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Affero's Hack-a-Thon
Henri Poole writes "I've got friends who ride their bikes for a week and get me and others to donate $100 to their cause. Spending more time on lists then roads, we've set up an analogous service for Free Software and Open Source projects. Substitute the physical sweat with a good hack, and you'll see the match. After you save your next newbie from tech-hell, just ask them to help your cause. In Lessig's blog, he writes "If there's one thing I've learned from watching, and tinkering, in this web-log space, it is that the many tiny brushstrokes of thousands paints more and more powerfully than the blast of even the most important and powerful papers...As I indicate on my Affero page, I count FSF and EFF as the two key players to support." And if you don't think you can make a difference, do this math: A $1 donation to the FSF for every user of GNU/Linux would increase their budget by 30 fold."
Wow, I didn't know Slashdot was in the business of giving away free advertising... Good to know!
You're new here, aren't you?
slashdot!=valid HTML
Yeah, I could give my money to these people who will fight the scourge of the corporate world...or I can make a twenty minute phone call!
Wait, i'm reading Slashdot, that means that I don't have anyone to call, so i'll just give my buck to the EFF instead of Terry Bradshaw.
I don't keep a lid on my coffee so when I walk around I look busy -me
and I thought MY posts were really confusing...
Since when has this country used intellectual elite as a pejorative term?
Can you verify that your "earnings" are really forwarded to the cause you've selected?
If so, how?
Hemos is still hungover from CmdrTaco's wedding.
The best education consists in immunizing people against systematic attempts at education. - Paul Feyerabend
Ummm, not that you should be expected to read your own site before submitting a story about it but -- which is it? Donations for hacking or in appreciation for tech support? The site is entirely focused on the latter and your writeup seems to be half about that and half something entirely different.
What I'm listening to now on Pandora...
Isn't he a former MandrakeSoft CEO who has been thanked from Mandrake 18 months ago for having tried to convert the Linux company into a e-learning company?
;-)
As it seems Poole didn't know anything about Free Software when he joined, it's great to see the months he spent with the Mandrakians converted him to Free Software anyway! Free Software: a real virus
I ride my bike every day, and you're telling me I can get money for it?
I am wary of handing my bank details out over the internet, so if you are genuine please contact Mr.Abiola Williams at the Bank of Nigeria. He has all my account numbers.
:wq
User: "So what do you want for this?"
Tech: "If you find my service useful, please consider contributing $25 to blah blah blah" (at this point user has tuned tech out)
User: (Internal monologue) "He doesn't want my money, apparently. Very well. I shall buy bread and circuses. Huzzah!"
Maybe it would be better just to take their money and donate it for them. =)
Comment removed based on user account deletion
1. Dude on bike 2. ?????? 3. Profit!!! 4. plea for money 5. ??????? 7. EFF and FSF Budget increases 30 fold!
Since when has this country used intellectual elite as a pejorative term?
For ever user of GNU/Linux? I don't think RMS has that kind of money.
..There's a-dooin's a-transpirin'
As a college student who has a stomach to fill, rent to pay, and an education to complete, making monetary contributions really isn't an option. Hell, if I had money to spare, I wouldn't be trying to sell thongs (see sig).
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Open Source Shirts
I guess they weren't kidding when they said not free as in beer.
Vote for Pedro
Being able to copy and share files, use strong encryption, etc are nice. But lets also try to keep our "real life" rights as well, and donate to the ACLU along with the EFF!
autopr0n is like, down and stuff.
Maybe the FSF could get funds by having everyone who uses one of their products give them a dollar.
Oh, wait...
There is.
Though the Institute for Justice is mostly into economic liberty (breaking government-sanctioned monopolies), protecting homeowners from eminent domain abuse (so the govt. can't force you to sell your property at whatever price so their favorite big developer can have a bigger parking lot), and defending school choice. That said, they're very good at what they do.
I use Redhat Linux 8.1!
Who should I donate to then?
___
In all seriousness, I still have not seen a cogent argument that supports "if we use free software, we must support the ideals of free software," and it's corellary, "If we use free software, we must support Dick Stallman."
As for paying people for doing tech support in newsgroups and mailing lists (Ob-topic), I keep on thinking it makes someone little more than a hi-tech waiter. It also makes people more demanding. "I won't pay if you don't handhold me through this" when "pay" is akin to 5 bucks.
I always wondered how a 900 number would work for answering questions... Perhaps an 800 number that asked for the credit card number would work better. That way, people aren't paying to wait on hold...