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Ask Bruce Perens About Linux and Open Source
A lot is going on these days, ranging from the endlessly amusing SCO soap opera to plenty of mostly positive news about Linux and Open Source adoption by both corporate and government users, not to mention an increasing number of commercial applications being ported to Linux. And, of course, LinuxWorld is right around the corner. Bruce Perens is certainly as appropriate a person as any to help us get a handle on the current (and possibly future) state of Linux and Open Source. We'll send him 10 of the highest moderated questions, and post his answers as soon as he gets them back to us. As usual, one question per post, please, and don't bother asking questions that can easily be answered with a couple of minutes' worth of online research.
What do you feel is the greatest threat to the open source movement? Is the threat corporate, legal, self-inflicted, or a mixture of both?
(Oh, and FP.)
Bash script for FP whores
How did you feel when they changed yourt name from "Bruce Perens" to "David Perens" in the TV series? And what are your opinions of the new Ang Lee movie?
Are you aware of any background moves by the major players in this farce that could bring a speedy resolution? Or, do you have any hopes for a speedy resolution?
Leandro Guimarães Faria Corcete DUTRA
DA, DBA, SysAdmin, Data Modeller
GNU Project, Debian GNU/Lin
What is the future of SCO Linux Licensing. Will large corporation fall for it, just to be on the safe side? Or are the corporation going to avoid using linux, till the final outcome of the saga.
Consensus is good, but informed dictatorship is better
In all honesty, what is the best overall desktop operating system at this time, and what do you think will be the best overall desktop operating system in a year? Two years? Five years?
Is open source going to go in the direction determined by M$, or is it going to risk striking out in a brave, new direction?
Not trolling!
Are you the real Bruce Perens?
Isn't Mr Perens a slashdot regular himself or something? Wouldn't that more or less defeat the whole purpose of holding a slashdot interview, then send him the question he can read himself and then making him answer them while he could have answered them by just replying?
Hate me!
In recent weeks, we've seen a concerted attack of FUD regarding open source in general but Linux in particular; all signs point to this being but the first in a series of new battles. I think it's been too easy for a lot of people to scoff at SCO's brazen and seemingly suicidal behavior, mistaking what is in fact a serious threat.
With that in mind, what are some ways you think open source/free software users and organizations can counter these attacks and, much more importantly, attack back?
I watched C-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhauser gate.
If Linux development is supremely messed up by SCO, do you see the BSDs picking up, and taking over where Linux once did?
The political/ethical/moral spin that everyone wants to put on open source adds an unnessesary, IMO, emotional baggage in a field that should be directed by logic and the right tool for the job.
We see softwares of various levels of Free shoehorned into tasks they werent created for, or arent suitable for.
When will software choices be made by virtue of technical merit, and not political views?
I don't need no instructions to know how to rock!!!!
Bruce,
A while ago IIRC you cancelled plans to demonstrate a technology which would have run afowel of the DMCA in defference to the wishes of your then-employer HP. Now that you are no longer with HP, do you plan to go ahead with it?
I'm not trying to goad you on, mind you. Breaking the law is a serious business and if you have reconsidered, I certainly won't think any less of you.
I don't know half of you half as well as I should like, and I like less than half of you half as well as you deserve. BB
Putting the current SCO thing aside, what do you think about software producer liability? Microsoft recently made a big deal about increasing how much they'll "protect" their customers, but that's mostly a PR stunt. Do you think that there will be a major court case incolving IP that "slips" into software, and that it might change people's trust in Open Source software?
Moderation: Put your hand inside the puppet head!
What do you think is the biggest hinderance to open source adoption at this point? Is it the lack of a central structure for support (e.g. people seeking support for Microsoft products go to Microsoft, a single solid entity as opposed to numerous communities and organizations of open source), or is it simply because there are too many choices out there? Do you think open source will eventually become organized enough to have a single representation, such that there is one massive repository of information for all to use?
Seriously. Because we can't. That thing's demented.
Based on the ability of most users out there, especially in the corporate world (I work in tech support). Is there any chance of Linux EVER replacing Windows on the desktop?
Sure, to slashdotters, we all know what it means, but how would you explain the Open Source movement to someone that isn't so technically inclined?
What would you tell them that would, say, change from Linux to Windows?
I'm not the devil.. just his advocate.
I have been wondering for a while how sustainable open source is. It seems like there is a great open source solution for every possible need: OS, Web Server, database, etc. If these tools get widely adopted, and push the commercial products out of the market, will they be shooting themselves in the foot by making many, many developers unemployed, thereby destroying their own developer base? Or do you see a situation where open and closed (ie free and for-profit) software exist in equilibrium?
This post cannot be rebroadcast without the express written constent of Major League Baseball.
Bruce, we all know you're very active on the political side of hacking, and we also know that as a community, hackers aren't especially active. Given that a hacker who reads Slashdot cannot fail to be aware of the many issues that we face, and their gravity, what do you think hackers and geeks as individuals can do to be useful, and as a related question, how do you think the hacker community can best respond to the threats of the DMCA, EUCD, copy protected CDs, Palladium, and other digital rights issues?
What are your favorite smaller open-source projects that not everyone may have heard of, that you feel should be better known?
"Luck is the residue of design" -- Branch Rickey
Are there any questions you think people should be asking you, that they never do?
I believe that you can do well at advocating the use of open source software. So, how can it be done?
In your honest opinion what is the best overall Linux distro out there.
With regard to Apple and their adoption of open source, do you think that their contributions to open source projects have been generally one-way (i.e. only Apple benefits) or two-way (everyone benefits)? Do you think they should be more open, or are you happy with how they currently contribute to open source projects?
Slashdot's first reaction to VMware
Hi Bruce,
could you please tell us a bit about your experience working with HP? I am interested if you were able to share your views on open source with the HP execs. What were their thoughts about it?
Do you see open source becoming more accepted by large corporations or will it remain largly popular with the developer/hobby crowd?
Hi Bruce:
Recently Open Group ask to you for develop one Open Source Strategy. Which others groups/enterprise do you like/wish to contact you for similar task?
Regards,
-Bryam
This is part of a continuing pattern that I've noticed. The major corporate entites which are embracing Linux aren't normally leaving some variant of Windows behind but instead are dropping Unix. The stranglehold Microsoft has on Office and the problems introduced by switching from Windows to Linux (in terms of a possible inability to access old files) is really hurting Linux in the War against Windows. But what these companies need to realize is that they can convert their old files into plain text files, using the very version of Office which is trying to tie them into an ugprade cycle of doom, using some simple batch scripts. This would be quite a chore, obviously - but in the long run companies would save. I don't know why this solution isn't being offered to companies. From what I understand, many companies are hesitant to drop Windows for this very reason: loss of access to old files. But again, Bill Gates doesn't really lose on this one. Linux gains some but not in the area where I'd like to see it.
What are your feelings about SCO offering licenses for linux? Do you feel this opens SCO up to copyright violations of the linux kernel programers work?
