Re: [Fsuk-manchester] Ubuntu !free

[MJ Ray]

Noah Slater <address@hidden> wrote:
> On Wed, May 21, 2008 at 08:52:40PM +0100, MJ Ray wrote:
> > Network effects.  The bank's crap software works better with other
> > software from the same supplier, so it encourages the bank's customers
> > to abandon their freedom.  Slightly surprised Stallman stated that.
>
> I see no compelling ethical or societal reasons why a company should be
> obligated to share the source code for it's in-house software systems.
[...]

Not obligated (I feel that's a straw man I never introduced - I've
written in the past about the absurdity of trying to force
cooperation), but it is better if they are shared, isn't it?


"Dave Crossland" <address@hidden> wrote:
> I can't speak for Richard, but I understood him to mean that software
> which is used "invisibly" within a company - as in, that which
> interacts with customers without requiring them to submit bitstreams,
> like a cash machine - is not an issue for the customers, but for the
> bank. The bank is the user of the software running its ATMs, so the
> software ought to be free software _for the bank_ - if customers can't
> inspect the source code of their ATMs, this is okay, because they are
> not the users of the software. If the bank requires its customers to
> use proprietary software on their computers, that's a totally
> different situation, and one I imagine Richard would criticise
> strongly.

Two aspects to this: first of all, ATMs and other public faces of the
bank are not invisible.  They are shown to customers and influence
customers either as advertising or by requiring certain connections
from customers (in the case of internet banking services, for example).

Secondly, I believe that banking service providers should be owned by
their customers, but that's a wider issue.

Regards,
-- 
MJ Ray (slef)
Webmaster for hire, statistician and online shop builder for a small
worker cooperative http://www.ttllp.co.uk/ http://mjr.towers.org.uk/
(Notice http://mjr.towers.org.uk/email.html) tel:+44-844-4437-237