Free software costs — who really cares?
June 17, 2005Over the past few years, various research groups have been coming
out with studies showing that the total cost of ownership (TCO) for
GNU/Linux is higher than that for Windows. Naturally, many in the free
software community put forth their own arguments — some of them ad
hominem — disputing those studies. In my “humble” opinion, they got
baited into Microsoft’s game, the one where Microsoft sets the rules.
Same thing happened regarding an entry in an MSDN blog, “How can I trust Firefox?” The rules in free software are different, remember?
Free software is a matter of the users’ freedom to run, copy,
distribute, study, change and improve the software. More precisely, it
refers to four kinds of freedom for the users of the software:
The freedom to run the program, for any purpose (freedom 0).
The freedom to study how the program works, and adapt it to your
needs (freedom 1). Access to the source code is a precondition for this.
The freedom to redistribute copies so you can help your neighbor (freedom 2).
The freedom to improve the program, and release your improvements
to the public, so that the whole community benefits (freedom 3). Access
to the source code is a precondition for this.
A program is free software if users have all of these freedoms.
As an aside, there’s a different set of rules in the “Can I trust
Firefox” issue, but some of the reponses on the blog address those
rules. I might create an entry on that some other time.
