To be very precise, there isn't a Free alternative to gcc yet. If the GNU folks will continue with the whole GNU/Linux thing, I might just get bugged enough to write a BSD licensed compiler.
Does that mean you would have absolutely no problem at all in exploitative corporates taking your hard work, (sometimes) turning it into crap and making a huge pile of cash on it ? Talking about freedom and practicing it is not just a momentary thing but has to be a continuous and perpetual struggle. If we leave the option for people to take what they want and commercialise it, they will never bother about freedom and the cause is diminished. If the restriction of keeping the released work also free is put, it makes them at least consult lawyers and think on ``Why did this person/group decide to do things this way ?" and that is the beginning of victory because you start to make people think about things they otherwise take for granted. That's the stuff revolutions are made of. Then of course we are in a philosophical quandary of ``restricting freedom to preserve freedom". My simple answer to that is, GPL has proved that it CAN work and IS working. But my whole point is that GNU/Linux is pretty much useless to me.
Regardless of how essential gcc is. If the GNU project gets credits, everyone else deserves the same amount of time.
Hmm... is it not so that in all GNU projects painstaiking efforts are made to credit every single person who contributed to any project. In fact in the GNU C manual itself they are about 20 odd pages in the pdf crediting every person individually with the work they did. This includes BSD guys who did the BSD ports. This happens irrespective of what the personal beliefs are(i don't recall seeing a tag near anyone's name stating with GNU or without GNU :-) ) Therefore when credit is given to a community, it is every single individual that has worked who is actually credited. Moreover, and correct me if i'm wrong, but GNU was the first movement to credit every person involved with a software project in a public manner. Dispensing with the GPL? Definitely. Dispensing with the GNU project?
Right now, other than the compiler, what else do you need to get a full BSD userland? My thesis is that Linux != GNU/Linux and there are other projects which deserve equal time in the OS name.
If you truely feel that way and are passionate about freedom, you could start a movement to do the same telling people that ``Zero restriction freedom is true freedom" and you could also perhaps call it GING(GING Is Not GNU) if you are not fond of G's, but love B's you could call it BING(BING Is Not GNU) which actually sounds quite neat :-) Regards, - vihan -- http://mm.glug-bom.org/mailman/listinfo/linuxers
