The FSF Is Re-Evaluating Its Relationship With The GNU

[audir8]

More GNU folks calling for RMS to not be the head of the GNU - https://guix.gnu.org/blog/2019/joint...e-gnu-project/

RMS's present legacy is the GPL and as a historical figure, but he perpetuated his biases to the wrong effect for too long. I couldn't agree more with the GNU maintainers.

[moilami]

I am starting to see the big picture. For something to be free software, it needs Freedom 0 most of all. The freedom to run the program as you wish, for any purpose. Right about the same time of the inquisition against RMS we get rumblings about developers not feeling comfortable with their software being used for purposes they object against.

It is Freedom 0 that sets Free Software miles apart from software that is governed by a vulgar EULA. Remove the rock against software abuse and then you are free to alter the Free Software Definition. I fully expect Freedom 0 to be the first thing to get slashed. I fully expect field of use restrictions, anti-disparaging clauses, heck, maybe even a full 50 page code of conduct to be added to the new, shiny GPLv4.

The quickest way to usurp Free Software is to (ab)use the "or later" clause in the GPL.

Yeah, I agree on that, Freedom 0 is a reason why I switched away from openSUSE. They have a confusing license agreement thingy you have to accept, which put restrictions to who you can share the the software.

Anyway, if they manage to make some sort of perverted GPL4, with some sort of peculiar restrictions, then I personally wont use the software licensed under it, like I don't do at the moment either.

A long time ago was said that nothing good will come out of those people, and now it has been seen to be true. I just bet none were able to anticipate what a catastrophe they would be.

But the bottom line is that they can divide, but they can't conquer.

[moilami]

"The Revolution aways eats her children"
Isn't it a brilliant observation/sentence!?

It is. That is said to happen when revolution is canceled. The pun intended.

[Dedobot]

It is. That is said to happen when revolution is canceled. The pun intended.

Canceling is imminent at some point. Idealism don't copy with reality, the idealists become liability

[moilami]

Canceling is imminent at some point. Idealism don't copy with reality, the idealists become liability

I can hear champagne bottles opened at MS and Apple HQs.

[audir8]

I am starting to see the big picture. For something to be free software, it needs Freedom 0 most of all. The freedom to run the program as you wish, for any purpose. Right about the same time of the inquisition against RMS we get rumblings about developers not feeling comfortable with their software being used for purposes they object against.

It is Freedom 0 that sets Free Software miles apart from software that is governed by a vulgar EULA. Remove the rock against software abuse and then you are free to alter the Free Software Definition. I fully expect Freedom 0 to be the first thing to get slashed. I fully expect field of use restrictions, anti-disparaging clauses, heck, maybe even a full 50 page code of conduct to be added to the new, shiny GPLv4.

The quickest way to usurp Free Software is to (ab)use the "or later" clause in the GPL.

Implicit in Freedom 0 and any license is you won't do illegal things, hence the provided as-is or limited liability clauses in licenses. Ethical objection clauses in software licenses as far as I can tell is about stopping an authoritarian government and companies that help authoritarian governments. It's certainly an attempt, maybe it will amount to nothing like the eGPL, maybe it will amount to more. The GPL will remain the same, and if you care more about libre software than anything else then use it. The MIT/BSD license will also remain the same if you care more about Freedom 0 than anything else. This is license proliferation, nothing more.

Even the ACM has a code of ethics, which aren't too bad to read if you think you might be working for an employer that is helping an authoritarian government: https://www.acm.org/code-of-ethics

[r_a_trip]

This is license proliferation, nothing more.

If the original code keeps being maintained and developed, yes, this is just license proliferation. If the code under the previous license is no longer maintained, it is an unpleasant new reality where people with more emotional knee-jerk than rationality get to impose their shaky politics by tacking it to their licenses.

I know. Take it or leave it. If the snowflake dystopia comes to pass, I know what I'll choose.

[moilami]

Implicit in Freedom 0 and any license is you won't do illegal things, hence the provided as-is or limited liability clauses in licenses. Ethical objection clauses in software licenses as far as I can tell is about stopping an authoritarian government and companies that help authoritarian governments. It's certainly an attempt, maybe it will amount to nothing like the eGPL, maybe it will amount to more. The GPL will remain the same, and if you care more about libre software than anything else then use it. The MIT/BSD license will also remain the same if you care more about Freedom 0 than anything else. This is license proliferation, nothing more.

Even the ACM has a code of ethics, which aren't too bad to read if you think you might be working for an employer that is helping an authoritarian government: https://www.acm.org/code-of-ethics

Interesting reading in addition to this https://www.zdnet.com/article/you-ca...ense-morality/

It seems there are movements I knew nothing of.

I might say that maybe Free Software movement has grown so big that some fracturing is inevitable, causing new offsprings to try form up.

The first divide was free software vs open source, which settled quite well. I think this will settle good eventually too.

[TLE02]

I'm torn. I can't wait to see Stallman gone, but it should have happened long ago on the basis of him being a bad front person for just about everything.

[fuzz]

I'm torn. I can't wait to see Stallman gone, but it should have happened long ago on the basis of him being a bad front person for just about everything.

This is the best way I've seen someone phrase this.

There are so many people saying things like "he should have been gone a long time ago" but don't admit that this witch hunt is a bad way to do it.