Technical merits

Technical merits

Posted Dec 16, 2006 13:13 UTC (Sat) by man_ls (subscriber, #15091)
In reply to: "BadVista.org": FSF launches campaign against Microsoft Vista by tclark
Parent article: "BadVista.org": FSF launches campaign against Microsoft Vista

I agree, but sticking just with technical merits is dangerous. There are lots of areas where proprietary software is better than free software; sometimes (as with playing DVDs or MP3s), free software cannot get there without transforming itself into proprietary software -- or changing the legal landscape.

In other aspects, like security, centering on the relative merits of free software can make us engage in a nonsensical battle about who is worse (more insecure). Think IE and Firefox. I fear this may happen with Vista.

Then there are some places where proprietary software cannot go: free software can be distributed freely, you can adapt it to your needs, you can run it as you like, or change suppliers; you know exactly what it does, and formats are open by default. These are the real winners for free software: centering on these merits you cannot lose.

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