Ciaran O'Riordan wrote:
Ian Clarke ian@locut.us writes:
Ciaran O'Riordan wrote:
IFSO hasn't asked anyone to use google, or any other secret software, on their own machines, or over a network.
Sure you are, unless the BIOS of your web server is free software.
This extrapolates to "You can't be perfect, why bother trying."
I am not sure whose standard of perfection you aspire to, but I don't think its that of the free software movement.
I'd prefer an FS BIOS, but I don't see it as imperative. One grey area is not a reason to accept other grey areas.
It isn't a grey area at all. Free software requires the availability of source code to the persons running the binaries, it does not require the release of all source code ever written. It is not immoral to keep a secret, unless the secret is what you are making another person's computer do.
In the case of 3D17.org, the binary stays on my server - the only part of it that runs on the user's computer is the HTML it generates and the user is free to look at its source code.
IFSO will not ask you to run secret or proprietary software for us.
It isn't a secret from me, I have the source code.
Ian.