Linux free software movement

[Kurt Cockrum]

Reference: <199901211922.LAA05842 at scn.org>
In-Reply-To: <Pine.SUN.3.96.990204022633.27497A-100000 at scn>

Rich said:
>This seems like a very good thing to stay in touch with.  
>
>1.	Can the techies, at some point, evaluate the general doability of
>this.

We do Linux already.  Many of us are Linux users and have personal
Linux machines.  I think we have at least 1 Linux machine going at scn,
and as the need arises, will probably get others going.

I have been advocating Linux usage within scn for many years, usually
accompanied by the click of rolling eyeballs :)

>2.	Should the board set up a small task force to look into the Linux
>options?

Why not just direct the hsw group to look into it and report back?  Unless
you are afraid of possible "biasing" or overly-proLinux partisanship.
But I think we can keep that under control.  I think we're fairly honest.

But it would be a *major* *help* to be more explicit.

On Thu, 21 Jan 1999, Doug Schuler wrote:
> I just finished an article on Linux and the free software movement.

Pointers?

> These hackers (from all over the world) are working together to build
> open-source operating system, software tools, and, recently, a public
> domain GUI (called gnome - pronounced guh-nome).  They seem to be taken
> very seriously -- especially in third world countries that can't afford
> version 173.2.1 updates, etc.

Well, there are a few caveats.  For one thing, some intellectual effort
on the part of the user is still required, as well as the willingness
                           ^^^^^
to acquire trouble-shooting skills.  Some people think this is a good
thing :) , some people think it's bad.  However, local Linux user-groups
usually go out of their way to help beginners.

> My questions --
> 
> 1. Do *we* (community networkers) offer anything analogous?  (Seems to
> me that the Usenet newsgroups may be the closest thing.  What's our
> connection to THEM?  will the web put THEM out of business?  I wonder
> how their numbers are growing. )

I don't really understand your questions.  Can you rephrase them?
Are you, for example, asking if the web will put the Linux folk out of
business?  I can't imagine how.  The web would just get assimilated into
Linux.  Linux is really doing what the dinoBorg only wishes it could do.
The dinoBorg's rear brain hasn't yet gotten the message from up for'd.
That's partly because inside the dinoBorg, each neuron is really a
NTeuron(TM) :) :)

> 2.  How can *we*  build bridges with them?  Is there a natural fit:
> public software, public information, public communication?

o	Information wants to be free, just like people do.  What could the
	two do together?  Is this combination contagious and synergistic?
	I sure hope so,  because it's the only hope for sustainable
	social change I have, in the face of what looks like overwhelmingly
	anti-social forces of control, apathy and dumb-down.

o	Support a port of software you want to use, to Linux.
	For example, a port of FreePort or Chebucto.  You may think it's
	pretty ugly, but somebody in Dahomey might not.  As clunky as it
	is, it's a great "last-mile" app, just like uucp & fidonet used
	to be (and probably still is in some places).  Cuba makes heavy
	use of uucp, so I hear.  Could they use a Linux-ported FreePort
	(or some other community-type groupware)?  Such software can be
	pretty subversive, a major plus IMO.

o	Get hooked up with local user groups.  There's a rich local scene.
	The Puget Sound Linux User Group is pretty active.  They are
	very interested in promoting Linux usage.  Speaking before them
	might be interesting, as might be web-linking to them.
	L Winn <lwinn at u.washington.edu> posted a bunch of URL's in an
	earlier post.

o	Linux users could be a rich source of help.  There are a lot of
	knowledgable Linux users out there.  If we ran Linux ourselves,
	we'd have a lot less trouble attracting knowledgable volunteers
	(at least in the techie dept).	Think about the difference
	between "wanted: people to help maintain our community network
	hosted on an old buggy dinosaur cast-off OS/CPU" and "wanted:
	people to help maintain our community network hosted on Linux".
	How many of one vs.  the other could be expected?  Sounds like
	a no-brainer to me, at least if the "vinegar vs. honey" theory
	of fly-attraction is valid.

o	A lot of stuff that currently gets put off or procrastinated on
	at scn would *get* *done*, because for a given topic,
	Linux-oriented knowledge exists that is *unmatched* by say,
	Sun-oriented knowledge.  Security is one example of this.
	There aren't so many Sun-knowledgable users out there, and it
	isn't all that attractive (vinegar vs. honey).	Whenever I do
	work on scn (as part of the hardware gang) I always feel like
	I'm putting on a hair shirt.  Naturally, I'd like to see less
	hair content in the shirt, and Linux is a way to replace the
	hair with silk.  :)
--kurt
* * * * * * * * * * * * * *  From the Listowner  * * * * * * * * * * * *
.	To unsubscribe from this list, send a message to:
majordomo at scn.org		In the body of the message, type:
unsubscribe scn
==== Messages posted on this list are also available on the web at: ====
* * * * * * *     http://www.scn.org/volunteers/scn-l/     * * * * * * *