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FSF Award for the Advancement of Free Software

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the free-as-in-freedom dept.

bkuhn writes "The FSF has posted a a call for nominations for the 2002 FSF Award for the Advancement of Free Software. Get your nominations in to <award-nominations@gnu.org> by 15 October 2002."

10 of 196 comments (clear)

  1. Re:Gates by packeteer · · Score: 3, Insightful

    haha

    I dont know if this is a troll but i sure hope not. I think this is true that Bill Gates is the reason for a lot opf the growth of free software. Microsoft's crappy quality is about 80% of the reason for my switch to Linux. Once i started learning about free software i stuck with it more but really its MS that pushed me over the "hump" of switching away from windows.

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  2. Blender! by The_Dougster · · Score: 3, Insightful

    The Blender Foundation has done an unprecedented thing by raising so much cash to bring Blender into the Free Software Fold. I'm not aware of any program in the free software base which is so sophisticated as a 3d modeler. I think they are pioneers and should be lauded for their efforts!

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  3. Gene Kan by brilliant-mistake · · Score: 2, Insightful

    How about a posthumous nomination for Gene Kan for his work on Gnutella?

  4. Shouldn't this be... by corrosiv · · Score: 4, Insightful


    The GNU Award for the Advancement of GNU Software?

    Define "free" however you like, but I hate hearing "free" when it means GNU. If they want to be so pickey about defining all their terms, they should stop leaning on the ambiguity that the term "free" gives them. The neophyte immediately understands free to be free beer. GNU is exploiting that, since 6 pages of legalese in the GPL doesn't add up to free beer OR free speech.

    1. Re:Shouldn't this be... by Idarubicin · · Score: 3, Insightful
      The neophyte immediately understands free to be free beer. GNU is exploiting that, since 6 pages of legalese in the GPL doesn't add up to free beer OR free speech.

      But it is free like beer. You can take it, and you can use it yourself, and it doesn't cost you a penny. Actually, it's better than beer, because you can redistribute GPL'ed code as long as you follow the modest licensing provisions. Most people prefer it if you don't give them your recycled beer.

      As far as 'legalese' goes, the GPL certainly isn't a painful read, and it's pretty unambiguous in its meaning. I honestly cannot think of any other licensing terms -- or any sort of contract in general -- that is as clearly stated.

      Lastly, you're welcome to ignore the GPL if you want to. You fall back on the regular protections afforded by copyright law, which most people are familiar with. (They may not pay attention, but they understand the concept.) You can have this software, you can use it for free, but you can't then make copies and give them away. Replace 'software' with 'book' in the preceding sentence to see what I mean.

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    2. Re:Shouldn't this be... by corrosiv · · Score: 2, Insightful

      I'm not a nitpicking pundit. I'm a user of free software that GNU doesn't consider to be "free". The licenses page on gnu.org does not mention X11 or BSD, and Stallman (as GNU spokesman) has vocally stated that these are not "free" software.

      GNU refuses to respect other points of view on this subject (and to think that one of their supposed goals is collaborative learning). I am grateful for the work that has gone into "free" software - I just oppose the use of the term "free".

      Reading the award page (http://www.gnu.org/award/2002/2002.html) I found a very interesting quote:

      We want to give this award to a person who has made a great contribution to the progress and development of Free Software (free as in freedom as defined in the Free Software Definition)

      So you see, this IS a GNU award, because it is not given to proponents of free software, but to proponents of GNU software.

  5. I nominate... by Maniakes · · Score: 2, Insightful

    ...This guy

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  6. Debian Project by Florian · · Score: 5, Insightful
    I couldn't think of a project that has done more for the advancement of free software (in practical terms) than Debian. The years of continuous good work seem to pay off now. While RedHat is popular among corporate customers, Mandrake (and, in Europe: SuSE) among newbie users and people who boot into GNU/Linux only occasionally, it seems as if Debian is becoming the de facto standard distribution of non-corporate advanced users (who typically pick Debian as their second distribution and then stick with it). As a genuinely free distribution, Debian is also much appreciated in education; my university, for example, hosts its own Debian FTP mirror.

    While Debian's Free Software-only politics was controversial some years ago - anyone remember the ugly term "Debian Nazi"? -, it no longer seems so due to DMCA, patenting, and perversions of copyright. Debian has done invaluable work for the Free Software community by thoroughly reviewing the licensing of the software it ships, freeing users from the hassle to become legal experts. Debian users enjoy both the technical excellence and the legal safety of running Debian "main".

    It would be good if the FSF Award were given to Debian to finance work on the new Debian installer. This is the last showstopper piece which prevents massive newbie user adoption of this distribution.

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  7. I nominate... by RadioheadKid · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Chris "Monty" Montgomery the mastermind behind Ogg Vorbis and cdparanoia.

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    "Karma can only be portioned out by the cosmos." -Homer Simpson
  8. John Carmack by fault0 · · Score: 4, Insightful

    I've already nominated someone, but anyone want to nominate John Carmack?

    He's released much of id's older under the GPL, most recently Quake2.

    I think he gives a good balance between making money in the commercial sector and releasing code for people to learn and develop from. When a game engine is no longer profitable, he releases it. I think this should serve as a model to other companies to release the code for their old software/abandonware, especially in games.