On Wed, 2002-08-14 at 14:39, Lyvim Xaphir wrote:
>
> So my current suggestion to anyone who has bothered to read this far is
> to perhaps consider becoming activist with regard to Mandrake (if you
> havent already), each in his/her own way, but with financial concerns
> being paramount in your mind.
This is partly why I am suggesting to the New Zealand Open Source
Society a survey on NZ Linux users to survey financial support for Linux
distros. I have drafted the following questions, on which folks may
like to improve:
1)Have you ever contributed financially to a Linux distribution?
1.1.Yes
1.2.No, but perhaps I should
1.3.No, I never will
1.4.No, I contribute code instead
1.5.No, but I do a lot of testing of beta releases
1.6.No, I use a distribution that requires no revenue
2)If yes, did you contribute via:
2.1.Purchasing a boxed set
2.2.Making a donation
2.3.Paying for services (e.g. Mandrake Club, Red Hat Network)
2.4.Buying shares
3)If yes, have you contributed:
3.1.Regularly
3.2.Occasionally
3.3.Only once
4)If yes, to which distribution(s):
4.1.Mandrake
4.2.Red Hat
4.3.Suse
4.4.Debian
4.5.Gentoo
4.6.Sourcemage
4.7.Other: __________
5)Do you think contributing financially is a good idea?
5.1.No, Linux is free and users should never have to pay anything for
it
5.2.Yes, distribution companies and volunteers have to survive somehow
6)Is Linux and open source software generally a social good in the sense
of values like openness and cooperation, in contrast to piracy and
secrecy that often accompanies closed source software?
6.1.Yes, Linux use should be encouraged
6.2.No, Microsoft is correct when they describe core Linux philosophies
as being like a cancer
6.3.I don't have a clue what is being asked
6.4.Other: ________________
7)If you answered No to 5 and Yes to 6, how to you envisage developers
of open source software should be paid? _______________
8)Do people who distribute self-burned Linux CDs in NZ have a moral
obligation to contribute financially to the Linux distributions they are
selling:
8.1.Yes
8.2.No
9)Do you believe commercial Linux distributions are:
9.1.Doomed to failure because of the licensing scheme of the GPL
9.2.Potentially have a healthy future as more people use Linux
9.3.Don't know
10)Who are you representing when answering this survey:
10.1 commercial business
10.2 government agency
10.3 non-profit organisation
10.4 private non-commercial user
10.5 other: _______________
Overall I think a survey like this is a good idea because it would be
useful for:
1. Finding out the attitudes and actions of NZ Linux users
2. Potentially be useful to Linux distributions who do require
revenue / income from users
3. Raise consciousness and debate over the need for financial
contributions
4. Identify how many users give something back, and not just
take
5. There would be no identification of who filled it out, so it
should be practically anonymous (except for IP I guess)
6. Generate publicity for the NZ Open Source Society (which is
just starting up)
Damon
Want to buy your Pack or Services from MandrakeSoft?
Go to http://www.mandrakestore.com
