Raj Mathur wrote:
The first idea (having a minimal Linux partition) is brilliant! How long did you have to spend thinking it up? :) I'm going to talk to my neighbourhood hardware vendor today itself and suggest it to him. Anyone else doing the same?
Thanks, Not so long. Born out of Knoppix demo to some Nehru Place vendors recently.
For the second one, it may be simpler to keep a list of equipment that DOESN'T work with Linux. E.g., such-and-such a modem, this IrDA adapter, etc. Most of us keep buying stuff from Nehru Place, so in a couple of months we could have a pretty good database of what works and what doesn't with our own experiences.
DOES'nt work with KNOPPIX
My Krypton brand Modem # SmartUSB56; has a proprietary Linux driver, still I have'nt been able to do much.
Logitech Quickcam Express Webcam# No Official Support, there is a Project on Sourceforge, have'nt been able to try. Can we develop a Web based application on ILUGD site to trap this data in a database??
Numbers are important for developing a critical mass to drive a self sustaining industry around FLOSS. They are not important for winning a debate!! Numbers are growing and some one told me that Worldwide number of Linux Desktops is more than the number of Macs, but still I can'nt get software applications / drivers off the shelf claiming Linux Compatibility. Critical mass is important!!
My personal thinking about this issue has changed over time. Now I truly believe that just promoting Linux without having people understand the underlying concepts of freedom and choice is of limited value. After all, are numbers so important? If they are, they have been growing in any case, thanks to the efforts of LUGs, corporations and interest groups. However, do we really want to promote Linux per se, possibly with proprietary applications running on it?
IMO Linux running proprietary code is as bad as any of the traditional alternatives. Until we can convince people that the Right Reason(tm) to use Linux is because of intangible and/or long-term benefits, we'll just be playing a losing game, with MS, IBM, Oracle & friends dropping prices all over the place to beat the ``Linux is cheaper'' ``myth''. Hey, let's have another TCO study!
I say, don't play the game by the rules of these corporations. Change the damn rules and let THEM play by the new rules. Let MS fight freedom rather than cost. Let IBM convince its customers that WebSphere is a better application development platform despite being proprietary. Get Oracle to fight quick updates, security, stability, ability to remove/customise features and lack of dependence on a single vendor rather than touting the ``Oracle on Linux is cheaper'' line.
Well!! I think we are mixing two important issues. One is Freedom, whose importance no one underestimates. You have to have Freedom, in order to be able to produce quality software in the first place. Now having produced Free Software, you need people to use them, in order to create a demand, the fundamental basis of economics and market. People will use a software which helps meet their objectives whether it is conducting space research or keeping accounts of a charitable society. If it helps the user, it is only then we can tell him about the Philosophy. He will get all the more convinced then.
As regards the proprietary stuff: Its a difficult proposition, after all, we do take Medicines which are proprietary, undergo CT Scans which use Proprietary Software!! We just can't eliminate Propritary stuff as a step change. I am convinced that eventually Freedom based Software will emerge stronger, but I can't stop using Electricity because the software in the Power Station is proprietary. The fight for freedom based software is one front, building a strong user base for the freedom based software is another front of the same movement, and it is at this front that numbers count!!
Once we start moving in this direction we will switch the new user paradigm from a ``push to Linux'' to ``pull to freedom'' model. (Gawd, did I just use ``paradigm'' in a sentence? Anyhow...) Instead of telling people about how Linux is cheaper or faster or better supported, we should show them the options and let them choose their path for themselves. I can assure you that enough people will want to switch to Linux once the larger issues have been clarified to them. These people will be our support team, our advocates, our fanatics, our representatives, our neighbourhood Linux cottage industry.
After all, aren't ideological converts so much more zealous than those who convert because of money <substitute with your favourite material object>?
It has to go on side by side. It is not a sequential process. Both "Push to Linux" and "Pull to Freedom" will have to exist at the same time, providing strength to each other. Both fronts need each other.
Anand Shankar
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