# LANGUAGE translation of https://www.gnu.org/philosophy/greve-clown.html # Copyright (C) YEAR Free Software Foundation, Inc. # This file is distributed under the same license as the original article. # FIRST AUTHOR , YEAR. # #, fuzzy msgid "" msgstr "" "Project-Id-Version: greve-clown.html\n" "POT-Creation-Date: 2021-09-14 16:26+0000\n" "PO-Revision-Date: YEAR-MO-DA HO:MI+ZONE\n" "Last-Translator: FULL NAME \n" "Language-Team: LANGUAGE \n" "Language: \n" "MIME-Version: 1.0\n" "Content-Type: text/plain; charset=CHARSET\n" "Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit\n" #. type: Content of: msgid "" "History and Philosophy of the GNU Project - GNU Project - Free Software " "Foundation" msgstr "" #. type: Content of: <div><h2> msgid "History and Philosophy of the GNU Project" msgstr "" #. type: Content of: <div><address> msgid "Georg C. F. Greve <a href=\"mailto:greve@gnu.org\"><greve@gnu.org></a>" msgstr "" #. type: Content of: <div><div><p> msgid "" "Translation of a speech that was given in German at the CLOWN (Cluster of " "Working Nodes— a 512-node cluster project of Debian GNU/Linux " "machines) in the University of Paderborn, Germany, on December 5th, 1998." msgstr "" #. type: Content of: <div><div><p> msgid "" "The <a href=\"/philosophy/greve-clown.de.html\">German original</a> is also " "available. Reading the original is recommended." msgstr "" #. type: Content of: <div><div><p> msgid "" "<em> Author's note: In translating this speech, I have tried to stay as " "close as possible to the original speech that I have given in " "German. Breaking up the German structures and turning them into reasonable " "English has been quite some work, and I would like to thank my roommate Doug " "Chapin, a good friend and native American, who helped me with some phrases " "and words. The translation will never hold the same emotions and " "implications, but I think we got very close… </em>" msgstr "" #. type: Content of: <div><p> msgid "" "During the preparation of this speech, I have read several documents and " "spoken to a lot of people. In doing so, I realized that even people whose " "jobs have been created more or less directly by the GNU Project did not know " "its true meaning. In the overall rush we are experiencing at the moment, it " "seems that a basic awareness of the roots has been lost. Tonight I hope I'll " "be able to uncover some of those roots again." msgstr "" #. type: Content of: <div><p> msgid "" "The origin lies somewhere in the transition from the 70's to the 80's, when " "the software industry became what we accept so willingly today. In the " "initial competition, some firms took to hoarding code as a survival " "strategy. While attempting to support this behavior's legality, they created " "phrases like “software piracy” because they suggest that " "something is lost when software is copied. People were forced to yield to " "licenses that bound them, to make sure that no one else had access to these " "programs." msgstr "" #. type: Content of: <div><p> msgid "" "When a friend asked you whether he could copy a program from you, you " "immediately faced a dilemma. There are no disadvantages for you in copying " "the program, and it doesn't deteriorate during the copying process. It would " "be more restrictive if he asked you to pass the salt, since you can't both " "use it at the same time. The politics of the companies forced you to " "<em>choose</em> between legality and friendship." msgstr "" #. type: Content of: <div><p> msgid "" "A lot of people were upset about this, and most of them copied the program " "anyway—very often using lame excuses that were mostly aimed at calming " "their own troubled consciousness (induced by the firms' choice of " "words). The absolute hit was probably “If I would use it more often I " "would pay it,” a phrase that probably everyone caught himself using if " "he ever had to rely on proprietary software." msgstr "" #. type: Content of: <div><p> msgid "" "One man found this situation unbearable. Used to the early days, the (as he " "says himself) “paradise,” where freedom and responsible use of " "the possibilities determined the situation, Richard Stallman envisioned the " "concept of a completely free system. Very quickly it became clear that this " "system would be Unix-compatible and it was baptized—recursive acronyms " "were very popular back then—GNU, which means “GNU's Not " "Unix.” Stallman gathered some people who shared his fascination with a " "free system, and founded the GNU Free Software Foundation, of which he is " "still the president today." msgstr "" #. type: Content of: <div><p> msgid "" "Since first of all a Unix system requires a large set of components, it " "became clear that these were the first step towards a completely free " "system. The GNU FSF worked on implementing them, and by the beginning of the " "90's the GNU system was complete (with the exception of the kernel). The " "GNU kernel—project name “Hurd”—has an extremely " "ambitious layout that proved to be very slow and clumsy in " "development. Fortunately, at this point Linus Torvalds' first Linux kernel " "was in the test phase, and when he saw the work already done by the GNU FSF, " "he put his kernel under the GNU GPL and made it the