[Ilugc] ILUGC - Should'nt the name should change
- From: ramanraj@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx (Ramanraj K)
- Date: Sun Jul 25 07:48:12 2004
Sridhar R wrote:
Similarly I can't accept the other way--calling the system just
"Linux", when it refers to the kernel alone.
During the course of this thread, srs wrote:
On Sun, Jul 18, 2004 at 10:12:03PM +0530, Mohammed Riyaz wrote:
I think Mr.Anand Babu was quite clear on this issue. All these
developers develop such good software and all you can give back to them
is credit. And if people feel that they could compromize others creidt
as per their convinence, i think it is morally wrong.
OK. Please feel free to rename India as Gandhi/India then.
After all, you don't want to compromise Mahatma Gandhi's credit, do you?
In "Gandhi the Man", Eknath Easwaran has narrated the following
incident:
<quote>
Gandhi was in jail again when the British decided to convene a "round
table conference" to decide India's fate. India's "representatives,"
invited by British crown officials, were maharajas and politicians who
were largely supported by the strength of British rule. Gandhi's
American missionary friend Stanley Jones used to tell with great
amusement how he was asked by Lord Irwin, the Viceroy of India, if
Gandhi should be invited too. "Gandhi is India." Jones replied. "If
you invite him, you invite India. If you do not, no matter whom else
you do invite, all India will be absent." Lord Irwin, a little
embarrassed, served Gandhi His Majesty's invitation in the cell at His
Majesty's Yervada Prison. [1]
</quote>
Gandhi is India whereas GNU and Linux are not the same.
The software freedom struggle has a parallel with the freedom struggle
India faced and succeeded, and now we can afford to take much for
granted. In the past archives that Suraj pointed to, Prabhu, our List
Admin, has objected to the copyleft clauses in the GPL. Even for us
in India, achieving Independence never meant freedom without
restrictions. Many of our freedoms that are guaranteed by our
Constitution are not absolute but qualified with restrictions to make
the freedoms meaningfully available for all. The restrictions imposed
by the GPL are there only to guarantee freedom to the free software
community, and can hardly be seen as restrictions in isolation, but
has to be read in the light of its objects. Practically, FreeBSD
developers, use gcc and other tools released under the GPL, and
generally have no serious differences with FSF or the GPL. Some use
the GPL and others use the BSD License, or release all rights by
placing their works under the public domain, as a matter of personal
choice. FSF advocates use of GPL over the other licenses to ensure
that the modifications also remain free.
ILUGC freely discusses free software issues, that includes work under
the GNU, Linux, BSD and other free software projects. "Linux" is
compiled with gcc, released under the GPL, uses several GNU and BSD
tools, and at best ILUGC is a neat label that identifes and
distinguishes this group from other such Gnu/Linux groups.
NIC has recently launched its new portal using plone for adopting free
and open standards and software:
http://osf.nic.in/ Some see such
events as a success for "Open Source" and defeat for "Free Software".
From a strictly legal point of view, "free" is the only adjective that
can correctly qualify a software license where under an author
releases his rights. I thought "free software" could be used more
freely, without being or feeling tied to the Free Software Foundation.
I have proposed a name change, that of "Free Software Foundation" to
"FSF", so that the generic expression "free software" would not be
associated or branded exclusively with FSF or the GNU project.
http://mm.gnu.org.in/pipermail/fsf-friends/2004-July/002196.html
That is the only name change I wish would come true :)
-Ramanraj.
Footnotes:
[1] Gandhi the Man by Eknath Easwaran, Jaico Books, at p. 76. BTW,
"cell" durind the days of domination meant the small room that
confined a prisoner, and of course, these days, it is short for a
"cell"ular device, with which we can roam free in this land of Gandhi.
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