In response to off-band inquiries... On Jan 5, 2008 4:41 PM, Alexander Terekhov <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > On Jan 4, 2008 11:41 PM, Paul de Weerd <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > [...] > > I've been working in IT for well over 10 years now. I can promise you > > that, had I denounced non-free software, I would not have been able to > > pay for my food or my rent/mortgage for the past 10 years. > > http://technews.acm.org/archives.cfm?fo=2007-04-apr/apr-09-2007.html#306282 > > ------- > Cell phones also came under attack, for their ability to be used as "a > tracking device, even when it is turned off." In summing up a broader > philosophy, Stallman suggested, "Don't buy a house, a car, or have > children. The problem is they're expensive and you have to spend all > your time making money to pay for them." > -------
Original linuxinsider.com article seems to be gone but full copy is still available courtesy of chineselinuxuniversity.net. (I'm quoting it in full below for the sake of convenience to RMS -- all those remote wget burdens, y'know.) http://www.chineselinuxuniversity.net/news/3308.shtml ------- ;6S-Dz=xHkVP9zLinux4sQ', D?G0NRCG5DW\W"2aSC;'J} 6227, W\5c;wJ} 7840636 Google6(VFKQKw: 2008Dj1TB5HU PGFZAy UPF8PEO" Linux4sQ' | PBNE | <<JuNDUB | 5gWSJiSkHm<~ | WJT4U>5c | V\1(:MTSV> | DZ:K296! | HK2EVPPD | WTSIJ1?U Free Software Foundation's Richard Stallman: 'Live Cheaply' -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- U*WT: linuxinsider.com 1;TD6A4NJ}: 68 SI yangyi SZ 2007-04-05 14:04:18 La9) Speaking at Lehigh University last week, Free Software Foundation Founder Richard Stallman urged his audience to make open source not just a way of computing, but a way of life. Using commercial proprietary software leaves users "divided because we can't make copies to help our neighbors and helpless because we can't see the source code," Stallman said. Free WiFi Hotspot Locator from TechNewsWorld Wondering where to find the nearest publicly available WiFi Internet access? Our global directory of more than 100,000 locations in 26 countries is a terrific tool for mobile computer users. Richard Stallman doesn't own an MP3 player. He doesn't own a mobile telephone. In fact, this techno-visionary -- a founder of the Free Software Foundation -- doesn't use any of the usual computer programs many people use. He spent the better part of two hours last week, before a mostly supportive audience at Lehigh University in Bethlehem, Pa., explaining exactly why he has made these choices, which he couched not in technical but in ethical terms, and why his foundation works to promote what's called free software -- software that can be legally copied, altered and exchanged. With his long, slightly unkempt, dark, shoulder-length hair and his rumpled demeanor, Stallman, 53, looked more a 1960s rock guitarist than a software guru. His minimalist attire, a creased, logo-free red knit shirt, khaki pants and stocking feet, emphasized the counterculture associations. He parked his shoes, side-by-side, next to the podium in Lehigh's Whitaker auditorium, where he addressed about 150 in a voice tinged with a slight New England accent. Free Software, Free Markets As the afternoon unfolded, the counterculture connections seemed more than appropriate as he spoke of his role in creating an alternative to a computing environment dominated by corporations and their operating systems and software, loaded with hidden features and restrictive limitations. However, there were other times when Stallman's words seemed to conflict with his image. He spoke approvingly about the merits of people making money on their efforts and suggested free software encouraged more of a free market than the restrictive aspects of the proprietary software world. Stallman is also one of the creators of the GNU/Linux operating system Forge ahead and stay on budget with simple to install HP server technology., which runs most computers and Internet servers not run by commercial giants Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT) Free 30-Day Trial. Seamlessly Integrate UNIX & Linux systems with Active Directory. Latest News about Microsoft Windows and Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) Latest News about Apple Macintosh Latest News about Macintosh. People choose computer software for reasons that have to do with convenience, reliability, ease of use and cost, he says, but he called those choices "a fundamental mistake because they don't allow us to see what is important." The source code for such programs should be easily visible to all users so they can change, adjust or improve upon programs or operating systems they create, he says. With proprietary software, the guts of the programs are a well-guarded secret, and such tinkering is illegal. A Call for Change Using commercial proprietary software leaves users "divided because we can't make copies to help our neighbors and helpless because we can't see the source code," Stallman says. Stallman urged his audience, mostly Lehigh students and faculty, to remove proprietary software from the computers they control and to urge officials on campus to replace such software on publicly accessible computers with free software. When he started the Free Software Foundation Latest News about Free Software Foundation in 1984 and wrote what he called the manifesto of the Free Software Movement, Stallman says the movement had no enemies. However, the movement has its share