On 08/30/2016 09:43 AM, Holger Levsen wrote: > Hi, > > http://www.jonobacon.org/2016/08/29/linux-linus-bradley-open-source-protection/ > just popped up in my rss feed and I thought I'd share it with you… it's > a comment on the recent GPL enforcement debate on the (upstream) kernel > list. > > I basically agree with Jono here. > >
For years and years companies are using community hard work and creating their "great" products without turning back. Not only they don't comply with Freedom licenses, they are even creating atmosphere that proprietary product is always of higher quality and better support compared to FLOSS ones, yet you daily find that they shamelessly built almost entire product with FLOSS stack (even if they added some third-party proprietary stack it is a good chance that third-party is also built with large chunks of FLOSS stack). And it is not like they choose it by mistake. They choose GPL on purpose and violate it on purpose. There are numerous other licenses they can choose and not violate, yet they choose GPL and violate it. The last resort situation was already decade ago (and I am not even mentioning here patent trolls that tried to invade FLOSS communities with their law pressures) so I don't see the point of talking about taking any other approach. Linux Foundation is corporation (you can call it non-profit consortium and use all other buzz words, but it effectively is business and large corporation), and it is getting big sponsorships from proprietary companies. Linus gets paycheck from it so he naturally defends it. It is human instinct to do so, because it brings food on your table. I understand that, but as with every other organization that thinks they know best, deal is - even if all your members think the same, you're still not benefiting larger community that you assume you represent nor do you comply with what larger community expects. People all over the world created Free software for decades and just small number of those people got employed to work on Free software for living, so when companies take fruit of their work and violate the core idea behind it - then we are automatically at last resort and I am thankful that at least one organization tries to protect and enforce such idea compared to all others who simply either don't care or violate it. Free software is also a social movement that we need to protect, share and show people and with all violators and mindset that is going on in trying to show that only way to do things or create "great" things is proprietary I can only see dark ages and not progress. I don't know is it a time for GPLv4 which will explain to all corporations that THIS LICENSE mean you must participate with community and also make people aware that it is not only license but movement towards better humanity that cooperates all the time in all fields without fear of being left out or not earning enough for decent life and not engage that only way to achieve is by lies, manipulation, abuse, FUD, secrets. Lets not repeat history here but be proactive in defense of our and our users rights. My (valuable) 15mins, -- Zlatan Todorić Proud Debian Developer .''`. : :Ⓐ : # apt-get install anarchism `. `'` `-
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