The freedom to not speak

[DoctorMO]

To choose, per chance to taste what ever we want is a freedom we won't deny; but when it comes to free software, is choosing a closed source product like choosing not to speak?

Although like not speaking up, it doesn't benift anyone: are worlds moved, do virgins weep and more importantly do gnus die when you pick up non-free software?

It's a selfish choice I think; I won't say no or say it's wrong but are we happy as a community?

:-#

It works, it's great, it does what we "need" but is the price we don't know or care about too high?

[SunnyRabbiera]

Nah, it really depends on what you talk about.
Currently I like about three major closed source apps:
Opera web browser
Trillian (though the more recent versions are a bit redundant)
and Microsoft office (the only good MS product and the only one I will ever use on a normal basis, there are some bugs in open office that keep me tied to the MS gball and chain, mainly spreadsheets as I find open offices spreadsheet creator buggy.)

[prizrak]

To choose, per chance to taste what ever we want is a freedom we won't deny; but when it comes to free software, is choosing a closed source product like choosing not to speak?

Although like not speaking up, it doesn't benift anyone: are worlds moved, do virgins weep and more importantly do gnus die when you pick up non-free software?

It's a selfish choice I think; I won't say no or say it's wrong but are we happy as a community?

:-#

It works, it's great, it does what we "need" but is the price we don't know or care about too high?
There isn't always a choice sadly. So far I have run into a few issues with free software.
1) OpenGL - unless you got Intel you can forget about it w/o using closed source.
2) Wacom tablet - the drivers are there but the software necessary for calibration and contol over some function doesn't seem to be. Perhaps I'm wrong and there is some random command but I can't find it.
3) Bluetooth - on my machine it's plain not detected.
4) Wireless - if you have an Atheros based card you can't use it without closed source.

There are also a few closed source programs that are better than the FOSS alternatives, MS Office actually being one of them but for the most part AbiWord is fine for someone like me who just needs to make resumes. There are also games that by and large are closed source.

It would be nice to be able to be 100% FOSS but so far it doesn't provide the same functionality.

[Kindred]

1) OpenGL - unless you got Intel you can forget about it w/o using closed source.

(The open source ATI drivers work amazingly well for me and many others, just saying.)

[DoctorMO]

There are also a few closed source programs that are better than the FOSS alternatives, MS Office actually being one of them but for the most part AbiWord is fine for someone like me who just needs to make resumes. There are also games that by and large are closed source.

It would be nice to be able to be 100% FOSS but so far it doesn't provide the same functionality.

My argument is not that closed source does not have better results currently but that by selecting functionality now you are not speaking up for what you believe in or at least what you should protect which is free software.

Technicality be damned, if there was a law that required everyone to use Microsoft Windows Vista on _any_ computer, I would take up gardening.

[prizrak]

(The open source ATI drivers work amazingly well for me and many others, just saying.)

In OpenGL with Beryl/Compiz and the few games that are out there? (Just curious I tend to steer clear of ATI on any platform).


My argument is not that closed source does not have better results currently but that by selecting functionality now you are not speaking up for what you believe in or at least what you should protect which is free software.
My argument was that when it comes to computers in 99.9% of the cases functionality overrules ideology. There are also cases where free will never be as good as closed (GFX drivers are a huge example). In my opinion FOSS is developer driven rather than consumer. It's kind of like that movie "Robots", see a need, feel a need, only in this case it's the programmer who has the need.

I'll try to express myself as clearly as I can as it makes sense to me in my head but on e-paper.....
Basically the more people turn to FOSS solutions the more companies will provide proprietary software for FOSS platforms. With the dedication and clear goals proprietary development paradigm works well enough to compete successfully with FOSS in certain areas since FOSS is mostly "develop when I feel like it" paradigm. Now it works very well in some areas but in others it is lagging (that is pretty much a fact and is clearly visible in Linux). So there is a very good chance that a good number of people will go to proprietary, especially if they start listening to what the user wants.

IMO FOSS will actually benefit more from people turning away from it. 3rd parties will stop fulfilling the needs programmers have and they will start coding up their own applications.

In reality I believe that FOSS is not a Panacea and is not always beneficial. I believe in the mix between the two. The issue at hand is how companies deal with their customers and competition. Well just my 2cents :)

[daynah]

The world is wicked. You cannot not make a choice. To do so would be to stop time itself. Each moment passes you make a choice. Even if you stay perfectly still... you are choosing, deciding not to do something. You're taking a stand NOT to rally pro-life at some convention and also NOT to rally pro-choice at that same convention. By your indecision surrounding making no choice at all, you're making a decision that affects everything around you.

This is coming from the historically most indecisive person in the world (my boyfriend orders my food for me). But just be aware that you are making a decision to be indecisive.

[DoctorMO]

The world is wicked. You cannot not make a choice. To do so would be to stop time itself. Each moment passes you make a choice. Even if you stay perfectly still... you are choosing, deciding not to do something. You're taking a stand NOT to rally pro-life at some convention and also NOT to rally pro-choice at that same convention. By your indecision surrounding making no choice at all, you're making a decision that affects everything around you.

Tell that to the cat, quantum says your wrong.

[Shay Stephens]

My progress has been leading me from proprietary to free software. But I use my computer for work (photography) and can't yet go 100% free because it would mean the loss of functionality I currently depend on. So I am going to be doing what I can, when I can.

I currently use Photoshop CS2 and Bridge to edit my RAW files. There is no free solution to this that currently works for me. I won't be upgrading to the next Photoshop version so that I don't continue to sink down the dependency hole. My short term goal is to switch to using Bibble in linux to edit my photos.

Bibble is not free software, but it is better for my freedom than Photoshop is, it runs on linux natively and there is no activation scheme implemented in it. And it does 90% of what I am used to using. It only requires a small amount of changing my workflow. It does enough of what I need that I can start using it. With time, other solutions may become functional enough for me to use. I demo a lot of software in the hopes of finding practical solutions.

So my strategy is to limit my support and reliance on proprietary/non-free software with an eye to replacing with capable free software as it becomes available. I think this is a reasonable compromise in the short term with benefits to my freedom in the long term. And in the meantime, I can continue to get my work done. I may use non-free software now and in the short term future, but such choices will be made to move me ever closer to freedom. I will be choosing a non-free app that is freer than the one it replaces.

If companies were to track my purchases and usage, they would see a trend toward freedom and away from activation, drm, and proprietary apps.

[DoctorMO]

If you've got an eye for design then helping out photo editing projects with moc'ups of the ideal gui would be very helpfull. you know programmers they care that it works not that it works for you. :-P

[.t.]

To encourage non-free software is not only bad for yourself but also everybody in the long term.

[JarG0n]

My head hurts.


The world is wicked. You cannot not make a choice. To do so would be to stop time itself. Each moment passes you make a choice. Even if you stay perfectly still... you are choosing, deciding not to do something. You're taking a stand NOT to rally pro-life at some convention and also NOT to rally pro-choice at that same convention. By your indecision surrounding making no choice at all, you're making a decision that affects everything around you.

This is coming from the historically most indecisive person in the world (my boyfriend orders my food for me). But just be aware that you are making a decision to be indecisive.