of detractors and defectors today. Even some within the GNU/Linux community, who combine proprietary and free software in packages, create confusion and blur the ethical lines between free and proprietary software, he says. Only a handful of GNU/Linux operating systems, Stallman says, include no proprietary software. None of the three he mentioned specifically that don't -- Ututo, Blag and gNewSense -- are among the systems most popular with GNU/Linux users. "What they are saying when they put proprietary software in their distributions is that it's OK to use proprietary software," Stallman says. Don't Forget the GNU, Please However, other things have chanced in those years since Stallman helped create GNU/Linux. The computer was a scientific tool when he first started his work with free software. Today, the computer is almost a necessity and, in any case, digital media dominate the cultural landscape in a way few could have imagined in the early 1980s. Who knew then that we all probably couldn't live without our Google (Nasdaq: GOOG) Latest News about Google, which is built with some aspects of free software? Stallman also admonished his audience on a technical point: Refer to the accessible basic operating system he helped create 20 years ago correctly. Linux, as it's commonly called, forms a small part of the overall system, he says. The Linux is the kernel, a small but important element that helps the computer allocate resources. The much larger section is called the GNU, pronounced GA nu , which Stallman and others helped write more than 20 years ago. "If you could just do that one small thing, to take a second to type those few extra letters, it would make a difference," Stallman said. Is That a Phone in Your Pocket? In a question-and-answer session that followed, Stallman expanded upon his beliefs, and, in at least one case, defended the notion of free software. One questioner, a 60-something man who wore suspenders and identified himself as a farm owner, wondered if Stallman respected private property. "If I had known about your philosophy, I would have never installed this software," the man said. Software is not land, Stallman responded, and it's not possible to copy land in the way that users can -- or should be able -- to copy software. Several questions concerned MP3 music files, popular among college students. Under Stallman's outlook, which involves using only free or "copyleft" software, MP3 files pose a problem because the appropriate free software players are not readily available. "I listen to audio CDs," Stallman said dryly. "They work on most people's stereos." Others asked about mobile telephones, which use proprietary software. "You shouldn't use them, because of the software, but also, because your cell phone is a tracking device, even when it is turned off," Stallman said. Interestingly, in the minutes before the talk began, Stallman padded up one aisle in his stocking feet talking into what looked like a mobile telephone. Idealism and Pragmatism As the audience trickled to the exits, and a core of devoted computer enthusiasts remained, Stallman seemed to relax. "Live cheaply," he said, offering some free advice. "Don't buy a house, a car or have children. The problem is they're expensive and you have to spend all your time making money to pay for them." Ryan Metzger, a 22-year-old Lehigh senior, president of the school's Association for Computer Machinery, sat near the front for most of the talk, his laptop open and running a version of GNU/Linux called Ubuntu, one of the most popular distributions being used today, and one that Stallman would not use because it uses elements of proprietary software in it. "I learned a lot, especially about the history of GNU/Linux," says Metzger. "In a democratic society, we should seek out free software. It makes sense." However, for his own needs, Metzger is willing to use a hybrid operating system such as Ubuntu. "I have a Nvidia [graphics] card in my machine," says Metzger. "They don't make a driver for GNU/Linux and the ones that have been reverse engineered crash all the time. When someone finally makes one, I'll be all over it. But in the meantime, I have work I need to get done." T-NDA4=S: http://linuxinsider.com/story/7u87rqMMlujp2B/Free-Software-Foundations-Richard-Stallman-Live-Cheaply.xhtml# -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 9XSZNRCG | A*O57=J= | M67E9c8f | T^VzNRCG | SC;'[EMAIL PROTECTED] | SQGiA4=S www.chineselinuxuniversity.netSIR;8vLinux0.:CU_440l Copyright (c) 2006 Chinese Linux University, All Rights Reserved ICP18081`:E#:>)ICP1807002196:E ------- > > http://ia310134.us.archive.org/1/items/The_Basement_Interviews/Richard_Stallman_Interview.pdf > > ------- > RP: So how do you fund yourself today? > > RS: I get paid for some of my speeches. In addition, when I am > travelling in a lot of places people don't let me pay for anything, so > life is cheaper. This is sort of amusing and makes me a little bit > like a medieval king. Medieval kings had to keep travelling all the > time because if they stayed in one place they would burden the people > there so much that the people would eventually get mad! > > RP: Is that an adequate way of funding yourself? > > RS: Loads of people invite me to visit them, and if I am there for a > few days they are happy to do things like pay for my food, and they > pay for me to go there, because otherwise I would go somewhere else > instead. And some of them also pay a fee. > ------- regards, alexander.
