[unrev-II] RMS + ESR

From: John \ (john.werneken@gte.net)
Date: Tue Feb 08 2000 - 00:49:24 PST


From: "John \"sb\" Werneken" <john.werneken@gte.net>

Jeff already answered, concisely.

In my anti-concise style, if I may: Richard M Stallman a.k.a. RMS on the
pages of Slashdot.org, is the founder of the Free Software Foundation,
winner of a genius grant (well deserved IMHO), author of the EMACS editor,
and more-or-less the founder of the "free software/ open source" movement.
SEe http://www.gnu.org/

Eric S Raymond a.k.a. ERS on the pages of Slashdot, is a very good
programmer who also is a world-class salesman or evangelist as they are
styled these days. Raymond was one of -and certainly the best known of - the
'free software' practitioners who coined the term "open source". Author of
the notorious pamphlet "The Cathedral and the Bazaar", he characterized
commercial software (as exemplified by Microsoft) as a centrally-controlled
sort of endeavor, similar to the building of a cathedral. "Open Source" he
likens to a bazaar: much activity, somewhat self-organizing in its
complexity (perhaps like a real bazaar might be sort of organized by the
'invisible hand' of economic self-interest). Obviously the "bazaar" model
could be more flexible; perhaps its 'evolution' would ultimately far surpass
what could be planned by any architect for any 'cathedral'. See
http://www.tuxedo.org/~esr/

There is quite a bit of vituperation between admirers of each man and
between zealots for the "free software" and "open source" models each man
symbolizes. I don't claim to understand the argument. But from what I have
read of their writings, Stallman never fails to emphasize the ideal of
having software that the user is free to use as the user wishes. Raymond's
writings tend more to emphasize a process of subverting or converting the
commercial software world, so that what has been pioneered eventually
becomes both refined and freely available.

As regards the colloquium, my point was that Stallman catalyzed the
development of the GNU software system (a.k.a. Linux, although Linux per se
is just the kernel and thus a rather small part of the whole). But Raymond
et al led in creating the changed perception of this software, which has led
among other things to the billion-dollar IPOs.

So perhaps Doug is an inventor of the highest caliber, but perhaps his
Revolution would be far less "unfinished", had an equally capable salesman
come along...

So if our efforts after this colloquium do lead to a DKR which is a "killer
ap" of sorts, then the bootstrapping would in fact strap up the boots and
the "revolution" would then be considerably closer to becoming a COMPLETED
revolution...

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