merchandise

[Seth Williamson]

>>Well, I'm glad you're happy with your religion.  Me, I've already got 
>>one, and for me open-source isn't a faith.  It's just a better way to 
>>get some jobs done.

> What the hell are you talking about? Open-Source isn't in any way a
> religion...

Precisely.  Which is why it's silly to elevate it to that status, or 
treat it as a stepping stone to utopia.

> ... religions IMHO are just some other kind of
> 'system-of-the-strong' to suppress and rip people off - sorry if I now
> trample on you believes.

<yawn>  Believe what you want about religion.  It's beside the point.

>>Your problem is that the majority of people are unlikely to buy into the
>>idea to the extent you've done, and for those individuals, the utopian
>>sell will just appear puerile. 

> It seems you realy *know* the "majority of people" and what they're
> thinking ... Sorry but this kind of *argumentation* is puerile.

Nah.  It's nothing more than introducing an adult perspective on the 
issue.  Open source is a way to do certain jobs better than before. 
Full stop.  The rhapsodies about Desmond Tutu et al are OK if that's 
what floats your boat.  But they have essentially nothing to do with 
whether or not a given piece of software is an excellent tool.

> If you've done just a little research in the history of Free Software and
> Open Source you will find out that people like Richard Stallman or Linus
> Torvalds are not only some tec-freeks. There where leaded by ideals and
> an idea of a better world ...

Interesting you should mention these guys, because Stallman has had a 
Jesus complex for years, while Linus is totally realistic.  To the 
extent of using commercial software if it does a given job better.  I'm 
with Linus.  Come back to earth and lose the millenium-speak.

>>Why offend such individuals? 

> Hmm, don't see any offending here. But we have a nice saying:
> "Kicked dogs bark!" ...

>>Why not just concentrate on excellence in producing software       
> 
> 
> Because the way we do "our jobs" is highly influenced by motivation. I've
> been in the software "buisness" long enough to say this. And this is one
> of the things that makes Free Software better then Commercial Software ...

If it motivates you to elevate Desmond Tutu to sainthood, get yourself a 
dashboard statue of him for your car.  To more skeptical individuals, he 
is a silly man and a hypocrite.