Where do you see Linux in 10 years? Will it be a completely ubiquitious OS, used on every computer? Will it just dominate one market? Will it fade away? Or will it be outlawed? There are people who will have you believe any one of these scenarios; which do you think is most likely, and why?
________________________________________________
suwain_2
How do you see the future of OSS development affecting Microsoft? Do you have any predicions on how they will tailor marketing, propoganda, FUD, what have you? I personaly see OSS taking off in both the Desktop and Server market and I'm very curious as to how you think MS will react? This is not a troll in any way. I'm very interested in how the future or the Tech industry is going to play out.
"Reality is a crutch for people who can't handle drugs" - George Bernard Shaw (1856 - 1950)
don't bother asking questions that can easily be answered with a couple of minutes' worth of online research.
This Roblimo character must be new around here.
will you stand up?
Are you the real Bruce Perens? What's your /. UID?
Open source really turns the business of software upside-down. Some open source-related companies have done well, others have not. In your opinion, which business models are the most appropriate?
How do I figure the cost basis of stock that has split, giving me more of the same stock, so I can figure my capital gain (or loss) on the sale of the stock?
Seriously, there are better tools.
apt-get is fast and easy.
There are many nice front ends for it, makes installation a snap.
Bruce,
I note that the companies that you say deserve praise for their efforts, Apple and IBM, are both hardware companies that in effect happen to produce software. In both cases, they make far more money from their hardware than they do software, so in effect they have less to lose by giving an open source license a shot, but have much to gain in the form of increased sales of hardware.
But what about companies that are primarily in software? How do you see them making money off of open source, when that is after all their main motive--earning cash? In other words, why buy an open source package when you can download or copy it for free? Finally, are there any large "traditional" software companies (ones from before open source became a buzzword) that you see making commendable moves like IBM and Apple?
Best regards, JE (posting anon from work)
What's your opinion of the Linux scene revolving around Microsoft's Xbox?
I recently learned that you are a ham radio operator. I think both the open source community and ham community share very similar views on most issues. Do you see any ways the two communities can benefit each other?
There is no reasonable defense against an idiot with an agenda
:wq
What incentive do you think GNU/Linux and other free software offerings give these entities to use free software? What functionality does it enhance in practical terms for both governments and corporations? (and security doesn't count; it's not like the penguin is devoid of known holes, and under a whole lot less scrutiny than Windows)
And finally, if the functionality/effectiveness differences between free and closed OSs really are as minor as they seem at first corporate glance, what path do you think the Open Source community should take in regards to making free software distinctive and superior?
All the best,
~Tris.
PS (to all slashdot flamewar-starters) -- No, I don't like Windows. Yes, Linux might well be the second coming (ra ra ra, join the hurd (hoho mildly clever)). It's for the sake of argumentation and making a point. Now, go ahead and subject me to the Spanish-Linux Inquisition
Slashdope 1: Do you worship only one Linux?
Slashdope 2: You mean GNU/Linux!
Slashdope 1: Erm... yes. Well, do you?
Me: I suppose so.
Slashdope 1: Not good enough! Send him to the --- comfy chair!
-----[0_o]-----
We are not amused.
It would seem that hardware manufacturers taking (financial) interest in open source may be the force we need to counter-balance entrenched Big Software. Econ 101 supports this idea, as lowering the total cost of owning computers should result in more being sold. Having IBM and HP (maybe Sun?--they seem conflicted) on board is great, but there are a lot of hardware companies that still don't get it. Obviously, companies like Intel and AMD and ATI and NVidia have to weigh the benefits of actively (and monetarily) supporting Linux and other open source against the problems it might cause in their current business arrangements (read: don't want to piss off Micrsoft).
The question(s): Do you think their current lukewarm (at best) support represents enlightened self-interest, or are they missing the boat? Is there anything the community can do to improve the returns for companies that do jump on the bandwagon?
While I think we all know how absurd SCO's claims are, suppose they win. Where will Linux go? Overseas? /dev/null? Will it be rewritten from scratch? Or will people simply buy licenses willingly?
________________________________________________
suwain_2
Are you the real Bruce Perens?
won't the real bruce perens please stand up
sulli
RTFJ.
What do you think the net influence of Apple's OS-10 is on Linux?
There are reports of people fleeing Linux to OS 10 because they still get *NIX but with a more easily usable/configurable software suite, but on the other hand, Apple's contributing to open source, manufacturing another hardware platform for Linux, and generally providing another alternative to Redmond.
So, is the competition good for Linux, or not so much?
Can anyone tell me how to set my sig on Slashdot?
I recall reading an article that was posted on Freshmeat that said that the open source development community should only work on developing the more popular open source software projects. It was said that the projects on sites like Sourceforge with low activity levels should just be abandoned so that open source software that stands out will be get the most attention and so it will be more likely to be considered superior. What is your opinion on this? Do you think the Open Source Community should rally behind the big projects?
You're here on Slashdot where, as you know, you have the opportunity to tell much of the community what to do. Here's your chance to direct us. :)
I see cross-licensing as the product of a broken patent system - if patents were given out only for truly original and non-obvious inventions, cross-licensing would be very rare. But along with the litigation that necessitates it, it's a fact of life. How much of a threat to GNU/Linux do you think the inability to cross-license presents, and do you think it might create a barrier to its use?
Are there any questions you think people should be asking you, that they never do?
"Yes."
Next question.
- bperens
How has the open source movement been affected by the current economy, in particular by the outsourcing of development jobs overseas?
How do you feel about mares? :)
How is the progress in the Red Hat based Debian replacement you said you were creating when you flamed Debian?
With the current trends of Linux adoptation and with opensource software getting better and more reliable all the time, when will propietary and commercial software become a thing of the past?
Given that ESR seems to be a sellout (eg - look at his stint on the VA Linux board of directors), you seem to be the more credible.
Why haven't you spoken out against the gnaa?
Bruce:
You've surely noted that others are indirectly jumping on the Linux FUD wind blowing out of SCO.
Sun's McNealy, for one, has been insinuating that Linux is a risky proposition (compared to the clearly legally-unencumbered Solaris UNIX which Sun owns outright). At first, this just seemed like slams against IBM (the old: my UNIX is better than your flawed UNIX), but Sun's AIX attacks seem to have given way to suggestions that Linux and Linux users are endangered by the SCO situation.
Have Slashdotters and the Linux community generally given Sun a free ride on this and who else do you think have been shameless opportunists here? Who else deserves some of the vilification that SCO is getting?
Suppose I work at Microsoft designing Outlook, and then dabble in programming for Evolution when I'm at home. What's to stop me from thinking I'm doing the OSS community a favor and slipping some of the newest Outlook code into KMail to give it a new feature?
Sure, I'd be legally liable if MS found out I did it, especially if it was deliberate. But what should/can be done by OSS project leads to ensure that all code others contribute is entirely legal?
