Date: Mon, 04 May 1998 14:54:15 -0600 From: Brett Glass <brett@lariat.org> To: chat@FreeBSD.ORG, advocacy@FreeBSD.ORG Subject: InfoWorld brawl esclates Message-ID: <199805042054.OAA09692@lariat.lariat.org>
next in thread | raw e-mail | index | archive | help
The brawl in the InfoWorld forum is accelerating. After pointing out some of the recent statistics from wcarchive, showing the increase in FreeBSD downloads, I've been branded as a "zealot," as "hyping" FreeBSD, and as a stooge for large corporations. I didn't realize that the religious fervor among the Stallmanites was so intense, or that they had the blinders on so tight. I'm now convinced that these folks ARE out to kill the *BSDs. Apparently, they're a threat to the GPL zealots for two reasons. First, they prove that the restrictive terms of the GPL are not necessary to the success of collaboratively developed softwre; and second, they provide the access to re-usable source code that Richard Stallman hoped to deny to commercial software publishers. This latter point seems to be a source of real animosity among those who subscribe to Stallman's anti-business views. So, don't get too comfortable, guys. If what I see is any indication, the BSDs are seriously under attack. They might do well to respond -- with hard numbers, proven advantages, AND a bit of zealotry of their own. Oh, and while I happen to be on the subject, I just visited the site http://www.opensource.org and noted that it read like a commercial for Linux -- lots of mentions of Linux and only one of FreeBSD. So, I e-mailed Eric Raymond about this, asking why FreeBSD had been relegated to a footnote on their page at http://www.opensource.org/products.html while Linux was mentioned at the top and throughout. He said, "Send me information on a conmmercial FreeBSD vendor with a > $1M annual runrate and I'll use it." Hmmm. --Brett Glass To Unsubscribe: send mail to majordomo@FreeBSD.org with "unsubscribe freebsd-chat" in the body of the message
Want to link to this message? Use this URL: <https://mail-archive.FreeBSD.org/cgi/mid.cgi?199805042054.OAA09692>