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Thread #: 1755

Incomprehensible Thing #1

Imitation Gruel

Sun May 5 06:09:31 2002

I don't understand free software.

When you go to a restaurant, you order food, and occasionally drinks. Someone makes the food. Someone brings it to your table. When you're done, you leave, and someone cleans up after you.

And this isn't free.

Air is free. Sunlight is free. The ocean is free. The grass and the ground, barring it being someone else's property, are free. The birds in the forest are free.

These things are free because, to some extent, they can't really be owned. Software can.

Software costs money to write. Software costs money to maintain. Software costs money to test, in order to make sure it works with other software. And hardware. Software costs money to box and wrap and ship.

So why should software be free? People worked hard on it, and should be compensated for their effort.

I'm not against free software. I just don't understand it.


Thank you.

DuffMan

Sun May 5 11:49:20 2002

No one wrote the software for you, like the cook prepared the meal for you. The programmer wrote the software, and does not have to do any additional work for you to use it. Whether or not you use it, has not bearing on the writer.

This is the issue. When you write a piece of software, how many people do you want to use it? Does your software have competition in the form of vaible alternatives? If there are alternatives, making the software free (or open source, GNU blah blah blah) will allow it to reach the most people. Charging for it might make you some money, but it decreases the relavance of your work. It's a ballancing act. Income vs. importance. Community vs. capitolism.

It's a personal decision for the programmer to make. I could see why someone would go either way.

Magus

Sun May 5 19:01:09 2002

from DuffMan posted at 6:49 am on May 5, 2002

it decreases the relavance of your work.
This is software, not art. I don't mean to be an ass, but I don't follow you.
fuX0ringM0r0n

Sun May 5 21:23:27 2002

from Magus posted at 12:01 pm on May 5, 2002

from DuffMan posted at 6:49 am on May 5, 2002

it decreases the relavance of your work.
This is software, not art. I don't mean to be an ass, but I don't follow you.

No.  You see, software *is* art.  And Microsoft is still struggling with stickman figures...and selling those atrocities at exorbitant prices too.

pauli

Sun May 5 21:23:34 2002

Software costs money to write.

no. it would be accurate to say "software takes time to write, and that investment of time must be justifiable to the coder."

DuffMan

Sun May 5 22:09:00 2002

from Magus posted at 2:01 pm on May 5, 2002

from DuffMan posted at 6:49 am on May 5, 2002

it decreases the relavance of your work.
This is software, not art. I don't mean to be an ass, but I don't follow you.

That doesn't mean software can't be more relavant or irrelavant. Some programmers see their work as a form of art. Like I said it's a personal decision.

pauli

Sun May 5 22:18:18 2002

dude. can i claim my work as a pc tech is art, and scream at users who don't appreciate it?
DuffMan

Sun May 5 22:31:32 2002

from pauli posted at 5:18 pm on May 5, 2002

dude. can i claim my work as a pc tech is art, and scream at users who don't appreciate it?

no

DeAthe

Sun May 5 22:50:30 2002

from pauli posted at 3:18 pm on May 5, 2002

dude. can i claim my work as a pc tech is art, and scream at users who don't appreciate it?

Yup, you may be classified as insane, but you can do it.

HitScan

Mon May 6 14:40:01 2002

dude. can i claim my work as a pc tech is art, and scream at users who don't appreciate it?

Iyam verking ze mazterpeeze! Yoo vill pay me muchly!
OscarWilde

Mon May 6 15:44:09 2002

from HitScan posted at 10:40 pm on May 6, 2002

dude. can i claim my work as a pc tech is art, and scream at users who don't appreciate it?

Iyam verking ze mazterpeeze! Yoo vill pay me muchly!

yes yes, joo are brillant mastar! brilliant. i grovel at your mastarful feet. i am nothing. i vill pay you muchly and make sacrafice of virgins in your name. joo are teh 1337 h4x0r coding m4573r. i bow to your brillance and pay vor your mastarpeeze.. very muchly indeed, indeed, indeed, indeeeeeeeeeeeeeeed...
muahaha..
muahahaha...
muahahahaha...
muhahahahahahaha!!!!
MUAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!!!

i ownz joo bootleg piratze... phear my kaaza skillz and 40xCD-burner... i vill crack your activation code and be rich! RICH!!! RICH!!!!

so fook you oll!

Magus

Mon May 6 17:47:02 2002

from fuX0ringM0r0n posted at 4:23 pm on May 5, 2002

No.  You see, software *is* art.
Tell me, do you actually program, or just talk out of your ass? Software is meant to solve a problem. If it happens to be pretty or elegant along the way, great. It's a science not an art.

And Microsoft is still struggling with stickman figures...and selling those atrocities at exorbitant prices too.
Then don't buy them, and don't bitch at people who choose to do so.
Xspung

Mon May 6 20:09:26 2002

No.  You see, software *is* art.

So are my terds.

And Microsoft is still struggling with stickman figures...and selling those atrocities at exorbitant prices too.

If that's the case, Apple is still learning how to hold their crayons properly and can't even draw a complete stick figure yet.

Apple user - Hey, my stick figure has no head?

Apple's response - Don't worry, take solace in the fact that it's the world's most advanced stick figure and we'll be giving you head RSN.

Magus

Mon May 6 20:56:00 2002

from Xspung posted at 3:09 pm on May 6, 2002

Apple user - Hey, my stick figure has no head?

Apple's response - Don't worry, take solace in the fact that it's the world's most advanced stick figure and we'll be giving you head RSN.

Apple user- I thought I was supposed to give it to Steve?
AllYorBaseRBelong2Us

Tue May 7 00:35:55 2002

yes yes, joo are brillant mastar! brilliant. i grovel at your mastarful feet. i am nothing. i vill pay you muchly and make sacrafice of virgins in your name. joo are teh 1337 h4x0r coding m4573r. i bow to your brillance and pay vor your mastarpeeze.. very muchly indeed, indeed, indeed, indeeeeeeeeeeeeeeed...
muahaha..
muahahaha...
muahahahaha...
muhahahahahahaha!!!!
MUAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!!!

OscarWilde needs to switch to decaf :)