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RMS Says "Software As a Service" Is Non-free
BillyG noted an RMS interview where he says "'Software as a service' means that you think of a particular server as doing your computing for you. If that's what the server does, you must not use it! If you do your computing on someone else's server, you hand over control of your computing to whoever controls the server. It is like running binary-only software, only worse: it's even harder for you to patch the program that's running on someone else's server than it is to patch a binary copy of a program running on your own computer. Just like non-free software, 'software as a service' is incompatible with your freedom."
Except RMS isn't just advocating skipping SAS that's based on proprietary software; he's equating the entire concept of SAS to proprietary software.
He's saying that if you don't control the hardware, you shouldn't be using the software.
He *IS* saying that you shouldn't use a dry cleaner; that you should dry clean at home.
I wonder if he grows all his own food, generates all his own electricity, provides his own (not dependent on anyone else) internet and telecom? Oh, wait, the last two are impossible.
Sorry, RMS is one of those "extremist to the point of hypocracy" people. He suggests things that, while the underlying idea may be good, are impossible for most people from a practical standpoint; and for some of the ideas he implies, are truly impossible for anyone. (Without major changes to the business models of major companies, anyway.)
Another non-functioning site was "uncertainty.microsoft.com."
The purpose of that site was not known.
claiming that making software open source will solve all our problems is, at best, overly simplistic.
Good thing RMS doesn't claim that then.
When information is power, privacy is freedom.