The ugly truth is, most people don't know or care about the whole issue of software/hardware freedom. If you have cable/satellite TV with any shopping channels on it, watch when they're selling computers. The pitch is clearly aimed at totally ignorant folks who will spend money on flash and glitz. This is what has kept Microsoft and Apple in business through their decades of manipulation.
Realistically, I expect that we'll need some really high-profile events to force the issue--hardware and software hackers doing acts of freedom-oriented civil disobedience that get them thrown in jail...things along those general lines. Start planning early. In the meantime, we need to make the most of the usable computers that we have. My wife finally gave up on our increasingly slow 2006-vintage Windows XP Celeron box and recently purchased a new Windows 7 quad-core. After I get all of the necessary files moved from the old to the new hardware, I can start trying out Libre OSes on the ancient one. I'll mostly be looking at the FSF-approved list, but I'm not ruling out some BSDs and the like. I intend to keep you folks posted on my progress. Joel