________________________________________________
suwain_2
On the one hand, you say:
Taco didn't show us his newly wed bride photos
Then you turn around and say:
there were only photographs of him alone or with Michael
"Kathleen Fent" is actually Michael Sims in drag and not some buck-toothed skank as we were led to believe.
Is there a lack of intelligent thinking in the world today? People suing for preexisting techniques, Patent Office weenies who have NO CLUE, folks trying to bring socialogically and technonogically backwards people into the mainstream. Where are the world's priorities? If I used a crowbar made, from the the pure metallic state of Linux, could I pry the world's collective head from their ass? Or need I quote the goatse URL for relevance?
Do you agree with this analysis? And if so, how does the Open Source community combat this?
Thanks, Tom
My question is more aobut the OpenSource dev process....
Recently there has been further baby steps by Sun moving the Java API-JSR process towards theOpenSource appraoch..some say by dragging sun by the hair every step of the way..
What can a Language standardization and improvement process learn from OpenSource and Linux in the software dev process?
Don't Tread on OpenSource
I'm a cop, you idiot!
You lack discipline!
Ok. I buy a copy of a copyrighted work. Later on I hear that the distribution thereof infringed on someone's intellectual rights, be it, trademarks, copyrights, patents, first-sale contracts, trade secrets, whatever. Am I liable? (I am explicitly not referring to SCO/IBM).
Now the second case. I buy a copy of a copyrighted work for which I know or reasonably could have known that the distribution thereof infringes on someone's intellectual rights. Does it change anything to your answer to the first question, from the point of view of the receiver of such copyrighted work?
Is there any concept in law that does something about the legal uncertainty related to these cascading liabilities? I mean, all of this could develop in a propensity not to buy or otherwise acquire any copyrighted works at all -- which would defeat the object of copyrights in the first place.
In which market sectors is closed source more applicible then open source?
Note: I'm not talking about the low/mid/high range business, I'm talking about actual market sectors.
When will we see REAL support for Linux on the desktop? The Kernel is ready, the desktops are ready, the distros are ready, we have tons of apps. Only thing missing is real support from the OEM's. Sure, they support Linux on the servers, but few offer Linux-desktops. And those who do have very limited selection and they are hidden deep deep. No OEM pushes Linux on the desktop, not even IBM.
Do you see any change occurring in this space? At what pace can we hope to have some REAL support for the Linux-desktop? I dream for the day when Linux will be the default OS OEM's offer with Windows being the optional extra.
Lesbian Nazi Hookers Abducted by UFOs and Forced Into Weight Loss Programs - -all next week on Town Talk.
What do you think they should be more likely to be aware of many of its more popular sites. It can hardly be coincidence that the French are notorious racists. This type is linguistic discrimination is widespread throughout the Open Source culture, lampooned by many of its more popular sites. It is also a fact that Linux has some significant problem also know that as a "positive association". Because the image of Linux as the FreeBSD that you say deserve praise for their efforts, Apple and IBM, are both hardware companies that still don't get it. Obviously, companies like Intel and AMD and ATI and NVidia have to remind you that transmitting subliminal messages is banned in the future, Bugs and security problems are big issues today because of economic reasons. Many companies are indeed adopting open source with the '-r' flag followed by a package name, and it will be the best overall desktop operating system of choice of the saga. Putting the current SCO thing aside, what do you think GNU/Linux and other digital rights issues? QuickRip - DVD ripping made easy in GNU/Linux and *BSD heard of, that you have -- except for differences between versions FreeBSD is FreeBSD. Three of the ever-wider use of computer networks and the other side hurling death threats and similar invective. This has allowed many who would not otherwise receive quality information about Open Source software to be able to use free software? What functionality does it enhance in practical terms for both governments and corporations are not generally that money-conscious (meaning that the next generation of computing).
Do you think that Java would be Open Source?
Any company that offers a desktop Linux product that attempts to broker an OEM deal with any of the top computer manufacturers, (i.e. tries to get them to ship their computers with their Lunix product) will most likely never succeed since those companies make all their $ by including M$ products and cannot justify switching to Linux when there is relatively no $ in it. To these companies, the products spawned by Open Source project and Desktop Linux are disruptive technologies. Often when a disruptive technology comes along to counter the status quo, smaller companies become the champion of that technology and those companies displace the larger, older companies that couldn't switch technologies, i.e. A changing of the guard occurs. Will this be the case with Open Source and Desktop Linux, will there be a changing of the guard with respect to the top computer manufacturers, or will they indeed find a way to break free of M$ and start shipping systems with Open Source and Desktop Linux products? If so, what event do you foresee that would act as a catalyst to cause this switch in the marketplace?
Automatics are for old men
Would you fucking kick the shit out of him for crippling the Gnome desktop enviromnent with his 'no features' jihad, espceially that mare fucking gtk dialog.
(As I see it, converting existing users is horrifically difficult, thanks to the huge number of different apps people collectively use (even if any given person uses only a few). I've worked with numerous clients, friends, and relatives on their computer needs, and I've yet to find a case where I could recommend Linux to one of them for desktop use, for precisely this reason--if they can't run the apps they need, there's no point in even considering converting.)
First of all, Thanks for all your work and dedication to a great cause, I am a believer in open source and the concept behind it.
I have a friend who is planning on releasing some software to utilize a piece of patent pending hardware. I asked him if he'd be releasing the software as open source as he already had a patent on the hardware. He answered that he would release his file format specs but not the software itself as open source. He didn't want garbage programs created that were based on his original work.
What kind of benefits does open source software provide that negate the someone trashing your original work and polluting the pool of good software out there based on something you create, should there be safeguards to protect the quality of original works?
Bruce,
You say that you use the two terms Free Software and Open Source interchangibly. At the same time, depending on the year, month, phase of the moon, etc. you seem to declare your loyalty to one or another of these two camps almost to the exclusion of the other.
Can you please elaborate your views on this disconnect in people's mind on where exactly you stand on the issue?
- Serge
Umm...uh...hey...uh...what's up?
Why should I bother using it?
...
I use windows and it works just fine for me.
no, I don't care about having access to source code because I'm not a programmer
so Why should I bother using Open Source instead of windows?
Isn't it an Inferior product with lack of consumer support?
What good does that do for me, the ordinary user.
Bruce,
:) more visible as a commercial product, or as business opportunity for their products.
The recent big expansion for GNU/Linux is that many IT companies (HP, IBM, Oracle...) entered in the community with some active advertisement making Linux (for short, sounds better on a shelf
But the Open Source community is much wider: which are the effects of social and economical changes like the widespread usage for the People (desktop users, network architects, and, sure, developers!) of many countries in the world? India, Mexico, Brazil, China and the far-east, Africa.
They could really make the linux-counter tilt, more than few lucky pilot-projects in some town administration in Europe. Such diffusion would also display some conflict between linux as freedom of expression, and ugly local laws (we have EUCD here, but also other forms of censorship for IP enforcing that actively menaces OpenSource).
