Re: [LibrePlanet-US-MA] Free software advocacy? How about some devil's advocacy?

[Danny Piccirillo]

On Tue, Jun 22, 2010 at 12:16, R Mullen <address@hidden> wrote:
> Hi all,
>
> Introduction: Ryan (rmull on IRC), recent graduate from BU where I
> "led" the Linux Users Group for three years. The quotation marks are
> necessary because we had very few meetings or activities. I'm a
> five-year Gentoo user with a sprinkling of Debian and CentOS. I have
> been exclusively non-Windows and MacOS for all five of these years.
>
> Anyway, I'm here to be the devil's advocate. I am an embittered free
> software advocate who has largely curtailed my evangelism due to a few
> important notions:

Thanks for joining the list!

> 1.) Most people do not like to be preached to
>
> I am comfortable in my ways. If someone approaches me unsolicited and
> begins telling me what I do is wrong and that I should change for the
> better of everyone, how will I react? It doesn't help if the
> representative is a member of a small yet fierce organization who has
> a reputation for being on the fringe. I am going to dismiss their
> preaching and convince myself that anyone who feels so strongly about
> something as ordinary as browsing the web must be a little "off."

For this, we will do two things. Firstly, we will frame our arguments
as best as possible to the target audience. Lucky for us, freedom is
pragmatic (but freedom is the root benefit). Secondly, on an
individual involvement level, we will focus more on those who matter
most: schools, nonprofits, governments, etc, rather than random
computer users.

> 2.) Most people do not want to change
>
> This is similar to the first notion. People adopt routines for
> everything, even if the routine is simply to work around bugs in the
> process on which they are working. The problem here is that often
> people are perfectly happy with this. Change means that routines must
> be broken, new (and sometimes difficult) concepts must be grasped, and
> learning curves must be climbed. It is significantly less trouble to
> just stick to your guns. LP is taking the right approach by hoping to
> get free software into the hands of the younger generation, but adults
> at the gateway must be convinced before they allow our efforts
> through.

I suppose my previous response works well for this point too =] In
addition, yes, change is something that people resist, but this is
something we've always been fighting, and we've been doing good so
far. If we run into a brick wall, we'll assess whether it's worth
trying to persuade any further. No matter what, i don't see us running
out of potentially interested parties.

> 3.) Most people do what they perceive will yield practical benefits
> over the long term
>
> The business I work for uses Microsoft products. Everyone uses Outlook
> to sync calendars. I'll be adrift in a sea of proprietary software and
> I'll get fired for dissension. Alternatively: The business I want to
> work for is a Microsoft shop. I need to know how to use their products
> so that I can get hired.

I'm not sure i get your point.

> 4.) Most people don't care
>
> This intersects a bit with Notion 3. The vast majority of computer
> users are primarily interested in the freedom to sit in their chair
> and surf Farmville, not the freedom of their software. Apple has seen,
> in the last number of years, an explosion of popularity that can be
> attributed to this fact. Push button, view Facebook. No viruses to
> impede your status updates. Sold! These kinds of people (again, the
> majority) have no use for source code, configuration files, or
> software licenses. They don't factor philosophy into their computing
> decisions or purchases.

I suppose my initial response applies here as well.

> 5.) It's hard to compete with ubiquity
>
> The world runs on Windows. Sure, you could point me to the Top500
> stats or the Apache numbers, but the truth is that there are far more
> clients than servers. If I get a computer, I want it to "just work"
> with my friends', and I don't want to have to install some
> compatibility layer that requires me to click more buttons or endure
> degraded performance.

Wesley's response was good. And besides, what's wrong with hard work?

> 6.) Sometimes the price point is a non-issue
>
> In the business world, people love to be non-accountable. Proprietary
> software allows the support desk to just shrug their shoulders and
> say, "Oh, that's a known bug, we're waiting for a fix from the vendor"
> rather than actually trying to dig into the code (which they don't
> have in the first place). If you pay for a license, you get to point
> your finger to the software house when your customers complain, and
> for this, businesses are willing to pay. Not to mention you get access
> to a fine subcontinent's-worth of always-on phone support if something
> goes wrong. Moving away from business, price point is still a
> non-issue if you consider all the student discounts that Microsoft and
> Apple are raining down upon us. I was granted access to MSDNAA, where
> I could have my pick of premium Microsoft offerings for free. How
> great is that?
>
> Ultimately, when all has been said, it's a lot easier just to maintain
> a small inbred group in the midst of the infinite pastures of
> indifference. We can all shake hands and pat backs when the occasional
> individual gets "converted," but we're not making inroads into the
> consumer market. This has a lot to do with money, with the attitude of
> the community, with the quality of support, and so on, all of which
> deserve rantings of their own...
>
> Let me finish up with a question: How do you all continue to turn your
> gaze outward with optimism, rather than falling back to a community in
> which you can expect and receive support? Is what we need really
> another small and loosely-joined group with intent to bring about
> change? It's so easy to talk, but it's a lot harder to find a willing
> audience. Not everyone is a programmer who can share your frustration.
>
> Anyway, now that I've revealed my pessimism, I do sincerely hope that
> the free software ideal is propagated. Everyone would be the better
> for it. I'll be happy to help out where possible.

I think you're thinking about us converting lots of individuals. While
we might run events and do campaigns to get individuals to switch,
we'll also have targets like schools and we'll be prepared with the
right arguments to convince them. You shouldn't deny the progress that
has been made by groups similar to ours. Yes, much change comes from
the top down, but without grassroots movements, well, why bother
fighting for anything?

-- 
.danny

☮♥Ⓐ - http://www.google.com/profiles/danny.piccirillo
Every (in)decision matters.