On Sat, 7 Jul 2001, Brian Somers wrote:
> Richard Hodges <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
> > And as far as distribution goes, if my vote counts, I would suggest
> > that anyone should have the right to sell (or give away) copies for
> > whatever price they want. The more copies, the better! I fail to
> > see why FreeBSD distribution should be "guided" to certain entities
> > based on their political contributions.
> FSL have thought quite a bit about this -- what's acceptable as a
> FreeBSD release. We need some sort of balance. On one hand, we (the
> FreeBSD project) want to encourage distributors to produce copies of
> FreeBSD with added-value. On the other hand, we don't want to end up
> with the linux-effect.
Really? I was hoping to see a new disto with the FreeBSD userland
wrapped around a Linux kernel :-) Or was it the other way around...
But as far as "added-value" goes, why wouldn't minimum cost be an
added value to a potential customer? I think that the companies
like Cheapbytes serve a social purpose in this regard.
> So I think the idea of an ``official'' distribution is good, but only
> insofar as that implies that the distribution contains a specific
> base system. Anyone who mucks about with that official base system
> in a way that's not controlled by the user should not be allowed to
> call their distribution ``official''.
Sure, no argument there. Taking Wes' suggestion, maybe there is an
opportunity in the "official" distribution distinction. How about a
"certificate of authenticity" which costs the vendors $1 or $2 (or
whatever), and shows the customer that their choice of vendors helped
FreeBSD financially. Incidentally, this certificate might also be a
selling point for those twisted individuals that just don't understand
free software :-)
Thanks for the info,
-Richard
-------------------------------------------
Richard Hodges | Matriplex, inc.
Product Manager | 769 Basque Way
[EMAIL PROTECTED] | Carson City, NV 89706
775-886-6477 | www.matriplex.com
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