Regards, enjoy your life!
odo@autistici.org
What is linux? What is Open Source?
Can I run it on Windows?
Know what I like about atheists? I've yet to meet one that believes God is on their side.
Do you think the SCO case has merit? If it does, and SCO wins in court, what do you see happening with the Linux kernel?
Happy New Year, it's 1984!
It seems to be taken as a near-universal trusims that copyright is necessary to foster the arts and 'creativity,' while patents are necessary to stimulate the sciences and the 'innovation' of new ideas. In other words, without intellectual property monopoly rights (be they temporary or perpetual) humanity will cease to create anything (other than marijuana plants and dirty laundry). To many of us, OSS (and namely the success of Linux--the official #2 threat to Microsoft, from their own mouth) is proof enough that the "intellectual property bargain" truism is nothing but a falsity. A falsity that hinders innovation, creativity, the arts and the sciences. From reading some of your interviews, I get the impression that you feel the same way. I think we can all agree that copyright terms are ridiculously and unconstitutionally lengthy (Eldred notwithstanding), but do you think these IP monopolies need to exist in the first place? Could you elaborate on what your views of copyrights/patents (IP laws in general, not just software patents) are and should be?
Stupid people make stupid things profitable.
The entire concept of the GPL and the general meme of Linux is source availability. I think one of the most important aspects of Linux being a tool of the little folks as well as the big folks is the little folks have as much access to it as the big folks do. Debian itself is a very successful distribution of Linux specifically because the entire distro is readily available after a few choice pecks at a terminal keyboard. In short, the ability to readily download Linux makes it very accessible.
I think an important part of distributing Free as in speech information are places like UNC's ibiblio project. UNC being a good example, many universities the world over put a good deal of money into similar projects such as SunSITE. I don't think Open Source peojects would behalf as successful was it not for this extremely wide availability. While relatively cheap, for most people large amounts of storage space on top of large amounts of bandwidth are simply unavailable. Without both projects like Debian would not likely exist in their current form. Tools like apt-get wouldn't be as useful as they are if the sources list was constrained to cdrom:/cdrom and file:/mnt/nfs/debian.
How repeatable a project do you think SunSITE is, not merely in terms of mirrors but as a repository of Free information and ideas? Also what do you feel the Free software community as a whole or individually could do to better secure availability of places like SunSITE?
I'm a loner Dottie, a Rebel.
A lot of people equate Open Source with Linux, but what are your opinions on Open Source on Windows? Of course Open Source works well on Linux, it falls more in line with the philosophy of the OS. In your opinion, is it more beneficial to keep the concepts of Open Source and Linux coupled, or to get the message of Open Source out there in any way possible?
My beliefs do not require that you agree with them.
Why did you accept this slashdot interview when you can (and do) answer slashdot crowd's questions right where they are asked?
Bruce,
As a former government employee, I found that there was a certain degree of hostility towards open-source software solutions. This was due (in part) to the fact that senior management didn't have a single entity with which to lay the blame when things went wrong. With the continuing business and market prescence being generated by companies such as Red Hat, do you feel that government organisations will start to take Linux (or other OSS) more seriously? Yes, we've seen the articles about the German uptake of Linux (80% of which will run VMWare/Win2k). Do you think that the governmental adoption of open source software will help encourage members of the public to become more technology literate and encourage further development?
Ta!
-Rupert.
He's always being seen being quoted as 'noted Linux expert'. What has he got or does he know that the rest of us supposedly don't? Why does he ask the big bucks to talk about this stuff with corporations? What has he done lately to prove that he's ahead of the field?
Although I agree with the sentiment in the parent post, the question is rhetorical and shouldn't be part of the interview.
Toronto-area transit rider? Rate your ride.
How seriously do you think Sun's recent commitment to free software should be taken?
Any others?
I used to work on Linux professionally at a very large, three letter acronymed company around the same time you got yourself fired from HP.
The perception from our side of the fence was that you were a egotistical, idealistic hothead that was doing more harm than good as a representative of GNU/Linux and the open source movement.
Specifically, you were looked at as an advocate/spokeperson for the Debian project, and that association at the time was hurting Debian's chances of being taken seriously as a first-tier distribution option for vendors doing commercial work.
My question is simple: did you get a bad rap? What were you trying to accomplish at HP, and what are you trying to accomplish now.
Posted anonymously as to protect my own marketability.
So might it be worthwhile for the Open Source community (and its friends and cousins) to somehow sponsor a candidate for governor?
Such a candidate would have to have a good computer system for a website or the slashdot effect might make actually reading about the issues a bit difficult.
So, um, Open Source is like Communism, right?
/me watches Bruce's face scrunch up and redden, right before his head explodes.
You want the truthiness? You can't handle the truthiness!
Is OSS a step towards the utopian-esque Earth of Star Trek?
- ask him why he thinks high-frequency radio operations will be better off if the FCC removes the requirement for 5WPM CW testing for upgrading to a General class radio operator license... - Perens supports a 'no-code' license for amateur radio operators to use the HF bands (see http://www.nocode.org)... - the 5WPM requirement is a reduction from previous levels of CW WPM operator expertise, but is considered by many to an essential demonstrable skill (radiotelegraphy) for HF radio operations...
Mr Perens, The European parliament is scheduled to vote for or against software patents on the 1st of September. A number of MEPs, most of them British, try to push the Parliament to adopt laws similar to the US ones. Microsoft and legal firms specialized in IP are pushing hard for it. In fact, the first proposal for this directive was written by an employee of BSA. Currently patents related to software algorithms are illegal in Europe, which does not prevent the European Patent Office from accepting them anyway. Bill Gates made clear in a recent interview that IP was a problem for Linux. Do you think Microsoft could in the future sue Linux companies on the basis of patent violation? If this happens, what should be the reaction of the open source software community?
Bruce, what can we do in order to improve lobbying. what do you intend to do in Europe (software patent directive), will you support the work of FFII and all the other groups?
Which organizations do you think are best suited to 'sponsor' a class-action suite against SCO to settle this once and for all. (I'm assuming that the current suit will settle contractual issues between IBM and SCO but may leave other linux 'IP' issues unresolved.)
:)
These organiztions would have to be willing to cooperate with each other and be able to gain the financial support of the entire open source community.
Any nominations? Go ahead. Stick you neck way out
I heard it had gone under. What happened to the money the investors invested? Did anyone get anything back, or was it all spent?
(I came very close to investing, but decided to put my $100K into a different company that went belly-up. Oh well.)
I feel fantastic, and I'm still alive.
Both Linux and the broader open and free software communities are rooted in developers' desire for free and accessible Unix platforms. Does the success of Linux mean that consumers can look forward to only two operating system choices dominating the market -- what Microsoft offers and what Linux/open source offers -- or do you expect to see open source prompt the development of other non-Unix-derived players in the OS market?
