Re: [Bug-gnupedia] Content Format

[Mike Warren]

Alexander Braun <address@hidden> writes:

> sorry if I'm meddling, but exactly this is the point of free. you
> can't act free if you allow to chain the stuff by not free software.
> if you would allow to send word-documents, you would cast away every
> effort the fsf did to help to maintain freedom.

I agree (and you're not ``meddling'' by sharing your opinion).

> [..] it's just about freedom. the whole thought of the encyclopedia
> is born struggling for freedom. the freedom of thoughts, the freedom
> to talk and the freedom of staying human the next decades. and i
> assure you there must not be any impact of non-free software,
> thoughts packaging and so on, because in the end this would spoil
> the idea.

I agree; a large part of the reason for the existence of the FSF and
the GNU project is campaigning for exactly this freedom. That is why
RMS constantly points out that the Free Software Movement is not the
Open Source Movement. That is why GIFs do not appear on the FSF Web
site. That is why the GPL exists, and why one is discouraged from
using the LGPL.

These reasons have little to do with practicality (it would be easy to
use GIFs on the FSF site, and allow more browsers to see the pictures)
and everything to do with the philosophy behind the FSF and the GNU
project.

To simply say, ``lots of people use Word'' as a reason for ignoring
these issues goes against everything the FSF stands for.

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