Re: [Fsfe-uk] Explanation of Tivosiation and problems - comments sought

[Graham Seaman]

Chris Croughton wrote:
> On Mon, Dec 18, 2006 at 01:33:06PM +0000, Nic James Ferrier wrote:
>   
> > Chris Croughton <address@hidden> writes:
> >
> >     
> > > Free as in freedom or as in beer?  I agree that many people wouldn't
> > > have got started if they'd had to buy the software (that was one of my
> > > main motivations for starting to use GCC, that it didn't cost me
> > > anything), but how many of them actually go so far as to modify and
> > > improve the code?  Your "a lot" could mean anything over about 10.
> > >       
> > 1000s if not 100s of thouands.
> >
> > Look at RT for GCC or the Changlog. Just a year's worth includes many,
> > many people.
> >     
>
> I see nothing in there which says who got started because of Free
> Software, most of the names I recognise seem to have been software
> professionals long before there was any such thing.
>   
There's no such time. I first got the chance to do some programming when 
my team got a copy of Star Trek in 1977, followed not long after by 
Colossal Cavern. If I remember right, both were under an old-style 
BSD-ish license (even though Colossal Cavern was from Stanford).  I 
hacked about with Star Trek to add black holes; several of the other 
people working with me also got started by doing similar things  (as 
operators we were not allowed to touch any production software).  We 
were amazed that such large programmes should be free (not only 
financially).  Free software  long predates the 80s, in spite of the 
myths. Some of it is even still in use. Now where's that version of 
Spice gone..?

Graham