-- Slashdot: When Public Access TV Says "No"
If we did a "post questions for bruce perens and he'll answer what he feels like here" thread, it would be a total mess. He'd feel obligated to answer a lot of questions, and that would mean short answers for nearly everything. Doing it this way, with the highest modded questions being given to him, and then giving him time to respond, is the best way to do it. Besides, it's the way all slashdot interviews are done. I'm sure we've done plenty of official interviews with people who read slashdot regularly (in fact, didn't one of the DoJ lawyers admit to reading slashdot quite often?). Only the best questions (i.e. mine) should be given the time to be modded up to +5 and then sent off for answering. Letting the interviewee pick the questions lets them censor themselves, and that's not good... in fact that's bullshit. "hey bill gates, read this thread and answer the questions you want!" Would you expect any good questions to be answered (even though bill, unlike bruce, is probably adverse to most of our questions... hostile witness if you will).
Stupid people make stupid things profitable.
Between the SCO lawsuit, Bill & Steve's IP remarks, and the Gartner group's recommendation, it looks like the corporate adoption Linux may have a tough road ahead. While most people here believe that Linux will come out on top of this particular issue, I feel this exposes a huge problem regarding Open Source software and its adoption in large corporations. Specifically, the end-users of Open Source software can be the targets of lawsuits if a company claims the software infringes on their intellectual property.
So my question is, as a consultant who promotes Open Source software, what is the answer to a potential business client that asks the question "Does using Open Source software make my company a possible target for a lawsuit?"
I realize this is an issue in the closed-source world as well, however, it seems that the closed-source software vendor would be liable for infringements (see recent changes regarding indemnity in Microsoft's EULA), plus the fact that it is closed-source may make it harder to discover these infringements in the first place. Would buying your Linux from RedHat put the legal burden on RedHat? What about some random Open Source project? Does downloading the RPM from redhat.com make RedHat the vendor?
Whether or not the vendor covers you is another story -- it all comes down to perception -- and right now it seems that Open Source software may be perceived as a risk to corporate health.
How thick is your member?
Is it true that your last name is really short for "Parentheses?"
Why have you not stepped away from the words "Open Source"?
If you go here there is a venn-like diagram showing that Open Source is a broadly inclusive definition, and how the GPL that you push is a small part of the Open Source universe.
You had said on Techocrat.net:
"It is not the job of Linux advocates to support BSD"
At The Bazzar you said:
'The new BSD licence is great. It allows a GPL license to be added, and the code protected'.
And in the Open Group Open Source document you talk about "Assure that Open Source developers can participate in standards that are operated or facilitated by the Open Group, including the certification programs operated for those standards. This may require a special rate structure or coordination of corporate sponsorship for the Open Source project to go through certification.
Promote broad certification of Open Source software by encouraging certification of a publicly available and redistributable version of an Open Source program, rather than a particular vendor's instance of that program. This will allow multiple Linux vendors to coordinate their activities on certification, so that a larger collection of Open Source becomes certified than any one vendor would achieve on their own. "
This document ignores Open Source running on platforms like Solaris, AIX, AT&T-UNIX-IP-Free'ed-BSD's, or even Windows. How does running on GNU/Linux like platforms make it an "Open Source" program and 'worthy' of certification?
If you only wish to support the GPL and GPLed software, why do you keep using the words Open Source? There is a definition of what you actually advocate in word and deed called Free Software.
We've seen Australia and Germany use some counter-legal action against SCO's FUD. Why is it not happening in the US? Surely there must be some laws in the US preventing people from claiming ownership of something without having proved it (yet)? They are damaging an industry with no evidence of their claims (yet), there must be some legal recourse for that industry to recover damages or at least shut them up?
PS: I posted this question earlier but it didn't seem to make it, so am posting it again.
I've noticed a lot of talk lately about Linux market share. Because of it's free model, it seems to me that tracking and managing Linux market share would be incredibly difficult to do. Is there any way of reliable way of knowing how many Linux boxes are actually out there besides sales statistics from hardware vendors and those of the major distros?
This signature has Super Cow Powers
My question is regarding the current trend of the USPTO issuing overly broad technology patents. Eventually this has to result in a technological gridlock where nothing can be done without infringing on an existing patent. Open source software is especially vulnerable to this since the community model is not designed to address patent threats. My question is what can we do to stay clear of the patent fray and do you think that there will eventually be an undoing of the current patent mess?
Good people do not need laws to tell them to act responsibly, while bad people will find a way around the laws-Plato
How does the open source movement intend to counter the political and financial resources of the influential powers that be as they move in the legal arena to stifle the progress of our right to choice? jeoin
Jeoin
Thanks for your stories and comments on Slashdot. This seems like a good time to ask you a question that I think has been on everyone's mind:
If you could ask yourself anything, what would it be?
Thanks.
You have a unique position as a well-known figure in both the Free Software community and the underground rap community; as you are well-known for your involvement in Debian, speeding the corporate adoption of Free Software and protecting the IP of the Free Software community, as well as laying down the phat beats and representin' for the community, I have a few questions to ask of you about these enormous responsibilities.
First, what do you do to try to get your message out to the community? What do you tell the kids who are looking for a positive role model, to show them that it's entirely possible to have legally obtained their bling-bling, and yet still have street cred, even if that street may be Wall Street? Also, have other people in the industries--like ESR or Puff Daddy--accused you of 'selling out', or 'forgetting where you came from'? And did you correctly identify them as playa hatas, who are just jealous of your successful and honest nature?
Don't let them get you down, Bruce; you have shown everyone that it's possible to be an intelligent and responsible white man, and yet still make some mad loot, not give in to the big corporations, (software, recording, or otherwise) score with the ladies (husband *and* father!), and lay down some phat beats in the mean time. You're 100x the role model that Eminem will ever be, and I mean that, from the heart, as one wigga to another.
Unless, of course, Eminem wises up and takes a page or two from your book, and starts researching intellectual property law and free software. In your honor, Bruce--let's all stand up.
Will the real Bruce Perens Please Stand Up
Windows 2004
Windows 2006
Windows 2008
(Saving you the trouble of waiting for the answers.)
Steal this account! Go to mailinator.com and
As a frequent Slashdot poster, if given the opportunity to ask yourself a question in a Slashdot interview would you ask yourself a question, and if so, what would that question be? If not, would you save your mod points to moderate up other questions that you wanted to be asked, and if so, which questions would you moderate up?
Can't you see that everyone is buying station wagons?
The 2 largest barriers for Linux hitting the desktop in large numbers seem to be adequate drivers and desktop applications/games. We've seen breakthroughs such as Nvidia's graphics card and Nforce2 chipset support along with Transmeta's WineX allowing more DirectX games to be played on Linux.
In the forseeable future do you think that these barriers will continue the trend or will they be broken and things will get better for the Linux crowd?
My question is, what is the best model for an open source license to be used for software produced within a corporate environment? The problem is twofold.
First, the license must be acceptable to the open source community or it is a failure both as an open source project and as a component of a business case.
