Erecting politically-correct purity tests around word choice
The word choice has nothing to do with "purity" and everything to do with
values. "Free software" is about freedom for computer users. "Open source" is
about choosing a development method that is supposed to make higher quality
software.
The observable difference in "purity" is a consequence of the fundamental
difference in values. "Free software" advocates reject "proprietary software"
because it is subjugating. The "open source" advocates only want high quality
software: when it is proprietary, they use proprietary software.
Sure, when I'm talking about software I call it "free code", or "free code
software", because I find that phrase is less ambiguous than "free software",
which is easily mistaken for "freeware" by the uninitiated. Free code means
the *code* is free, even though the software package, or services associated
with it, might cost money.
Your "free code" does not mean "free software" (and it does not mean "open
source" either). Selling free software (usually the sole code or the code +
the binaries) is OK: https://www.gnu.org/philosophy/selling.html
A free software developer may even distribute binaries for free and the code
at a charge. The GNU GPL for instance allows to distribute the code in a "a
physical product" (e.g., a CD) against a fee that is "no more than your
reasonable cost of physically performing this conveying of source":
https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl.html#section6
I use the phrases that I think most accurately express my ideas
So do I: I am in favor "free software" because computer users deserve the
four essential freedoms. I invite anyone who value those freedoms to talk
about "free software". If, instead, one talks about "open source", then she
will not be understood because "open source" stands for different values.
