Re: [gNewSense-users] RE: gNewSense-users Digest, Vol 2, Issue 19

[MJ Ray]

http://knolinux.com/2006/11/06/gnewsense-version-10--fundamentally-free-linux-advocating-freedom.aspx

A few small suggestions:
/- Cost/s/your/you're/
s/stripped all of the commercial/stripped all of the non-free software/
s/open source/free software/g
s/VMWare/an emulator/
s/email chains/email threads/

I disagree that all the cool things have gone away - one should just do 
some different sometimes, encoding to ogg vorbis not mp3, theora not qt 
and so on.

Maybe there will be an effort to get the other hardware working, now 
that it's more obvious there's a problem, but gNS isn't really at the 
level where enough people are trying yet.  I don't think it's an active 
choice to sit back and wait for hardware vendors, just not enough 
people, but I could be wrong.

I'm not sure that I agree with the author's view on the Novell-MS thing, 
but time will tell and I agree that "It will be interesting to see how 
this plays out".

Finally, I can't see how someone who is willing to give up control of 
large vital parts of their $1700 computer back to its makers can 
describe themselves as a "realist" with a straight face.  Did you buy 
that hardware, or did you only buy permission to use it while the maker 
deigns to provide working drivers and/or firmware?

The idea that makers should be able to sell devices and not tell anyone 
what they are and how to interface OS kernels to them is totally 
unrealistic.  As is often asked, would any engineer or business person 
buy a car with the bonnet locked shut?  Of course not, as it limits your 
freedom to buy services and spares on the open market and puts you at 
the mercy of the keyholder.  gNewSense and similar distributions may be 
like the Mini of PCs: you can work on its mechanics easily, even if 
sometimes you have to pull the engine out to do so.

Then again, it's a review on a "Linux" site with "aspx" page extensions, 
so what did I expect?  :-/

Regards,
-- 
MJ Ray - see/vidu http://mjr.towers.org.uk/email.html
Somerset, England. Work/Laborejo: http://www.ttllp.co.uk/
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