After 5 hours of struggle Java works in FireFox

[JohnOfArc]

On Tue, 28 Dec 2004 00:52:54 -0800, Chuck Vose wrote:

> I know this is a crap answer but I've been reading Richard Stallman all
> day.
>
not everyone who supports FOSS is in the Stallman camp. Actually, there
are quite a few staunch supporters who disagree with him on many
issues. OTOH, he's an important central figure, but highly controversial.

http://www.ubuntulinux.org/ubuntu/philosophy/document_view

"Ubuntu is happy to call itself open source. While some refer to free and
open source as competing movements with different ends, we do not see free
and open source software as either distinct or incompatible. Ubuntu
proudly includes members who identify with both the free software and open
source camps and many who identify with both."

I'm not trying to suggest that Stallman doesn't hold a position of respect
in the Ubuntu/Debian community, even by those who disagree with him, I'm
simply pointing out that Ubuntu is a bigger tent than just FSF.

> Java will never be supported in Ubuntu unless Sun decides to make it
> free. Ubuntu is run by the people that run Debian,
>
there's certainly overlap, but strictly speaking, that's not true

> the obscenely free
> distro of linux. Asking them to make installing a non-free easy is like
> asking them to poke their mothers in the eye for your pleasure.
> 
according to /usr/share/doc/java-common/debian-java-faq/ch3.html

"The first thing you should understand about the design strategy of Debian
is that our goal is to produce a 100% Free Software platform. In that
sense, some of the Java tools available [1] are not available in the
standard Debian distribution for licensing reasons, not for any technical
motivation."

also http://www.debian.org/intro/about

"Although Debian believes in free software, there are cases where people
want or need to put non-free software on their machine. Whenever possible
Debian will support this. There are even a growing number of packages
whose sole job is to install non-free software into a Debian system."

and if you read Ubuntu ""main" and "restricted" Component Licence Policy"

http://www.ubuntulinux.org/ubuntu/licensing/document_view

you'll see that this would never pass Stalllman's purity tests- he's
stated many times he won't use non-free (in the strictest sense) under any
circumstance.

> You might be able to convince the Firefox devs to help out in this
> respect but I'll be willing to bet that they value freedom as much as
> the Ubuntu devs do. Anyone spending a large chunk of their time
> developing GNU/Linux stands a good chance of being obsessed with
> freedom.
> 
if you mean "as dictated by RMS", thank goodness you're wrong

> So until Sun decides to be less evil, I think you'll probably be out of
> luck for a really nice, evolving solution.
> 
> -Chuck
> 
> PS. I know this doesn't solve the problem at all, but I'm hoping that at
> least now you know _why_ it isn't easy and why is _won't_ be easy for
> some time. It's not personal.
>
it's already easy, so I don't understand your point