Linked by Thom Holwerda on Tue 9th Nov 2010 22:24 UTC, submitted by koki
Now this is interesting. We see what is at its core a very valid concern, in practice not a problem to anyone, and, thanks to the tone of the press release, close to trolling. The Free Software Foundation Latin America is complaining about something that has been known for a while - there is some non-Free code stuck in the Linux kernel (mostly firmware). A valid issue of concern from an idealogical viewpoint, but sadly, the tone of the press release turns this valid concern into something close to trolling.
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RE[3]: I'm not so sure where I stand on this issue.
by vodoomoth on Wed 10th Nov 2010 12:31
in reply to "RE[2]: I'm not so sure where I stand on this issue."
Member since:2010-03-30
Repeat after me: Copyright restricts distribution.
Not true. I believe the Mercurial definitive guide at http://hgbook.red-bean.com/ is a counter-example.
Freely distributable, modifiable, commentable, etc. You may even send feedback to the author. I haven't looked for a copyright notice (or read the book yet) but I presume he retains the copyright, no matter how free he makes his work for others.
Being a copyright owner doesn't make you an evil person all of a sudden. Copyright was legitimate when created. It's what people have been doing on its behalf that has become ugly in some cases.
RE[4]: I'm not so sure where I stand on this issue.
by aargh on Wed 10th Nov 2010 13:16
in reply to "RE[3]: I'm not so sure where I stand on this issue."
Member since:2009-10-12
*Palmface* over misunderstood oversimplification.
Of course, copyright gives the copyright holder the right to control distribution. Of course, he may give it up, retaining other rights (like attribution) or imposing conditions on distribution (like GPL). That's what free software & co. are about.
What we're talking about here is distribution of binary blobs that aren't free software and their copyright holder retains the right to distribute them. IOW, distribution of those binary blobs which Linux distributors don't have the right to distribute.
Member since:
2009-10-12
You're confusing "binary drivers" with "binary firmware". They are not the same thing. You are arguing about the wrong thing.
Repeat after me: Copyright restricts distribution. Unauthorized distribution of firmware is not different from drivers or music or books.