[Linux-aus] Young Aussies say pirated software is OK

[Anestis Kozakis]

At 11:08 AM +1100 2009/02/08, Sridhar Dhanapalan wrote:
>2009/2/8 Anestis Kozakis <kenosti at gmail.com>:
>>  At 9:05 AM +1100 2009/02/08, Paul Wayper wrote:
>>
>>  [Snip]
>>
>>>Maybe we need some rough calculations of how much you'd pay for the GIMP,
>>>Inkscape, Open Office, etc. if they were competing against other products in
>>>the field.  Picture it: "The GIMP - normally $249, but because we don't
>>>believe in charging money we're giving it away!"  Would that make 
>>>those people
>>>'value' it more?
>>>
>>>I do think people are capable of differentiating cost from 
>>>quality.  Equating
>>>them only suits software vendors at the top of the range.  I also think the
>>>people using an illegal copy of Photoshop "because it's good 
>>>quality" are not
>>>the same set as those using it because it cost them nothing.
>>>
>>>I do think that people realise that that $450 package of Photoshop 
>>>still gets
>>>them absolutely no help from Adobe, and that they look to the community for
>>>help rather than the software author.  When the software author _is_ the
>>>community, this closes the loop.
>>>
>>>Just some thoughts,
>>>
>>>Paul
>>
>>  That might work, bit then you have people like my friend who has been
>>  bitten by badly written free software in the past.  The system
>>  screwed up Windows registry files, and he had to re-install his
>>  system from scratch.  So now he buys all his software, even Norton
>>  Security or McAfee Security.  No matter how much I tell him there is
>>  good free software out there (like AVG) that doesn't hook into the
>>  system and slow everything down, he won't budge.
>>
>>  It's these kind of people we should also be trying to make understand
>>  that there is good, well written free software that won't screw up
>>  your system.
>
>
>AVG is not free software, it is freeware.
>
>http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freeware
>http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Free_software
>
>Please don't conflate the two; it only makes our efforts more difficult.
>
>Freeware has nothing to do with us. It is still proprietary and still
>removes your freedoms. There's plenty of badly-written freeware out
>there, and because it's closed source nobody can fix it. I as a member
>of the free software community think it's unfair that we end up
>getting the blame for this.

To me this is splitting hairs.

All I said was that AVG is free software.  i never said anything 
about Open versus Closed software.  AVG is free to download and free 
to use, it is just closed software.

Regardless of that, you're taking the main point of my post away. 
So let me amend this - There are people out there who have been 
burned by badly written free software and/or freeware.  They are very 
biased against free software/freeware.  These are the kinds of people 
we also need to educate that there is good free software/freeware out 
there that doesn't screw up your computer.

If you want to split hairs, then split hairs, but do it another 
thread.  If you want to talk about this issue, then do so and don't 
detract from it.

Anestis.

-- 
Scissorsmith - "At the fork in the road, take the rocky path.  it 
will lead you to the dragon's lair",
Samurai Jack - "Where does the other path go?"
ScissorSmith - "Space Ace".
-- Samurai Jack, Episode XXI