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Election 2006 (and beyond): Digital Copyright Canada
From: russell_-at-_flora.ottawa.on.ca (Russell McOrmond)
Date: 21 Dec 1999 15:43:37 -0500
I have submitted the following to the Jargon file: http://russell.flora.org/work/commercial-software.html Since I have done this previously (just not formally with a URL and all) and did not get any reply, I am wondering if other people can send in similar messages. I would like to close the "debate" (Between those who have a dictionary, and those who are just computer users ;-) on the meaning of "Commercial Software" once and for all. --- Russell McOrmond, Internet Consultant: <http://russell.flora.org/work/> http://russell.flora.org/work/closed-wto.html [Current Paper in Progress] <http://russell.flora.org/work/open-links.html#abuse> Boycott AMAZON.COM, Unisys (BurnAllGifs), ETOYS. ---------- Forwarded message ---------- Date: Tue, 21 Dec 1999 20:29:35 +0000 From: Russell McOrmond <russell@linux.ca> To: jargon@thyrsus.com, russell@flora.org Subject: http://russell.flora.org/work/commercial-software.html I would like to submit the following for 'Commercial software'. I believe the phrase is actively in use in the Hacker community, but there are ongoing debates about its meaning. Going to the dictionary and using common sense is what I used to form the definition. The alternative definition (Equating to "Proprietary software" perpetuates the myth that you can't make money in software unless you make it proprietary). My page also suggested some other substitutions of the word 'proprietary' where the definition incorrectly used the word 'commercial'. ---cut--- Commercial Software Using the definition of commercial from the dictionary it indicates "Having profit as a chief aim". This makes Commercial Software to simply be software used in a commercial environment, or software developed that has "profit as a chief aim". Many people are incorrectly using this phrase interchangeably with "Proprietary Software", and are trying to perpetuate the myth that the only way to make money in the software world is to make the software proprietary. This definition of the word "commercial" does not specify a specific way of making money, and anyone in the "Free Software", "Open Source" or similar movements know that there is more than just a single way to make money in the software world. Phrases such as "Free Software", "Open Source Software", or "Proprietary Software" are totally independent of whether or not the software is commercial or not. Software can be licensed with the GPL or BSD License, and yet have profit as a chief aim, such as with RedHat Software. There is also going to be proprietary software which is given away for free (Internet Explorer and Netscape are two popular examples) where profit is not the aim of the software, but other motivations such as market control or advertising or Internet Portals. --- Russell McOrmond, Internet Consultant: <http://russell.flora.org/work/> http://russell.flora.org/work/closed-wto.html [Current Paper inProgress] http://www.flora.org/flora.mai-not/15506 Why I am opposed to the WTO http://www.flora.org/flora.mai-not/15816 Rebels in Search of Rules
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