Firstly I feel I must correct the author on his error in referring to an operating system using the Linux kernel as Linux, instead of GNU/Linux. For the reasoning behing this see here.
Secondly I note that accompanying any book on programming there should be a book on Free Software to educate the programmers of the future as to the importance of Free Software and the evils of supporting proprietary software.
Sun is going in the direction that all proprietary software companies are going.
Free Software displaces the need for proprietary Solaris or Windows, yet it provides great benefits for the companies who embrace Free Software.
When Sun make Java Free Software, and they will eventually when their stock has plumetted far enough, they will be able to become full members of the Free Software community and reap the benefits.
I am surprised to find Slashdot promoting a company that has abused free software to its own ends. By taking BSD UNIX derived code they did exactly what the GPL is there to prevent. How long will it take for people to realise that the GPL is a protection for software? Then, they took advantage of the goodwill of free software developers to develop for their proprietary product.
When Apple makes Quicktime, Cocoa and Quartz free software the community can take their free software support as sincere and not a thinly veiled attempt at gaining free labour.
Microsoft fears GNU/Linux as it has realized that the future is ruled by free software. Other companies such as IBM have realized this too and are embracing the free software model rather than opposing it.
Microsoft is a warning to all as to what happens when proprietary software is tolerated and allowed to become dominant. Products are poor quality, and smaller competitors are forced out of business. Constraints are put on OEMs to sell only the dominant proprietary software, not the superior free alternative.
Proprietary software can no longer be tolerated. Only free software is fit for posterity.
On behalf of the Free Software Foundation I congratulate the Apache team on their achievements.
However, I must raise a matter that I have written on before; Apache would be better served by the GNU GPL. Apache accepts the ideals of the free software movement, yet doesn't go as far as to protect them for future generations as would be the case with the GPL. By releasing apache under the current licensing terms any company may take the source code of apache and build a proprietary product, without contributing back to the community. Is this the future we want? No, if free software projects are to be sustainable the source code must remain free. To do otherwise is wholly wrong, and undermines free software as much as it helps it.
At a time when free software has come up with real alternatives to proprietary office suites it shocks me that Slashdot dares to give the impression that non-free software is normal and right.
Consider KOffice, OpenOffice and others that provide all the features the users can possibly want, yet closed source products are discussed as if they are acceptable in a forum that should understand the importance of free software
GNU/Linux and free software has shown itself to be a formidable tool on the PDA. Why does Slashdot deem it fit to post articles concerning proprietary palmtop operating systems when there are high quality free alternatives available?
I would have thought that Slashdot would have known better than to promote products from Microsoft, a company that is so determined to undermine free software. There are many free games available for GNU/Linux. Let's help those projects rather than giving the impression that proprietary software is acceptable.
I would urge everyone who believes that supporting Microsoft's proprietary platforms to reconsider.
.NET is not yet an industry standard. Soon it will be if free software projects rush to promote it. The result will be more power for Microsoft; their implementation will be superior and be the standard. Any imitations will fail as second rate.
It would be better to spend time encouraging Sun to make Java free software than to support Microsoft in their monopolistic practices.
Slashdot Mirror
Firstly I feel I must correct the author on his error in referring to an operating system using the Linux kernel as Linux, instead of GNU/Linux. For the reasoning behing this see here.
Secondly I note that accompanying any book on programming there should be a book on Free Software to educate the programmers of the future as to the importance of Free Software and the evils of supporting proprietary software.
I would like to draw Slashdot readers' attention to the GNU/Liberty Basic Compiler Collection as a free alternative to proprietary implementations.
Sun is going in the direction that all proprietary software companies are going.
Free Software displaces the need for proprietary Solaris or Windows, yet it provides great benefits for the companies who embrace Free Software.
When Sun make Java Free Software, and they will eventually when their stock has plumetted far enough, they will be able to become full members of the Free Software community and reap the benefits.
I am surprised to find Slashdot promoting a company that has abused free software to its own ends. By taking BSD UNIX derived code they did exactly what the GPL is there to prevent. How long will it take for people to realise that the GPL is a protection for software? Then, they took advantage of the goodwill of free software developers to develop for their proprietary product.
When Apple makes Quicktime, Cocoa and Quartz free software the community can take their free software support as sincere and not a thinly veiled attempt at gaining free labour.
Microsoft fears GNU/Linux as it has realized that the future is ruled by free software. Other companies such as IBM have realized this too and are embracing the free software model rather than opposing it.
Microsoft is a warning to all as to what happens when proprietary software is tolerated and allowed to become dominant. Products are poor quality, and smaller competitors are forced out of business. Constraints are put on OEMs to sell only the dominant proprietary software, not the superior free alternative.
Proprietary software can no longer be tolerated. Only free software is fit for posterity.
On behalf of the Free Software Foundation I congratulate the Apache team on their achievements.
However, I must raise a matter that I have written on before; Apache would be better served by the GNU GPL. Apache accepts the ideals of the free software movement, yet doesn't go as far as to protect them for future generations as would be the case with the GPL. By releasing apache under the current licensing terms any company may take the source code of apache and build a proprietary product, without contributing back to the community. Is this the future we want? No, if free software projects are to be sustainable the source code must remain free. To do otherwise is wholly wrong, and undermines free software as much as it helps it.
At a time when free software has come up with real alternatives to proprietary office suites it shocks me that Slashdot dares to give the impression that non-free software is normal and right.
Consider KOffice, OpenOffice and others that provide all the features the users can possibly want, yet closed source products are discussed as if they are acceptable in a forum that should understand the importance of free software
GNU/Linux and free software has shown itself to be a formidable tool on the PDA. Why does Slashdot deem it fit to post articles concerning proprietary palmtop operating systems when there are high quality free alternatives available?
I would have thought that Slashdot would have known better than to promote products from Microsoft, a company that is so determined to undermine free software. There are many free games available for GNU/Linux. Let's help those projects rather than giving the impression that proprietary software is acceptable.
I would urge everyone who believes that supporting Microsoft's proprietary platforms to reconsider.
.NET is not yet an industry standard. Soon it will be if free software projects rush to promote it. The result will be more power for Microsoft; their implementation will be superior and be the standard. Any imitations will fail as second rate.
It would be better to spend time encouraging Sun to make Java free software than to support Microsoft in their monopolistic practices.