[Office-commits] r9886 - trunk/campaigns

[sysadmin]

Author: www-data
Date: Thu Oct  1 11:20:15 2009
New Revision: 9886

Log:
web commit by tal82k

Added:
   trunk/campaigns/thecaranalogy_bullet_style.mdwn

Added: trunk/campaigns/thecaranalogy_bullet_style.mdwn
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--- /dev/null   00:00:00 1970   (empty, because file is newly added)
+++ trunk/campaigns/thecaranalogy_bullet_style.mdwn     Thu Oct  1 11:20:15 
2009        (r9886)
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+What if buying a new car were like using non-free software? While the 
following example may seem a little far-fetched, it is a pretty good analogy to 
understand the importance of user freedoms in software.
+
+* You would have to pay extra for a key to use the trunk
+
+* Upon opening the door for the first time you would find a paper that said 
that you have implicitly agreed to a contract without being able to read it
+
+* There would be an automatic "safety-upgrade" to the car after a while that 
would not allow you to go over 55 miles per hour
+
+* If you wanted to have your car fixed, you would have to go to a an 
accreditted, licensed repair shop.  It would be illegal for anyone else to open 
the hood.  When you get to your licensed repair shop, they would charge you an 
"accredited repair license surcharge."
+
+* When you bring your car in for repair of some funny noise, you would be told 
that some of those cars just make that noise.  Nothing to repair
+
+While these ideas may seem ridiculous, it is exactly what happens when a 
person chooses to use non-free software. You choose the software that best fits 
your needs, and sometimes a salesperson will help you out. You agree to a 
contract that you probably did not read, or sometimes you even implicitly agree 
to the terms by using the software. You use the softare. However, you can only 
use the software in ways that the publisher agrees with (driving, in our 
analogy). When the software malfunctions, or even when you want to make 
something better, there is nowhere to go except to the publisher of the 
software. You can not go to a friend who is good with computers. You can not go 
to a company to have them fix it for you. You must go to the developer. When 
you bring your problem to their attention, they may say, "We can fix that for 
you." They may say, "We will think about adding that in our next release." Or 
they may (probably) say, "That's a feature of the program, there is nothing to 
fix."
+
+Free software, on the other hand, promotes user freedoms. Free software is 
defined as: software that you can use for any purpose (driving, paper weight, 
art, etc.); software wherein you have the freedom to study it and change it if 
you wish with access to the source code (pop the hood and look at what's 
inside, repair or modify in any way you see fit); software that can be 
redistributed; and software where you can improve the program and release your 
improvements (add an active hood scoop and turbo-charger, and put the plans for 
doing so on your favorite modding site).
+
+We don't accept infringement on our freedoms when buying a car, so why should 
we with software?