You seem to be assuming that the only way to contribute to a distribution is to pay money to its makers. Mandrake has many volunteers who contribute their time and efforts instead of money. I am one such person. Often these contributions can far outweigh the cost of a boxed set or Club subscription.
Paying money to a distribution company/organisation is a relatively new phenomenon. Traditionally in the free software/open source community, if you like something and want to give something back in return, you use your own blood, sweat and tears. IMHO, it is these people who are keeping the true spirit of the community alive. On 14 Aug 2002 15:53:32 +1200, Damon Lynch <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > 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 -- Sridhar Dhanapalan "Never underestimate the bandwidth of a station wagon full of tapes hurtling down the highway." -- Andrew S. Tanenbaum, Computer Networks
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