Contamination
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| Author | Content |
|---|---|
| wind0wsr3fund May 12, 2006 12:31 PM EDT |
As always, Lxer.com comes through and provides yet another opportunity to run non-free software on our GNU/Linux servers. |
| Scott_Ruecker May 12, 2006 12:38 PM EDT |
"Keep your friends close, but keep your enemies closer" - Julius Ceasar |
| dcparris May 12, 2006 12:53 PM EDT |
Sun Tzu said something rather similar. Still, anyone who knows me knows I'm no fan of non-free software. News is news, though, and I can't not run a story because it happens to be about non-free software - biased as I am. |
| herzeleid May 12, 2006 2:26 PM EDT |
I feel it's absolutly crucial to be able to run any kind of software you want on linux, free or otherwise - if not, how much freedom is it really? I for one am not content to abandon the desktop and the business markets to microsoft. I am pleased and excited that vendors are providing a real alternative to microsoft windoze on its home turf. I will be downloading and evaluating the free 12-user version, and if it's as good as I'm hoping it is, I'll be recommending it to a number of business I have connections with, who currently use ms exchange and would love to move to a linux-based solution if only it did not mean giving up certain specific features of ms exchange that certain of their people insist they can't do without. If you want to run absolutley no non-free software, you can certainly do that, and I'll respect that choice - but I'm not willing to retreat into a hobbyist world and abandon the real world to crappy monopolists like microsoft. |
| wind0wsr3fund May 12, 2006 2:38 PM EDT |
freedoms 0-3 do not speak to the freedom to run non-free software. You are confusing the issue herzeleid. |
| dcparris May 12, 2006 4:55 PM EDT |
herzeleid:
The OP is a slander against LXer - it has less to do with the article's actual content than with one individual's grudge. wind0wsr3fund: The fact is that, just because we run a news article doesn't mean we support something or don't support it. We have articles about Microsoft, Sun, Red Hat, the FSF & OSI all the time. I have even written articles about Microsoft. I'd like to know where you were during the Freespire debates. If you have a grudge against LXer, fine. Just watch how you throw accusations around without thinking first. News is news. People come here to get the news. If you don't like the news, start your own news site. If you want to warn people of the dangers of using non-free software, fine. But don't make this about LXer supporting non-free software. |
| dinotrac May 12, 2006 6:21 PM EDT |
Hey Rev: I think you're taking this all wrong. M. W3hoozitz seems to be the sort whose disdain you can take as a badge of honor. There is no need to be remotely defensive about informing us about Linux capabilities (it is LXer, after all, not FSFer) that happen to be non-free. There is nothing wrong with LXer supporting non-free software in the same sense that Linux does, ie, Linux developers aren't into it, but they won't keep Linux from running it. If good ol' W3hoozitz actually cared about or understood freedom s/he would realize that software nobody uses doesn't increase anybody's freedom. My experience has been that businesses (quite sensibly) don't just toss out the old and bet the farm on Linux. Ernie Ball excepted, of course. ;0) The thing is, once you have it in-house and start to work with it, you find out how good it is and you do more with it. Along the way, you use more and more free software. That's a good thing, even if ol' w3hoozitz can't grasp the concept. |
| dcparris May 12, 2006 10:04 PM EDT |
It's not even about whether we support or don't support non-free software. The issue is that this guy wants to make a news story about something it's not (i.e., LXer being part of some nefarious plot by the non-free software community to undermine the FOSS community). What set me off is I know this guy's history with our editorial team - and apparently with others as well. I am usually much more patient with trolls. If he had presented a case for the dangers of mixing free and non-free software, I would have been in the thick of it, having my usual fun. If he had presented some evidence that the article did not belong on LXer, I could have handled that as well. If he had presented some evidence that we are involved in a nefarious plot, I could have at least played along. ;-) But you can't accuse LXer of promoting something when it's a *news* story - it's news. Oh wait, that might explain why murders are up this year in my town. I see murder stories on the news. Yeah, that's the ticket! Why didn't I see it before? Channel M is providing opportunities for murder by running news stories about murders! Ahhhh! Gasp! I'm calling the mayor right now. This can't wait. I don't care if it *is* 02:00 AM. We have to shut down Channel M right away! They're providing opportunities for murder! O.k., I think it's time for a little shut-eye now. |
| tuxchick2 May 13, 2006 6:52 AM EDT |
Don, think of the children. Remember, talking about things is the same as endorsing and promoting them. Our moral fibers are threatened. |
| dinotrac May 13, 2006 6:57 AM EDT |
tuxchick2 - >Our moral fibers are threatened. I find that pre-washing often helps to restore moral fibers. It's also amazing what a little vinegar or, believe it or not, WD-40 can do when it comes to getting out stains. |
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