Second, there must be a business case for it.
how come I never, ever get mod points. It's been like well over a year. Am I missing a setting somewhere?
As one of the more well known Open Source pundits you seem to have a pretty good handle on the main issues, from both a corporate and a hacker standpoint.
It seems to me that what we are seeing more of is a battle between pure capitalism (Microsoft, SCO, etc) and socialism (the open source method of making software) and history has proven that capitalism usually wins this war. Do you feel that, given you have been on both sides of the fence, in the long run this will be the case or do you feel that there will be a paradigm shift that will allow the open source software movement to overcome historical odds and succeed?
Warmest regards,
--Jack Wagner
Wagner LLC Consulting Co. - Getting it right the first time
How's your IPSC score doing? Is the wife still getting involved?
I recently spent a weekend trying to update my internet browser. While it was an educational experience for me (which was a main reason to switch to Linux for me to begin with), it made painfully clear why Linux, and Open Source in general, is still unfit for the average user's home desktop. Do you think Open Source on (almost) every desktop is a reasonable vision, and if so, what needs to be done to make open source projects not only easy to use, but easy to install and maintain?
This side up.
Mr Perens,
Much of the pressure exerted on governments and big business to adopt "Free" Software seems to hinge on the idea that you don't have to pay anyone in order to obtain the software. (The mistaken belief that zero acquisition cost equals no cost at all.)
Do you have any thoughts on what we, the Geek community, can do to educate the public about "Cost of Ownership" without driving them away from Free Software or unduly confusing them about what we mean by "Free" in the first place?
I think Open Source is clearly here.
Established with more than a mere toehold.
Is the SCO situation an attempt to put the Open Source Jin out of business, if not do you see the old line IP factions as being able to pull off such a stunt?
Hi Bruce
Open Source methodologies have turned the software industry on its head. Many proprietary principals and processes have proved to be uncompetitive and ineffective compared to equivalent Open Source methods.
I've been wondering why a lot of these principals can't be applied to other industries as well. For example, I've always thought that the political arena could benefit greatly from being Open, if every politician had to make their tax returns publicly accessible then the underlying principals and the way said politician votes would be available for everyone to see - in a similar manner to peer review of source code.
Vehicle manufacturing could also be partially Opened. Sure we don't have an Open Source manufacturing plant but shouldn't anyone with the knowledge and ability to design a car be able to submit a design (or improved design) for peer review to someone like Ford before they begin the manufacturing process? I think that companies like Ford should be that confident in their designs that they should have nothing to fear by making them Open to the public? It's not like someone can get a design and be in the position to manufacture millions of cars anyway.
So my questions are thus:
With Open Source making so many inroads in software manufacturing in such a short amount of time do you see realistic potential for the same changes to take place in other industries using similar processes?
What industries might they be?
And have you been approached by anyone that is not in the IT sector to change their businesses practices to be more open in line with the OS software model?
Thanks for reading
John the Kiwi
www.johnthekiwi.com
I found your answer interesting and insightful, however I also consider it to be incomplete. I'm sure that, as you say, Open Source and Linux are better for most people, but how about for most horses? I think in that case the answer is probably reversed. How about for goldfishes?
Friends don't help friends install M$ junk.
Really. When were you elected to be the "spokesperson" for the Open Source movement and by whom?
What gives you the authority to speak on my behalf. Spending three months at Debian doesn't mean squat as far as I'm concerned.
Oh, one more question, Bruce. Have you considered plastic surgery? Why?
In the mean time, the biggest single dselect help is to know that it uses a vi style search. Just type "/" and what you are looking for and you will find it. I think it looks through descriptions as well as catagory, so finding an editor is as easy as typing "/editor" then hitting the enter key and "/" followed by nothing but the enter key to repeat the search until you find what you are looking for.
Well, I'm being a little coy here. I know Squadboy is basically a troll who posts negitive and unhelpful crap all day. The dselect help is offered to those who might really be stumped or find dselect an incovenient tool. Once you can search it, and know how to point /etc/apt/souces.list to any of the hundreds of debian mirrors in the world, the whole world of free software is available for fast and easy download. Apt takes care of dependencies and what not, so that most packages, like quakeII "just work". Sometimes you need to worry about configuration, but howtos are all over the web and knowing just a little about what you are doing is good. I suppose I should have said all of that right away.
Friends don't help friends install M$ junk.
Ah, it's good to see a classic get reposted on Slashdot from time to time. However, this is more than a little bit ghoulish since its author (Dumb Marketing Guy) worked in the World Trade Center and was killed in the attacks of September 11th. I would suggest in the future that you use bold letters at the bottom of a DMG cut-and-paste like this:
In Memorium - DMG
or
A Classic From the Master Whose Name Will Never Die - DMG
etc. etc.
Dear Robin,
Thanks for the link to Google! What a neat site. I never would have found it without slashdot.
In favor of the comment by the real "Will The Real Bruce," thx
Bruce, As I am sure you are well aware that the United States government has chosen Microsoft as the platform of choice for our Homeland Security. First, do you think this was choice will bad consequences ranging from financial to top secret data being stolen? Second, do you feel that open source software would have been a more responsible choice by our government?
Later,
Phil
No joke. Tell me in fifty words or less.
Bruce,
Why are you so Jewish?
Love,
Adolf Hitler
Definitely sex with a mare.
Is the Linux kernel free from copyright and patent problems? If the answer is "yes", what can the kernel developers *actively* do to counter the continuing FUD? If the answer is "no", what are they doing to fix the problems? And if the answer is "it's impossible to tell", then how can we claim that 'go-slow' or 'wait-and-see' advice to corporate IT departments is anything but prudent?
Imposing Libertarian views on everyone online since 1992.
If the adoption of Linux is slowed down by the SCO lawsuit in the US do you think it will impact the competitiveness of US companies VS foreign ones.
I think this suit has the serious potential to harm the US economy by preventing US companies from adopting cheaper and better technologies. A the same time that US industries are delaying or scaling back their open source plans Japan, China, India, and most of Europe and South America seem to be speeding ahead. What does this mean for American industry and the economy in the short, medium and long term.
I would love to hear your views.
War is necrophilia.
What about Linux and Open Source?
Edith Keeler Must Die
...you think of Richard Stallman? Does he frighten you as he does many technical professionals? Do you feel that RMS = Richard-misses-sanity is a fair judgement? Thank you for your time....
-AC the way to be.....
The parent comment about "cross licensing" falls for new M$ FUD, hook, line and stinker. There's no need to "cross license" free software. It does everything comercial software can do, but does it better, so the free software developer does not need to beg. Everyone can use free software and profit from that use but jerks who want to profit from your former ignorance. Microsoft is just trying to spin their "there will be no quality software unless you pay us money" threat to it's logical conclusion - denial of the vast world of original, legal, free software that out performs their own in features, quality and cost. Companies, such as IBM, that understand the benifits of free software have been GPL'ing their code, in part to save that code from obsolescence.