kernel of the GNU " "system." msgstr "" #. type: Content of: <div><p> msgid "" "There is no need to tell the rest of the story since most of us have " "experienced it themselves." msgstr "" #. type: Content of: <div><p> msgid "" "A little earlier I said that Richard Stallman envisioned the concept of free " "software. What I didn't tell you about was the philosophy that stands behind " "it." msgstr "" #. type: Content of: <div><p> msgid "" "The word “free” in “free software” does not refer to " "price, but to freedom. This is no unproblematic topic, and recently some of " "the visionaries of the movement (like Eric Raymond) have begun to talk " "about “open source” because “freedom” has an uneasy " "sound to it for most people. Freedom rings of “making world a better " "place,” and insecurity. It rings of change, and change frightens many " "people. To numb this fear, other licenses for free software have been " "invented in order to make the concept digestible for more people and to " "avoid scaring the industry." msgstr "" #. type: Content of: <div><p> msgid "" "That is the reason why the GNU Project dislikes the term “open " "source.” We think it makes more sense to take away people's fears of " "the idea instead of blurring the concept. Only if users and firms are aware " "of the importance of freedom can we avoid falling back into old patterns." msgstr "" #. type: Content of: <div><p> msgid "" "The philosophy of the GNU Project says that <em>everyone</em> shall have the " "granted right to use a program, to copy it, and to change it to make it fit " "his or her needs. The <em>only</em> restriction the GNU General Public " "License makes, is that <em>NO ONE</em> has the right to take away this " "freedom from anyone else." msgstr "" #. type: Content of: <div><p> msgid "" "When an author puts his code under the GNU GPL, the freedom is an " "inseparable part of his program. Of course, this is a thorn in the side of a " "lot of business'es eyes because it stops them from taking the code, " "modifying it, and then selling it as a proprietary program. As long as there " "are people who try to live the dream of instant wealth, it is this freedom " "that stops firms like Microsoft from corrupting the future development of " "our system." msgstr "" #. type: Content of: <div><p> msgid "" "The most used argument against the GNU philosophy is probably that software " "is the “intellectual property” of the programmer, and it is only " "right if he can decide the price for which the program is distributed. This " "argument is easy to understand for everyone, since it is exactly what we " "have been told to believe during the last 20 years." msgstr "" #. type: Content of: <div><p> msgid "" "Reality is a little different, though. Private programmers who can live off " "selling self-written software are the exception. Usually they give their " "rights to the firm they work at, and this firm earns the money by " "restricting access to that program. Effectively, the firm has the rights for " "that program and decides it's price, not the programmer." msgstr "" #. type: Content of: <div><p> msgid "" "A lawyer who invents an especially brilliant strategy has no right to claim " "it as his “intellectual property.” The method is freely " "available to anyone. Why do we so willingly accept the concept that every " "line of code—no matter how poorly written or uninspired it may " "be—is so unique and incredibly personal? The zeal for control has " "taken over in a way that even human genes are subject to patents… " "although usually not by the people who “use” them. Should really " "<em>everything</em> be allowed to be patented and licensed?" msgstr "" #. type: Content of: <div><p> msgid "" "This is the question that is one of the core thoughts of the GNU " "Project. Let us just imagine there would be no such concept as patented " "software, or patenting software would be unusual because everyone published " "his programs under the GNU GPL." msgstr "" #. type: Content of: <div><p> msgid "" "Solutions for standard problems that had to be solved over and over again " "can be accessed easily. No one has to waste his time ever again to work on " "the same problem dozens of times—programmers could search for new ways " "and approach new problems. If a group of users needs a certain feature in a " "program, they just hire a programmer and let him implement it. Freed of the " "limitations of licenses and money, only two criteria would determine the " "development of programs: demand and quality." msgstr "" #. type: Content of: <div><p> msgid "" "Speaking of quality—nowadays more and more firms realize that allowing " "the users to access the source code gives them a huge advantage. To say it " "in a simple way: more eyes can see more. Solutions that are unimaginable for " "one person are painfully obvious for someone else. Due to this advantage, " "free software is very often so much better than its proprietary " "counterpart. The train of thought that now appears to be establishing " "itself within some firms is to give users access to the source code but not " "grant any other rights. Improvements are obediently being sent back to the " "firm, which advances its product with them. Basically a gigantic gratis " "development