Re: [Fsfe-uk] Gnu/Linux and freedom (was Linux in Thailand.)

[Nick Hill]

Chris Croughton wrote:
> On Tue, Jan 06, 2004 at 11:18:51AM +0000, Nick wrote:
>
>
> > Freedom is the key. If you use non-free software, you are binding 
> > yourself to secret proprietary interfaces. The user interface is a small 
> > facet of this. Bigger facets are secret data formats. Secret file 
> > formats, secret authentication protocols, encoding your personal 
> > documents in a form only one organisation knows how to or has the right 
> > to decode. Extending control from one platform (eg desktop to server or 
> > to PDA) by making the desktop clients only talk the secret language when 
> > communication is needed.
>
>
> Not true in many cases.  If I use a proprietary POSIX-compliant library,
> say, how doe that bind me to "secret proprietary interfaces"?  If I use
> (say) PDE, a proprietary (closed source shareware) text editor for
> Windows, how does that bind me to "secret data formats"?

Of course proprietary software *can* conform to public interface
specifications. Just that the most dominant proprietary software
achieves dominance through not doing so.


> All you are arguing for is open interfaces and protocols, the
> implementations can be as proprietary as they like.  All you have to do
> is verify them (or have someone you trust verify them) against the
> public standards.

How better to achieve this than through using free software?