[Fwd: EDRI-gram - Number 6, 9 April 2003]

Anton Zinoviev anton at lml.bas.bg
Mon Apr 14 15:47:55 UTC 2003


On 11.IV.2003 at 19:54 MJ Ray wrote:
>
> Why they reinvented the wheel, I don't know.  Maybe local laws?

It was less than reinventing:

  4.1. Unlimited use of the software for all purposes.

This is the basic freedom 0.

  4.2. Unlimited access to the source code.

This is a precondition of some of the basic freedoms, but in a law it
seemed more appropriately this to be said explicitly.

  4.3. Comprehensive check of its mechanisms of operation.
  4.4. Use of internal mechanisms and of any arbitrary part of it, so
       that it can be adapted to the needs of the user.

These are the basic freedom 1.

  4.5. Production and public distribution of its copies

This is basic freedom 2.

  4.6. Modification and free distribution of changes as well as of the
       newly designed software under the same conditions as those of
       the original.

And this is basic freedom 3.

We tried to make a representation of the four basic freedoms as
described at http://www.fsf.org/philosophy/free-sw.html that is
suitable for a law.  If you have a better one, that would be nice. :)

Anton Zinoviev


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