Re: [orca-list] The new Hypra website

[Devin Prater <r d t prater gmail com>]

You know, I was using OcrDesktop for a few things, like video game 
screens, youtube videos, and I'm not sure what OCR engine it uses,but 
gosh it works amazingly! Is there any reason to use non-free engines 
anyways?


On 08/26/2016 09:37 PM, kendell clark wrote:
> hi
>
> I agree with burt. I'm a lot more inclined to use and promote free and 
> open source software, and the idea of a "blindness" company turns my 
> stomach. Not that I'm saying hypra is one, just that I've had such bad 
> experiences with companies like humanware, freedom scientific, etc 
> that publically say they're trying to make the lives of their 
> customers better when all they're actually doing is trying to turn a 
> profit at our expense. If that weren't true, they'd open source this 
> stuff. Make it royalty free, so that anyone, not just windows and 
> apple and the popular options, can benefit. They'd make their products 
> hardware specs and schematics open, and they'd release open hardware 
> designs for things like braille displays, braille keyboards, and the 
> like. Before I get jumped on for not being supportive of proprietary 
> options, I'm not against them exactly, but I am against the 
> expectation that you should use them. If a person has to use windows 
> to do their job or because there is no good linux or open source 
> alternative for some thing they want to do, that's one thing, and 
> can't be helped. But to actively discourage use of the open source 
> alternatives just because you don't use them, that's not ok with me 
> and will very quickly enrage me. I'm going into rant mode so I'll shut 
> up. Support this non free ocr engine if you must, but try your best to 
> either get that engine open sourced or improve the open source ones so 
> that they're as good as or better than this nonfree engine. This goes 
> for synthesizers such as espeak as well. If we cling to the nonfree 
> options because they're easier and never put the work into improving 
> the open source stuff, it's not going to improve itself.
>
> Thanks
>
> Kendell Clark
>
>
>
> On 08/26/2016 09:24 PM, B. Henry wrote:
> > The problem is for now.
> > I agree that as much as is practical we should always base work on 
> > FOS products and services, software, and systems, but some people 
> > must have something
> > that works well enough for them today, not in a month, much less in 6 
> > months or a couple of years, or when it happens, and someone must 
> > make the effort to
> > help them as well.
> > Some people can choose to not take on a project or job if it forces 
> > them to use non-free stuph, but others can not reasonably make that 
> > choice, or must use
> > something non-free for now so that they become economically and or 
> > professionally stable enough to make other decisions in the future.
> > I am not trying to get in to a debate, nor say that there is a right 
> > or better way to live and or compute that fits all users and 
> > situations, just saying
> > that I aplaud the project for making a nonfree OCR engine available 
> > for those who need it.
> > I think the people involved will choose FOS whenever possible from 
> > what little I know of them and their values and wishes, and for the 
> > record that is what
> > I would most like to see, and I will support and promote the project 
> > more if that is the case.
> > Anyway, I say thank you for your work  with the Hypra  Project, and 
> > for organizing your team to make Linux computing more accessible for 
> > blind and low
> > vision folks.
>
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