On philosophy, hierarchy of orgs, definitions, and the logo

[Alistair Davidson]

josX wrote:
> 
> summary:
> "The FSF(E) should focus on everything that can be digital, because:
> 1) I believe it should {sorry man, you ask for it}
> 2) the word software will get that meaning or die
> 3) everything in the world is transient

This is something that merits serious discussion.

While I would not argue that an mp3 is a program, what about a
self-executing music or movie file? Quibbling over the meaning of the
word "program" is fruitless- language should be our tool, not our
master.

But there is a case that says that Joe Sixpack probably doesn't care
about the philosophical arguments about libre software. He might care
about gratis software, and maybe even about open-source software if he
doesn't want his computer to crash, but I doubt he'll care about libre.

But issues like music sharing are legally equivalent to Free Software in
many respects, and provide a platform which people can relate to and be
engaged by. Acheiving our aims requires that we are reported, and we're
not often going to be reported or understood if our arguments don't
relate to people in some way.

--
Alistair Davidson