division. If we do not pay attention to these things " "<em>now</em>, it might happen that in 5 years we will have to pay for a " "version that has been produced by applying our own patch." msgstr "" #. type: Content of: <div><p> msgid "" "The concept of software as “intellectual property” carries the " "seed of doom inside itself (please forgive me for the pathos here). As long " "as we accept this concept, we accept the danger that another firm will " "attempt to take control. Microsoft is <em>not</em> evil incarnated, as some " "people seem to perceive. Microsoft is <em>the natural consequence</em> of " "the widely accepted system." msgstr "" #. type: Content of: <div><p> msgid "" "The fear of sawing the branch you're sitting on is also commonly spread, but " "completely irrational. Better programs lead to more users that have other " "needs and new ideas, creating more demand. The structure will change to fit " "the new situation but work will increase rather than decrease, and it will " "become less routine, hence more interesting." msgstr "" #. type: Content of: <div><p> msgid "" "The last common fear that remains is the fear over lack of " "recognition. Well, the respect held for the frontmen of the different " "philosophies speaks for itself. I on my part would prefer to be as respected " "as Linus Torvalds or Richard Stallman than to have the reputation of Bill " "Gates." msgstr "" #. type: Content of: <div><p> msgid "" "Admittedly, this does sound like bettering the world and idealism, but a lot " "of the really great ideas were driven by the wish to make the world a little " "better." msgstr "" #. type: Content of: <div><p> msgid "" "And to settle one point very clearly: no, the GNU Project is not against " "capitalism or firms in general, and it is not against software firms in " "particular. We do not want to diminish the potential for profit, quite the " "contrary. Every firm is being told to make as much money as they can off the " "sale of software, documentation and service—as long as they stick to " "the basic principles of Free Software. The more these firms earn, the more " "they can invest into the development of new software. We do not want to " "destroy the market, we just want to fit it to the times." msgstr "" #. type: Content of: <div><p> msgid "" "One short note about the basic principles: of course free software also " "requires free documentation. It doesn't make any sense to free the successor " "of the book—software—while accepting control of the direct " "digital equivalent. Free documentation is as important as free software " "itself." msgstr "" #. type: Content of: <div><p> msgid "" "Maybe someone discarded my statement about seeking to “fit the market " "to the times” as a rhetorical statement, but it is an important point " "in the GNU Philosophy: the time when software was only relevant for a few " "freaks and some firms is long gone. Nowadays, software is the pathway to " "information. A system that blocks the pathways to information, and in doing " "so the access to information itself, <em>must</em> be reconsidered." msgstr "" #. type: Content of: <div><p> msgid "" "When Eric Raymond published the so called “Halloween Document,” " "it triggered emotions from euphoria to paranoia. For those of you who did " "not read it: it is a Microsoft internal study in which the strengths and " "weaknesses of free software in general, and Linux in particular, are " "analyzed. The author basically concluded that Microsoft has two " "possibilities to counter the threat." msgstr "" #. type: Content of: <div><p> msgid "" "The first is the creation of new or modification of old protocols, " "documenting them only poorly or not at all, so that only Windows-based " "machines will have a working implementation." msgstr "" #. type: Content of: <div><p> msgid "" "One example of this tactic is the protocol used by HP “Cxi” " "printers, which have entered the market as extremely cheap " "“Windows-Printers.” The specifications have only been given to " "Microsoft, so these printers are not usable by any other system." msgstr "" #. type: Content of: <div><p> msgid "" "I have been told by a “professionally trained” computer " "salesperson that the “for Windows” sticker means the printer " "needs a very special kind of RAM, which only Windows machines have; this is " "why it cannot be used under Linux. Something like this confuses the typical " "user, which brings me directly to the second described tactic." msgstr "" #. type: Content of: <div><p> msgid "" "These tactics are usually gathered under the acronym “FUD” (Fear " "Uncertainty Doubt), and were used by IBM long before Microsoft uncovered " "them. The idea is clear: if you make someone uncertain enough, he or she " "will not dare make <em>any</em> decision, effectively remaining in his or " "her current position. That is the thought." msgstr "" #. type: Content of: <div><p> msgid "" "For all times, education has been the arch-enemy of superstition. We must " "not allow education to be hindered by allowing ourselves to become split." msgstr "" #. type: Content of: <div><p> msgid "" "The most recognizable split in the recent history has been the already noted " "distinction between “open source” and “free " "software.” Telling