my reply was sent to [EMAIL PROTECTED] it's getting too deep for the regular board.
-----Original Message----- From: Ralph Zeller [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]] Sent: Thursday, November 01, 2001 3:44 AM To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: [EUG-LUG:3573] RE: Robbing from the rich...... My point is that big corporations don't choose open source software just to drink the free beer, they contribute either directly or indirectly to open source just like we do. If you look at some of the success stories of companies using Linux you will often see descriptions of how certain software was modified for a particular use, extending the functionality of GPL'd software. The big open-source projects have benefitted from the on-the-job testing and features requested and contributed by big corporations. If anyone, it's the small companies that are drinking the free beer of years of buggy software finally ready for use after being thrashed and debugged by the programmers in big corporations and academia. Open source software thrives in a society based on competition, including big corporations, and complaining about them doesn't accomplish anything with respect to advancing our common goals. Whether the motivation is "greed" or "stewardship" (the word I prefer) or some other goal, it is all contributing to better software for all to use. Your goal of better software is the same as the big corporations', so their successes are yours. If Intel and Amazon are saving $250 million, then it is an indication that we are accomplishing our goal of providing better software for the good of all mankind, not an indication of corporate greed. Let 'em keep the savings or dole it out to stockholders. Hooray for open source! At 12:36 PM 10/31/2001, Justin Bengtson <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: >>$$$ is definitely NOT all that big companies care about. It's just not >>that simple. > >sorry, i should clarify again. i was refering to big corporations, not >neccesarily large business (although the two are _almost_ interchangable) > >these are my opinions based on what i have observed about the business >world. it's not neccesarily the truth. >
