[buug] TonStanco is at it again...

[Rick Moen]

begin Feedlebom quotation:

> The only problem with Tony is the fact that he's a lot more than a
> whiner.  Don't forget: he was (allegedly) working on a story for
> publication.  Press having the wrong idea about what this is about is
> far worse than your average whiner being misinformed.

Better you than me, then.  If you grant that it's a worthwhile task to
educate writers, you still can pick which ones to work on.  

> I never claim purity.  I also use Microsoft Windows.

Hmpf.  Never liked it.  Ditched it for good back in the early '90s.

> When closed-source software does the job, it gets used (and paid for).

I find it technically deficient on its merits, as a general rule.  And
life's too short to spend time learning it.

> To be frank, Linux has fattened my wallet because it's created job
> opportunities that I probably would not have in the Windows world.
> Because of that, Linux is good.  

Nothing wrong with that.  One of the most important freedoms FSF has
fought for is the freedom to use software commercially.  

> I don't view the open source movement as the white knight saving me
> from the evil daemons (heh) of Redmond.

<yawn>  That's so 1993.

> I am aware of Pine's "free beer but not free speech" licensing.  In
> many ways, I have no problem with their licensing terms, and I
> understand their approach.

Users on my system, when they type "pine", get mutt with the Pinerc
configuration file.  They don't miss pine.  When they type "pico", they
get nano -- and you can't even see any differences.

> While it is not completely compatible with the letter (or in some
> cases spirit) of the GPL....

The right to distribute modified versions is an essential element of
what makes software free.  (It's likewise a key point of the Open Source
Definition, http://www.opensource.org/osd.html .)

-- 
Cheers,                   "Teach a man to make fire, and he will be warm 
Rick Moen                 for a day.  Set a man on fire, and he will be warm
rick at linuxmafia.com       for the rest of his life."   -- John A. Hrastar