both concepts apart is not an easy task, even for " "most insiders, and it is only understandable if viewed in a historical " "context. Since this is a central point, I'd like to say a few words about " "it." msgstr "" #. type: Content of: <div><p> msgid "" "With the completion of the GNU system with the Linux kernel, there was " "suddenly a complete, powerful, free system available. This inevitably had to " "raise the public's attention sooner or later." msgstr "" #. type: Content of: <div><p> msgid "" "When this attention came, a lot of firms were disconcerted by the word " "“free.” The first association was “no money,” which " "immediately meant “no profit” for them. When people then tried " "to tell them that “free” truly stands for “freedom,” " "they were completely shaken." msgstr "" #. type: Content of: <div><p> msgid "" "Infected by this insecurity and doubt, the idea arose to avoid words like " "“free” and “freedom” at all costs. The term " "“open source” was born." msgstr "" #. type: Content of: <div><p> msgid "" "Admittedly it is easier to sell the idea if you use the term “open " "source” instead of “free software.” But the consequence is " "that the “newbies” have no knowledge or understanding of the " "original idea. This splits the movement, and leads to incredibly " "unproductive trench wars, which waste a huge amount of creative energy." msgstr "" #. type: Content of: <div><p> msgid "" "A larger interested audience does not mean we should talk less about the " "underlying philosophy. Quite the contrary: the more people and firms do not " "understand that this freedom is also in their interest, the more we need to " "talk about it. The freedom of software offers a huge potential for all of " "us—firms and users." msgstr "" #. type: Content of: <div><p> msgid "" "The plan is not to remove capitalism or destroy firms. We want to change the " "understanding of software for the benefit of all participants, to fit the " "needs of the 21th century. This is the core of the GNU Project." msgstr "" #. type: Content of: <div><p> msgid "" "Each of us can do his share—be it in form of a program or " "documentation, or just by spreading the word that there is another way of " "handling things." msgstr "" #. type: Content of: <div><p> msgid "" "It is crucial to explain to the firms that free software is <em>not a " "threat</em>, but an opportunity. Of course this doesn't happen overnight, " "but when all participants realize the possibilities and perspectives, all of " "us will win. So, if you are working in the software business, make yourself " "at home with the topic, talk about it with friends and colleagues. And " "please refrain from trying to “missionize” them—I know " "most of us have this tendency—the arguments speak for themselves. Give " "them the time and peace to think it over, and to befriend themselves with " "the concept. Show them that the concept of freedom is nothing to be feared." msgstr "" #. type: Content of: <div><p> msgid "" "I hope I was able to convey the philosophy or at least stimulate " "consideration of some new ideas. If you have questions or would like to " "discuss some things, I'll be here all night and all questions are welcome. I " "wish everyone a very interesting night. Thank you." msgstr "" #. TRANSLATORS: Use space (SPC) as msgstr if you don't have notes. #. type: Content of: <div> msgid "*GNUN-SLOT: TRANSLATOR'S NOTES*" msgstr "" #. type: Content of: <div><div><p> msgid "" "Please send general FSF & GNU inquiries to <a " "href=\"mailto:gnu@gnu.org\"><gnu@gnu.org></a>. There are also <a " "href=\"/contact/\">other ways to contact</a> the FSF. Broken links and " "other corrections or suggestions can be sent to <a " "href=\"mailto:webmasters@gnu.org\"><webmasters@gnu.org></a>." msgstr "" #. type: Content of: <div><div><p> msgid "" "Please send comments on this speech to Georg Greve <a " "href=\"mailto:greve@gnu.org\"><greve@gnu.org></a>." msgstr "" #. TRANSLATORS: Ignore the original text in this paragraph, #. replace it with the translation of these two: # #. We work hard and do our best to provide accurate, good quality #. translations. However, we are not exempt from imperfection. #. Please send your comments and general suggestions in this regard #. to <a href="mailto:web-translators@gnu.org"> # #. <web-translators@gnu.org></a>.</p> # #. <p>For information on coordinating and contributing translations of #. our web pages, see <a #. href="/server/standards/README.translations.html">Translations #. README</a>. #. type: Content of: <div><div><p> msgid "" "Please see the <a " "href=\"/server/standards/README.translations.html\">Translations README</a> " "for information on coordinating and contributing translations of this " "article." msgstr "" #. type: Content of: <div><p> msgid "Copyright © 1998 Georg C. F. Greve" msgstr "" #. type: Content of: <div><p> msgid "" "Permission is granted to make and distribute verbatim copies of this " "transcript as long as the copyright and this permission notice appear." msgstr "" #. TRANSLATORS: Use space (SPC) as msgstr if you don't want credits. #. type: Content of: <div><div> msgid "*GNUN-SLOT: TRANSLATOR'S CREDITS*" msgstr "" #. timestamp start #. type: Content of: <div><p> msgid "Updated:" msgstr ""