Re: FAQ release! Need help!

[Havoc Pennington <rhpennin midway uchicago edu>]

On Thu, 3 Sep 1998, Todd Graham Lewis wrote:
> 
> 1) Free software has a murky definition; someone please point me to the
> equivalent of "The Open Source Definition", v1.0.
>

The Debian Free Software Guidelines on www.debian.org?
 
> 2) I severaly dislike using imprecise terms like this.  Specifically,
> I want to make clear that traditionally non-FSF-related communities,
> such as xBSD and Mozilla, are our bretheren.  Stallman has said, if I
> am remember correctly, that BSD-style licenses are not free software.
> 

No, this isn't true. Stallman believes them to be free software. He just
thinks BSD is an inferior license to the GPL for promoting the free
software cause. I believe he was/is in agreement with the Open Source
Definition, he just doesn't like the name. 

> If this were an issue of the FAQ being inaccurate, then that would be
> one thing.  The FAQ is accurate in this case, however; you just happen not
> to be fond of my terminology.  I really do prefer the term "open source",
> I think that it's the better term, and so I would like to stick with it.
> 

The version of the FAQ I'm looking at says free software in some places
and uses both terms in others. Looks fine to me. 

I think the important thing is to use both. Then no one gets too upset.

Havoc