/ > http://www.linux.codehelp.co.uk/ > > > -- > The Mailing List for the Devon & Cornwall LUG > http://mailman.dclug.org.uk/listinfo/list > FAQ: http://www.dcglug.org.uk/linux_adm/list-faq.html > > > -- The Mailing List for the Devon & Cornwall LUG http://mailman.dclug.org.uk/listinfo/list FAQ: http://www.dcglug.org.uk/linux_adm/list-faq.html