As this empowers developers, who can now compete with people who once thought patents on "fat lines" was big stuff, we can only hope the practice will spread to other profesions. It may, in the end, be the only way to compete in the international market for services. The dreams of an "information economy" based on hoarding and denying knowledge was a pipe dream. Other people figure out how to do what you do. No one really wins by hoarding information. Your next door neighbor may not be able to take your place at the steel factory, for example, but someone in China can and they will flood your market anyway. The only person you have harmed by hoarding your secrets is your next door neighbor who did not have the resources to be a serious threat to begin with and now can't help you.
Friends don't help friends install M$ junk.
Would you like fries with that?
An american no doubt. Americans are enamored of the capitalist system. "There's no such thing as a free lunch." "You get what you pay for" etc... If it's free, it's obviously worthless.
Give me Classic Slashdot or give me death!
We have had the OS, and then the browser wars, and personally I believe we are coming to the age of virtual machine wars. Assuming that there is a shift from the OS platform to the VM platform, these VMs like parrot or mono may allow java, C#, Ruby, Python, etc to run "freely" on many more platforms; this may lower deployment barriers and offer cross language libarary reuse for Open Source projects. Any thoughts on how these virtual machines will help or hurt Open Source development?
illegal in the United states (either outright, or in practice} ?
Oh sure you have. In 1976 Bill Gates put it better. It's "Sharing is bad and if you don't pay me money, there will be no software." It's shifted to "free software will never make a working kernel" and "free software will never make easy to use software." and finally, "free software must be stollen to work." Get with the program, you are way out of date. Free software has produced many working kernels, losts of software that's easier to use than comercial software and shows no signs of slowing down.
A few snake oil salesmen have gotting rich does not disprove doctors earn a living or even that you can make a living selling snake oil. People earn a living making things work, not writing one size fits all, must be replaced every two years, standards ignoring, buggy, software. These people will continue to earn a living when Microsoft and friends are just a bad and seemingly unbelievable memory, like national news anchors talking about blow jobs in the White House.
Your question should be reversed and asked elsewhere. "Given the colapse of so many closed source shops, like Netscape, Lotus or SCO, how stable is your firm? Are you going to be here in five years? How can you keep your market when your users are co-operating to make software that works better than the stuff you sell? What do I have to gain from developing software for your platform again?"
Friends don't help friends install M$ junk.
The parent's question was copied verbatim from the original Perens interview. It was question #5 and submitted by a Mr. John L Grantham.
Certainly many (in fact, most) OSS-savvy IT industry workers I have come across think Apple is merely using open source for a free ride. Certainly Bruce Perens thought so, and Richard Stallman very pubicly rejected Apple's licensing efforts and questioned their intentions. The Free Software Foundation even boycotted the company. These comments have reinforced IT scepticism of Apple Computer and acceptance of Apple technologies in this field remains close to nil. ZDnet's Evan Leibovitch points out many problems with Apple's (lack of) efforts in Open Source's Black Hole, problems which still remain more than 2 years later.
Your question is good because it would be interesting to see if Bruce's opinions on Apple are still the same, and does he now think the company is genuine? Has it given back a sufficient amount or is it paying lip service only?
Hahaha!
It's funny 'cos it's true!
In the end, There can be only one!
Of course part of the reason for this is that the seventies and early-eighties were an incredibly creative and productive period for software ideas. But... why has it stopped? The successful open source operating systems - the BSDs, Linux, the Hurd - are all based on UN*X, based on paradigms about how people use and share information which are rigid and hierarchical.
Of course there are open source operating systems based on other ideas, but so far none of them is making any break through. Is there a radically different Open Source operating system that you, personally, are excited by? If not, why not? Have we learned nothing in the last thirty years?
I'm old enough to remember when discussions on Slashdot were well informed.
Can you please comment on your views of how the open source movement will
look like in long term (10, 20 years later) and what role it might play as a factor
in economics ?
Thanks.
DO NOT PANIC
Mr. Perens, why are you so handsome +5 Insightful
and with his troll account
Mr. Perens, what have you ever done. huh? -5 Overrated
There are places where the networks are not touching,and there are places where they are-Boeing's Lori Gunter
Do you remember that time I called you just to say I saw your number on slashdot?
"I don't care about the Constitution!" --Bill O'Reilly, November 17, 2009
When hanging out with International Eric Conspiracy members, do you get confused when they call each other Bruce?
"I don't care about the Constitution!" --Bill O'Reilly, November 17, 2009
Bruce, if you are truly an advocate for linux on the desktop and pushing it onto the machines of non-geeks, why, when you were Debian project leader, didn't you make a serious push for Debian to have a graphical installer? Why didn't you speak out against some of the elitist attitudes that kept this distribution the crowning example of linux's hostility and contempt for people without computer science degrees?
In my opinion, if the founding techies of linux who never really cared about making their software usable for Aunt Tillie all of a sudden scream that Linux Is Perfectly Ready For The Desktop and try to force it on the public sector, then they need to answer for their previous apathy and inaction.
Ergonomica Auctorita Illico!
2. Which nation (or international treaty/convention, i.e. Berne, etc) do you feel best approximates how you believe this concept should (and shouldn't) be defined in law?
perl -e 'print $i=pack(c5, (41*2), sqrt(7056), (unpack(c,H)-2), oct(115), 10)'
Er...do you have that film in the states, too? ,-)
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Bruce, This is the biggest court case involving the GPL to date. Do you believe the GPL will hold up under intense scrutiny and dissection in the SCO vs. IBM case? And if so will the breaking of the GPL by SCO be a good avenue for retaliation? Thanks and keep up the good work.
YES! YES! YES!
This is what I keep wondering. If US companies succeed in legally tarpitting open source in the US I'm fairly sure the rest of the world will laugh at us and our corporations as they innovate beyond us with open source.
Isn't Mr Perens a slashdot regular himself or something?
Wouldn't it rock if Bruce posted a bunch of questions to himself (funny ones of course) that all got moderated to +5 Funny, then the whole interview turns out to be Bruce Perens questionsing Bruce Perens?
If you could change one thing about copyright or patent law in the United States, what would it be?
I've been using Debian for about 6 years now, and back in the "old" days, there was a nice, secretive Cabal that made sure that the OS Did Not Suck. Around the 2000 dpl election, all the newbies started whining about Debian's benevolent shadow government, and now it's a bunch of weenies that keep whining about "compatability with other Distros" or "we need a default desktop" without any consideration of how that would effect the suck factor. (It's almost like they think this is marketing or something).
Can debian expect to have a return of the Cabal? Will you, Wichert and other Cabalites be tutoring the Debian Acolites on the secret rites of the Cabal, and how these mysterious rituals are the One True Way to an OS that Does Not Suck? Most importantly, could you teach the rest of us how to explain why a C++ or Java app is not the best candidate for a default package selector? (It seems so obvious, but after hearing it suggested time, after time, after time one begins to doubt one's faith in reason).
