Re: Intro to GNOME and the FSF

[Wolfgang Sourdeau <wolfgang ultim net>]

   I'm afraid I have to comment on this. Using GNOME to directly promote
   the GNU Project is very, very shortsighted, and will lead to problems.

I don't know why you think it is shortsighted because it is not at all.

   First is confusing the marketing and business types who do not
   understand Unix as it stands now, potentially leading them to believe
   that GNOME will not work on non-Linux Unix systems -- when dealing with

Why would we care about marketing guys as we (and GNU/Linux vendors
such as Redhat, etc...) are doing our own "marketing"?
Which interest would have a non-GNU software company in putting GNOME to
market?

Furthermore, we don't care about Unix in general because what you call
Unix is a proprietary system. The support for GNOME on those
architecture is only secondary (and even less, when you consider the
other free OS's out there). The purpose of GNOME is to have an
entirely free desktop system so that it becomes easy to
non-programmers/sysadmins people to have freedom through the GNU system.

If you want to talk about marketing. A good manner would be to do so
by promoting GNU having GNOME as one of its components.

   whole lot of "marketing" per se to throw around promoting GNU. A third
   potential problem is the alienation of the vendors of non-GNU systems --
   if you're company had to choice between two desktops, and one of which
   was making noise as a GNU system component, the other as a desktop,
   which would you choose?

The one with GNU software on it, for sure. Because I value freedom.

   IOW, rather than potentially confusing those who are not familiar with
   Unix, potentially wasting resources and time, and potentially alienating
   the non-Linux Unix system owners and vendors, why don't we
   concentrate

Why alienation are you talking about ?
The "alienation" I understand you are mentioning here is
irrelevant. Because once someone obtains the freedom to modify or
change every components of its system, then there is no alienation anymore.
And this is what the GNU system offers you and everyone else to have:
the ability to adapt your computer system to your own needs and your
own aspirations with the guaranty no one will prevent you to do so.

   etc.) Once Unix is #1, then we can worry about selling people on the
   advantages of the GPL over the commercial unices and the *BSD systems if
   we so choose. For now, let the GNU promoters promote GNU, they know
   better how to do it anyways. :-)

I wouldn't participate in this debate if I wasn't a GNU promoter...

Nonetheless, I suggest you strongly to read carefully the philosophy pages on
www.fsf.org. It will help you understand what the issues are regarding
the GNU project, the GNOME project, etc...