UnitedLinux and "open source"

[Andy Tai]

"Free software" means a well defined set of software. 
Whatever you define is not relevant, if it is not
compatible with the well accepted meanings of the
community.  Software libre, software livre, Tzi4-Yu2
Ran3-Ti3, etc., all are names for the same thing in
different languages of the world.  The fact that you
do not speak Spanish, etc., is not a valid
justification for attacks on the term "Free (libre)
software" or the refusal to use it, or the claim that
"OSI certification" is a sufficient substitution for
Free Software. The concept is independent of the
weakness of the English language lacking a clear term
for "libre."

In fact, the English-speaking population should be
responsible for adapting a word into the language if
no sufficient words exist at the present.  English
borrowed from other languages throughout history, why
cannot it do so again?   There is really no reason the
rest of the world should suffer the confusion over
"Free Software" vs. "Open Source" just because of
English.
 
--- Russell Nelson <nelson at crynwr.com> wrote:
> John Cowan writes:
>  > The above program is not free software: see
>  >
>
http://www.gnu.org/licenses/license-list.html#ArtisticLicense
> .
> 
> You are presuming two things:
>   1) that a lack of acceptance is the same thing as
> rejection, and
>   2) that RMS defines "free software".  The term was
> in wide use
>      before RMS came along.
> 
> Anybody can call anything free software.  Microsoft
> gives away free
> software (and calls it such).  "Free software" is
> essentially
> meaningless, which is why OSI Certification of Open
> Source Software
> exists.
> 
> Here's what I call free software:
...
> 
> Please note that the GPLv2 does not provide all
> those freedoms.  In my
> book, the GPLv2 isn't a free software license, and
> the GPLv3 that I've
> seen is even less of a free software license.
> 
> -- 
> -russ nelson              http://russnelson.com | 
> Crynwr sells support for free software  | PGPok | 
> 

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