__/ [ High Plains Thumper ] on Sunday 15 April 2007 00:35 \__
>
> [H]omer wrote:
>> The [H]omer award for COLA Advocate of the Week:
>>
>> Kelsey Bjarnason <kbjarnason@xxxxxxxxxxx>
>> (Defining the goals of Linux and its users)
>>
>> .----
>> | Linux isn't about trying to outdo Windows; fundamentally, it simply
>> | doesn't care about Windows. Linux is about a community. It's about
>> | sharing - code, testing, ideas, documentation, whatever - for the
>> | benefit of all its users.
>> |
>> | You really have to get out of this commercial mindset in order to
>> | really "get" Linux. I tell people about it, the first question most
>> | ask is "If it's free, how do they make money off it?"
>> |
>> | That's just it; it's not about money. Nor about taking over the
>> | world. Nor even about getting rid of Windows, or even just "beating"
>> | Windows. If you insist upon examining it as a competition, or in
>> | terms of money, you'll never get it.
>> |
>> | It's about community. It's about sharing. It's about making things
>> | better for all the users. It's about enhancing things to work better
>> | for yourself, but also sharing those enhancements with others,
>> | knowing they, too, will benefit. It's about reaping the same sort of
>> | benefits from others. It's a community, sharing for the betterment
>> | of all.
>> `----
>
> This is the best explanation of the purpose of Linux I have seen yet.
> The explanation about Linux not being about money is on target. Much
> of the anti-Linux troll brigade here continues to bring up the theme
> of money, with arguments like, "pony up the bucks", "anything free,
> well, you get what you paid for", and ad nauseum.
>
> I find the stability and smooth running of Linux with low OS overhead
> a definite advantage. You need scientific computing? The tools are
> there. You want eye candy? The desktop themes, screen savers, 3D
> desktop are there. Need office automation? The applications are
> there.
>
> Yes, it is about community and for the betterment of all.
It is only made possible owing to the fact that electronic data is exchanged
for a pittance. People still think in terms of car production and the likes
of that. But it's wrong. It's wrong from the start. The same goes for
software patents, where maths can be entangled with an /ownership/
conundrum. These arguments go on to discuss paperless offices, the ability
to work from home, and Second Life. The world is changing. Why resist it?
--
~~ With kind regards
Roy S. Schestowitz | Run a Linux server, sit on your hands all day
http://Schestowitz.com | Open Prospects ¦ PGP-Key: 0x74572E8E
Tasks: 111 total, 1 running, 108 sleeping, 0 stopped, 2 zombie
http://iuron.com - knowledge engine, not a search engine
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