The Free Software Foundation Is Trying To Figure Out Its Future

[Luke_Wolf]

I think the FSF should be rebuilt and centered primarily around PR, and I mean actually doing PR. Increase public awareness of free software and how awesome it can be, decrease ramblings about how bad everything that's not free is (how is that even supposed to help?) focus on pulling people in to the free software world for all the things that are good about it (especially the ones that are good from a non-developer/end-user perspective), rather than trying to scare them into disliking what they already like and use. It's not gonna work, it sounds like fanaticism to anyone who isn't invested in the idea (and maybe it actually is).

If they're not gonna base themselves around PR, then rebuild to base themselves around building actually useful software, like hell, compete (or even join hands) with GIMP, make proper printer frontend to replace the obsolete and shit CUPS. Try to fix the things that are broken on linux desktop. It's just that I don't have a lot of faith in FSF as developers, so I think they should try to be a friendly face instead of workforce, hence, PR for free and open source software. (That's a tough enough job already)

The FSF is the PR half of GNU, and as GNU are the ones developing GIMP. The problem is that in order to be a Free Software supporter you have to be an ideologue about software licensing and in utter terror of companies taking your code and not releasing their changes to it, not because you desire any feature that they might give you but that they're turning your code "evil" by making it proprietary. LLVM/CLang is fear mongered about for example simply because it's permissively licensed and thus to Stallman it's doubleplus badthink, because it's possible that some company could theoretically someday take the code and add proprietary extensions to it or use it in a proprietary product.

[Michael_S]

If free software cannot attract users on its own merits, apart from its ethical status, then it doesn't deserve success.

Think about what you wrote, and try to substitute other ideas into it. "If our campaign to stop rapists does not attract users because we have poor publicity, apart from its ethical status, then the rapists don't deserve to be stopped."

The Free Software Foundation fights a tremendously difficult battle, by choice. Copyleft software licensing makes profitable business models built on software difficult. There are tens of thousands of successful companies based on proprietary software sales and services, and only dozens of successful companies built on completely free software. But that's the whole point of the FSF, to prioritize maintaining the freedom of the source code over a business model. It just has the inevitable side effect of making it hard to get contributors. Microsoft, Google, Apple, Oracle, Intel, IBM, Cisco, Comcast, Verizon, Samsung - they have billions of dollars to spend hiring developers to work on their code. The FSF probably doesn't even have a million dollars in total assets.

Fighting an almost impossible battle can still be the right thing to do. If American abolitionists in the 1820s had given up, the chain of events leading to the 13th Amendment would have never happened. They were trying to do the right thing, and it took decades. The cause of the FSF isn't anywhere near as serious as slavery, but the same principle applies - if you're doing the right thing, patience and persistence matter even if your current situation is terrible. You don't have to win quickly or easily for your cause to be worthwhile.

[rabcor]

I think the FSF should be rebuilt and centered primarily around PR, and I mean actually doing PR. Increase public awareness of free software and how awesome it can be, decrease ramblings about how bad everything that's not free is (how is that even supposed to help?) focus on pulling people in to the free software world for all the things that are good about it (especially the ones that are good from a non-developer/end-user perspective), rather than trying to scare them into disliking what they already like and use. It's not gonna work, it sounds like fanaticism to anyone who isn't invested in the idea (and maybe it actually is).

If they're not gonna base themselves around PR, then rebuild to base themselves around building actually useful software, like hell, compete (or even join hands) with GIMP, make proper printer frontend to replace the obsolete and shit CUPS. Try to fix the things that are broken on linux desktop. It's just that I don't have a lot of faith in FSF as developers, so I think they should try to be a friendly face instead of workforce, hence, PR for free and open source software. (That's a tough enough job already)

[wikinevick]

Hmm since they are losing the game with LLVM, perhaps they could release all GCC, gdb and emacs under a permissive license and join forces with the Apache Software Foundation.

[tigerroast]

I can't wait until FSF evaluates this survey. Hopefully, it's as negative and dissenting as utterly possible in order to shake that lot to their core and get them to do something.

[artivision]

Another monopoly/oligopoly would replace it, shaped by consumers.

Native speed full D3D(wine) on Linux, plus Android game installation and play.

[89c51]

If the FSF wants to exist in the future they better start making SW that people actually want to use instead of whining about what other people develop.

[buzzrobot]

Making a mean networm to end M$ monopoly

Another monopoly/oligopoly would replace it, shaped by consumers.

[buzzrobot]

Have you contributed towards doing it? Do you report bugs that impact you, do you perform quality assurance (like beta testing)?

Yes, I've done my share. Debugging and beta testing really isn't the point, though. It's more about product conception, design, execution and marketing.

[buzzrobot]

Sorry what you're looking for is Open Source Software not Free Software in that case. Free Software is all about ideology even and especially at the expense of quality. Open Source are the guys who care about quality and improving the software ecosystem as a whole.

Angels on a pinhead stuff, then. RMS, et al, have been at it for 30 years and they're the only ones wearing hairshirts.