* Paul Sutton <paulsut...@disroot.org> [2021-10-25 11:09]: > I do see the point being made here, however wasn't the idea behind freedom > ladder to perhaps take people on a journey that will end with them using > free software.
I think it is exactly what it does, it drives people to non-free software and to get into doubts, in order to have their system run properly. > So to begin with people will perhaps need to use non-free to get > something working, but the eventual aim is to eliminate the need for > non-free anything. It's not true. For years I don't use proprietary software apart from BIOS in some computers. Fully free FSF approved operating system distributions are listed here: https://www.gnu.org/distros/free-distros.html Of course not every driver for every device will work, that is why I choose hardware that will work with software that is free. Not the other way around. > With freedom ladder, if you start off with Windows and MS office then a > first step could be to start to use say Libreoffice so when you do switch to > Linux then you are familiar with the tools available, perhaps switch to > nextcloud for storage etc. Nextcloud is anyway remote, majority of users don't know if it is free software or not. Back in 1999, I have been using proprietary system and I was surprised that I had 3 questions of support, the fourth one had a cost of 800 German marks at the time. There were secret codes that I had to obtain to run software on my computer PS/2. Otherwise it would not run. Those secret codes spent already my 3 questions of support. OS was constantly blocking my business, and I have spent so much Internet in few days that the bill left unpaid until today. Company forgot about me. I had to re-start the program over and over again and each time after 10-15 hours it froze the computer. When I changed to GNU/Linux I have written list of applications and found replacements in free software, learned it and deleted the abusive and useless non-multitasking Windoze. At that time point I have stopped using Warez, and found Perl and CPAN and other software and programming languages. Suddenly I could do so much more than what I could do with Windoze, at least so was the feeling. Out of disgruntled situation I have played the game xBill extensively. These days it is xBill and xLenart. Summary is that it is quite easy to switch to fully free operating system. I have converted many people's computers with little or no complaints. For employees I don't even tell them it is GNU/Linux, I just say, open up GNU Emacs, start TUTORIAL, and other few things like email, and they are doing well. Employees are also good to operate Mutt email client. > We need to encourage people on that transitional journey, but take in to > account their usage needs. When I am about to swim, I jump straight in the water. And I don't feel any transitional temperature adjustments that way. It is straight and easy. > Could the fsf not perhaps adapt the tool to work alongside freedom > ladder? FSF does have such projects, like https://www.fsf.org/windows/ -- Jean Take action in Free Software Foundation campaigns: https://www.fsf.org/campaigns In support of Richard M. Stallman https://stallmansupport.org/ _______________________________________________ libreplanet-discuss mailing list libreplanet-discuss@libreplanet.org https://lists.libreplanet.org/mailman/listinfo/libreplanet-discuss