Re: Major interview

[Hilaire Fernandes <hilaire@seul.org>]

   From: "malonowa" <malonowa@wanadoo.fr>
   Date: Sat, 4 Sep 1999 09:21:55 +0200
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   >
   > Yes, you are totaly right. Edusoft companies doesn't need us to
   > take the decision to port applications. We can advocate as hard
   > as we can, they will do so only if there is profit to be done,
   > not because we ask them. We should spend more energy asking
   > developper to start free project education oriented.
   >
   This is not true for everyone. Whilst I appreciate your
   passionately held views you mustn't fall into the trap of making
   such sweeping generalisations with regards to the "Edusoft
   companies". They don't all follow the same business model. Take
   Topologika for example, as far as I can see they would port
   software simply because "we asked them to". I will port software
   because "you ask me to". There are people out there who will do
   things simply because they believe it's right to do it and if they
   can avoid going bankrupt in the process then that's a good
   thing. Please don't de-humanize all companies, there are people
   behind these companies who have genuine beliefs and share much of
   the good will and intention for young people as you do - but they
   do need to earn a living in the process. I've known the guy who
   owns topologika for about 8 years now and I can definitely tell you
   that this is a good man and not at all the sort of person you'd
   like to believe he his.

Please don't misunderstand what I'm saying. I never say/think edusoft
company are evil - I also worked on edusoft company - they just have
to follow the market rule to exist. For example, Topologika is really
well know on the Acorn computer community in UK for quality product,
unfortunately the Acorn Computer company is dead and eventually
Topologika will drop in some future the Acorn product othervise they
will loose money, the same things apply for Linux port. If you think
Topologika may port their product to GNU/Linux beacause we ask them,
please ask for it, I also ask for it even if I will not be able to use
their products (english only :() at least this may convice the British
school of the Europeen Schools Campus there, to use the GNU/Linux
installed network.


   As for starting "free" projects, these companies are much too small
   to take such risks. They could quite easily go bankrupt very
   quickly with just one mistake here. It's just not viable. And
   remember that NOT ALL software can be developed for free. If we
   insist on an entirely free development model then all the software
   that requires licensing, royalties etc. just wouldn't exist - and
   that's a lot of resources that we're all accustomed to that would
   suddenly become unavailable.

Do someone insist on an entirely free development model ? I don't see
any!  For my part I just say we should spend energy to convince
peoples (for exemple teachers, there is a lot of teacher who know
programming art) developping free edu software. Edu soft company will
do their jobs - Porting to GNU system if they can save their profit
margin.

   There's a tendancy to believe that the free software model can do
   anything.  Is this really realistic? Take a really good piece of

Who says so! Personnaly, I think it can do a lot, no more.

   multimedia software that contains lots of video footage etc. Could
   you pay several hundred thousand dollars to licence it and then
   give it away? The free software authors certainly couldn't raise
   the money to develop the product in the first place.

We have some at the school. Usefull in a library.  Fortunately, not
all edusoft are like this. In fact few of them.


   You mentioned in a previous e-mail that too much commercial
   software would limit freedom. This simply isn't so. Whilst this may
   be true if the operating system isn't free, I fail to see how a
   piece of edsoft. could effect the community's freedom. I'm all for

I never say this could effect the community's freedom, I cite :

" 2. the more proprietary edusoft we will have the less freedom we
will
   have. And this will apply a negate effect of the goodness cited at
   the beginning of this message.

-- begining of the message --

. freedom to share the softwares with our students - and they do
want. Here the idea of share can be sharing a tool who give you some
knowledges. For exemple, when I share Dr Geo with my students I share
a tool to help them in geometry.  "


   co-existance with all philosophies in life. Remember that wars have
   been started simply because people didn't share the same philosophy
   or religion. If we go to far with either model then we risk
   destroying our own arguments - we cannot argue for freedom if we
   wish to eliminate the others, that would inevitably lead to the
   removal of choice for those who don't agree with us and therefore
   defeats the purpose of it all.

Please don't talk about wars, there is enougth wars on earth!


   Those who preach too hard are often not heard.

Will you say so about RMS ?

Beside this, Roman please don't turn me as an evil.  Read every word
carefully of my messages. I just want to promote free edu development
as I believe this is what want to do the Seul/Edu groups.

-- 
Hilaire Fernandes 
Home page http://cran.mit.edu/~hilaire
Dr Geo project http://www.drgeo.seul.org