Re: Rewarding who write free software (was Re: Gnome Web Browser)

[Redaelli Paolo <redaelli inc it>]

Il 23-Apr-98, Andreas Kostyrka ha scritto:
>> Because I do strongly want that software should be free, but I found
>unlawful
>unlawfull?
... oh geek, I though unfair. English is not my native language and althought
I've got a neat 621/660 in my Toefl english test sometimes I make stupid
errors....
>Nope. Nobody forces the people to release their software under GPL.
>> that the work necessary to produce such wonderfuls programs is not paid. 
>> I'm born in Padania (formerly known as North Italy) and here we stress so
>much
>> the slogan "everyone should be able to live of his work".
>The point is, that for most people doing GPLed software, the software is
>not work (or at least not only work). That's an important difference: When
>I'm doing ``mere'' work (be it at university, be it at work), than I just
>do my work. Free developers usually are much more involved with their
>work.
... First I would like to tell everybody that I've been persuaded by your
mails to use the Gpl.
The key to what my thought was "that for most people doing GPLed software, the
software is
not work". I was thinking about a way to permit people to "work full time of
GPL software, and get paid for the work".


>> I think that a modified version of the Gpl (or other free software licence)
>> can help us.
>Nope. GPL was crafted the way it is, so it protect against this :)
.... ops.... I meant, "I think that a licence modelled after the Gpl; a
licence that keeps the spirit of the three freedoms, freedom to use, to copy
and to modify, while giving the programmers a more sure way to earn money from
their work"
>> I think that we can finance free software and the people who dedicate
>> themselves to creating free software with son duties in the Licence. 
>This wouldn't really work. Free software is usually a cooperative work.
... I've been thinking about it. If we can use Cvs to know how much of a
software is written by every single programmer (at object or source level) we
have a rule to divide incomes of the free Sw

>> Because Freedom implies some duties.
>Right. I consider the duty to be contribute back.
But not everyone can contribute with work.
I was thinking to every non programmers who now use computers.
Many of them thinks that the work necessary to produce software (even GPLed
one) should be paid, but they're afraid of high costs of proprietary software.
Pushing them to give small sums to FSF or other companies that boost free
software can result in great incomes that eventually will permit developers to
write free software full time.
>> The duty I wa thinking about was the duty to finance the development of
free
>> software.
>But there is noone who you can finance as one person. Free software is a
>distributed system.
People can pay Red hat (for example) which in turn can keep a share of the
money and give the rest to the developer.
And Cvs could help to tell what shares to apply.


>That's one nice point about free software:
[....some snips...]
You have convinced me. 8-)
I do beleive in GPLed software more than before now.

>> which in turn should pay some shares to everyone who contribute to the
>> project).
>That's not really possible. Too many people are involved. And how do you
>judge who should get how much? line count? (get real, sometimes a bright
>idea from a mere user may be more worth than the whole implementation :) )
... ah, that's the point! I thought about it for FIVE months.
The end of my thoughts is that:
The share to apply is proportional to the weighted average of source size, and
object of the source for 4-5 Cpu (for example PowerPc, x86, 68k, Sparc and
Alpha) and (optional) size of the documentation.
This way we get rid of execessive comments, which are nevertheless necessary
as the code itself to understand its way of working. The great number of
object file for varius Cpu tell us how intrinsecally difficoult to write was
that module.
Weitght can be: 2* for every object file, 1* for sources and includes, 0.5*
for documentation (one kind only and text or Html only) Picture needed in the
docs should have a very low weight such as 0.02* or 0.01*



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