Slashdot Mirror
Acknowledging Great Free Software
banuaba writes: "I am a Windows user. I've tried a couple of distros of Linux, and a BSD or two, but they aren't what I need in an OS. Sometimes in my job and my personal 'life' I need something with a little more power than Windows can give me, and when that time comes, I use Cygwin and have been wholly satisfied and enamored with the product they put out. My question for all you Slashdotters out there is this: I would like to 'reward' the Cygwin people for giving me a great product that fits my needs, but aside from an 'attaboy' email, I don't see how I could compensate them, preferrably financially. I don't have any coding skills of significance, and am not inclined to learn, I'd just like a way to let them know that I like what they've done. In the non-free (as in beer) software world, I would buy their next release. Is there any way to financially help them along? Should I just mail them a check? Would that be insulting to OSS developers, as a general rule? How or would you slashdotters who work on GPL'd code like to be compensated for your time and effort?"
The GNU Project maintains the Cygwin documentation; they have a whole page of ways you can help their efforts to spread Free software, which includes sending money, but quite a few other things, too.
I like Alan Cox's system of CD donations, but I've not met any developers yet who would be offended by a donation in money, bug-fixes, hardware, or positive word of mouth. Does anyone have interesting suggestions for thanking Free software developers?
Immortality? Name your first born "Cygwin."
Andrew
Send them a couple of kegs of beer, and some chicks^H^H^H^H^H^H women to serve it to them, maybe some chicken wings, and some curly fries. Or just give 'em some hooters gift certificates.
I want my rights back. I was actually using them when our government stole them after 9/11.
I'd just like a way to let them know that I like what they've done
Well, let's see, what do you look like in a thong?
Inventor of the LOLbalrog meme.
Simply because I code for the love of it, not for the money. Hell, I live out of a 2-story carboard box, code on an old 386 laptop weighing a hefty 50 pounds, and eat sewer trash for meals. And you know what, that Ferrari I bought during the dot-com fiasco just isn't fun to drive anymore. So please don't send me money, just send a simple chain email around the world 50 times to let me know that I have many, many friends.
(Money an insult? You have got to be kidding me! - or smoking some really good weed)
More OSS developers need to be proactive when it comes to getting $. People shouldn't have to ask this question. I think developers would be surprised if they used a little line that said something like "you don't need to, but it'd be appreciated if you sent a check to... ".
It's amazing what you can get sometimes just by asking. Anybody who's read Feynman should get the humorous reference in the title of this post.
For all intensive purposes, "whom" is no longer a word. That begs the question, "who cares"?
It may be illegal to paint graffiti, but it's still creative work and thus automatically copyrighted by its creator. Could the indelibility of the paint be considered a "technological protection measure"? If so, is strong soap a "circumvention device", and would washing it off the sidewalk thus be illegal under the DMCA?
I think most coders will agree with me when I say, "Send those guys/girls a case of beer!" Nothing spells appreciation as well as B-E-E-R. It doesn't even have to be good beer, it is really the idea that counts...although Guinness isn't ever a bad idea...
but weed is better