I'm sure there are going to be plenty of linux, SCO, GPL, and other excellent questions posted, but I prefer the more interesting, lets not preach to the choir here (heck, I can guess Peren's opinion on the SCO vs. World case, on IP, on the Linux desktop, etc).
Here's my question (actually 2 questions, cleverly disguised as one):
What are the five best technological features of Windows (2k, XP, etc) that the OS movement (GNU/Linux, and xBSD) is missing? From a technological perspective, where has the OS movement failed, and proprietary software succeeded?
Hey! You've got the wrong user id! You're not the REAL Bruce Perens!
I work for a software developer that targets various products at a number of different platforms including Linux and Windows. We very much want to provide a single binary package that will work on as many Linux distributions as possible, and are having problems with distributions (Red Hat) breaking compatibility with previous versions of their own distribution, let alone others. As more proprietary vendors such as Oracle and IBM move their apps to Linux, how do you see distributions handling this? Red Hat currently has the market -and- mind share to force their own way, but this is hardly good for open source or Linux. Will vendors (like final scratch) be forced to distribute their own distro tuned to their specific software? Can't we all just get along?
...because otherwise you'll very quickly get the "developers do what they want because they want to write this specific software, not to server some big political goal", albeit with a few exceptions like GNU.
But I imagine many OSS developers have many programs they want to develop, both big and small. And in that respect I think the question is very good - is it the big projects or the small projects that push software forward? Where is the work most likely to bring out good results?
Kjella
Live today, because you never know what tomorrow brings
If SCO wins the legal battle, I can see many free software activists saying, "see, I told you so!" If that were to transpire, what, if anything, do you foresee changing in the open source world, and will you lean more toward the free software activists, particularly with regard to keeping sources clean of proprietary code?
Lodragan Draoidh
The more you explain it, the more I don't understand it. - Mark Twain
What 3 projects do you consider the most critical over the next 2 years for the continuing growth of open source solutions and why?
Its been 8 years so no one's feelings are going to get hurt. What specifically where the issues (other then GNU Linux vs. Linux) that caused the break between the FSF and Debian? In your announcement you spoke about architectual issues not political ones so these would be particularly interesting for historical reasons.
Mr. Perens believes in the actions of the FSF and the GPL.
The FSF/GPL has a leader in Richard Stallman.
Mr. Perens wants the power of being leader. (Power defined as some money and fame) To be leader, he has to form something new. Even if the 'new' thing is just repeating Mr. Stallman.
So Mr. Perens talks about 'Open Source' in the hope of becomming a leader, when all he's doing is following Mr. Stallman's lead.
What percent of the email sent to bruce@hams.com is spam?
It appears likely (especially given recent comments by Bill Gates) that sometime in the not-too-distant future, Microsoft or other proprietary software companies will make a concerted effort to use software patents to shut down Free software.
Is there anything, short of revamping the patent system as a whole, that we can do to stop this?
Bruce - Will you be dropping by Picn*x12 after LinuxWorld? ;^)
In the past, ESR has used his high profile to speak as if for all open source developers, meaning that his opinions, often wildly divergent from the community's as a whole, get an air of respectability and an undeserved weight.
Since you also are a figure often quoted by the press, do you have any ethical code about making clear who you're speaking for and making sure that they agree with your opinion before you voice it?
SCO are now offering offering a run-only binary licence for Linux. Yet most of the Linux code is (a) not theirs and (b) GPL licenced. Doesn't that mean that any licence they offer has to be GPL compatible?
Question for Bruce: What are the conditions, if any, under which code can be linked to GPL code without the requirement of re-licensing under the GPL? Different sources at FSF seem to have different answers to this question. The answer "none" is not borne out by industry practice -- particularly for hardware drivers.
Heather Meeker, software lawyer
Bruce is somewhat of an expert in Open Source licensing, so maybe he can help me understand something that seems simple, but often ignored -
since SCO/Caldera released the 'IP in Question' under the GPL as Caldera Linux, isn't all their posturing baseless?
My God, it's Full of Source!
OUTSIDE_IP=$(dig +short my.ip @outsideip.net)
Bruce, a year or so ago you talked to the ham radio Digital Communications Conference and issued a challenge for the ham community to embrace the concept of "open source hardware" as exemplified by A HREF=http://www.opencoreshttp://www.opencores.org.
A year later, do how do you perceive the open source hardware movement? Will it have an impact similar to that of open source software?
Here's me hoping the question will be asked for the benefit of everyone!
Imagine..... hundreds of thousands of slashdotting nerds preaching the Gospel of Opensource like "the Bruce"
My real question is prefaced by a question.
Prefaced question: Do you make a living by writing software, especially open source software?
Real question: If you do then ignore my question.
If you don't then how can you and everyone like you preach the gospel that open source is the only way to software salvation? It seems to me that you and your ilk are profiting from the so called social movement. This profit is on the backs of passionate but naive young men who most likely have no future as true software developers and at the expense of the rest of the software development community. A community that does an honest days work so they can support their families.
Thank you for your consideration.
Bruce,
Being an old veteran at software development I'm quite intrigued by OSS. However, I have several concerns. Can you please comment to them?
1. One of OSSs claimed strengths is that anyone can modify OSS to meet their needs. Back when I started, mainframe days, when you licensed a program you receive the source. So every organization would make there modifications. These cost a lot of money to employee developers or pay someone else to do it. Soon a new version would come out. Then the company that modified the software would have a no win choice. Do nothing and miss out on any improvements the new version comes out with. Or, spend the money again to modify the new version with the local customizations. The second choice becomes a never ending cycle of spending. How can this be a strength.
2. OSS pundits do not recognize the other half of software, mission critical applications such as payroll, GL, ERP, etc. How can the OSS revolution succeed when it clearly has no understanding of this half of the industry? I doubt anyone would volunteer to work on a Payroll OSS project. BTW this part of the industry may really be more than half.
3. OSS backers claim that OSS fosters innovation? Where is this innovation? All I see is OSS copying what the proprietary vendors do. Name one innovation that OSS has come up with that proprietary had to copy.
4. True TCO. TCO of OSS would seem to be greater than proprietary software when items 1, 2 and 3 are taken into consideration.
Thanks
Nearly half of all people are below average
A bit more than half, I should think.
David Gould
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In the few weeks I came across 2 instances where a configuration "wizard" would be helpful. I set-up ftpd on RedHat 8.0 only to find out it could be accessed because the firewall was blocking the ports. Why didn't ask me if I wanted to allow computers on the network access? Another time was on Debian 3.0. I was setting-up a diskless computer to boot from a server. This required DHCP server, TFTP, SYSLinux, and NFS server and their corresponding config files. What about a metapackage that grabs all necessary packages and configures each one for a special purpose like diskless clients?
Please excuse my English. I am American.
A) a representative
B) a provider
C) a mystic
D) a leader
E) a tout
F) an enabler
G) an accomplice
H) a cowboy publisher (possibly cowardly)
The format should make tabulation snappy!