I'd like to weigh in by mentioning there are still many uses for emulators which people think should be removed.
For example, there are still GPL Windows programs that ONLY work on Windows. There is no reason WINE would need to be removed if the purpose is to learn how to make fully free Windows programs. These programs can one day run on a free OS, such as ReactOS. http://osswin.sourceforge.net/ The same goes for DosBox and FreeDOS where there is still a small community learning and improving DOS using fully free software. When it comes to console emulators, there is 95% of the time a homebrew scene with GPL source code where users can learn to code and play fully free games. ** There is no reason to remove these if the user is learning and using free software. ** In the case of MAME, I agree that these do not exist YET. However, if someone were to make a PoC it too should be included. There is no reason someone could not develop fully free software for an arcade machine. In addition to this, if users begin developing free software that runs on MAME, it may be possible to one day flash a real Arcade Machine with fully free software. Such unforeseen creative possibilities exist due to the nature of free software. I also personally feel that archival backup of games should be allowed, especially if the user owns the game on a console. It is actually more ethical and generally more quality to play older games you own on a fully free emulator than it is your own console which does not contain a fully free distro. In the case of PSP and PSX, it is now possible to play the games fully free without a non-free bios. Regarding Gnash, yes, there are fully free Flash authoring tools and projects too: http://www.flashmagazine.com/news/detail/open_source_and_free_development_tools_for_flash/ Before we start removing access to free software, we should consider the unintended consequences. Sad scenarios that come to mind for users running fully free distros with these new guidelines being suggested: - The free software developer who was in the process of freeing an arcade machine was unable to do so because he was unaware of MAME. - The GNU/Linux kernel hacker never tried to running GNU/Linux on the PS2, because he didn't have access to a fully free emulator to do his work. - Creativity and the free culture does not thrive because users did not have access to the tools needed to do the job. In each scenario, it is the user that uses a tool for good or evil. We should not be thought police on how they intend or do not intend to use their software by removing access to the tools. I do agree that there should be a warning that these programs may offer access to non-free software, but it is up to the user on how they intend to act on that statement.
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