Subject: Re: Questions about Symbolics lisp machines From: Erik Naggum <erik@naggum.net> Date: Thu, 28 Mar 2002 03:46:40 GMT Newsgroups: comp.lang.lisp Message-ID: <3226276015193596@naggum.net> * Erik Naggum > I believe that the Free Software movement grew out of a disgruntled giver > who saw that those who accepted the gift just ran off with the huge > amount of money he gained from his investment or lottery ticket and gave > nothing of it back to you, and then the GPL got written which dictates > that if you do something useful with the gift, you cannot keep it. * Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen <larsi@gnus.org> | I think his annoyance was with the fact that those people who received | stuff refused to give that stuff on to others. Which is quite a | different thing. Why would they have to do that? The original source could just give it away again, right? My point is that the disgruntled giver realized that the recipient just accepted the gift and then "refused" to share his own contributions with anyone. | An the other hand, if I write a book, and then give you a copy of it, | you're free to do whatever you want with it -- except redistribute it. Huh? If you can make a copy of it and give me the book or the copy, I can copy it and give someone else the book or a copy. | Is it therefore a gift with strings, and therefore suspect? If so, it's | impossible to give anybody any non-suspect gifts that involve IP. That does not follow. /// -- In a fight against something, the fight has value, victory has none. In a fight for something, the fight is a loss, victory merely relief.