Ubuntu is not free.

Dotan Cohen dotancohen at gmail.com
Sat Jul 8 17:15:37 UTC 2006


On 08/07/06, meets at free.fr <meets at free.fr> wrote:
> Hello,
> A man reported the fact in a french mailing list : some proprietary
> firmwares are inclueded in the kernel package.
>
> We users _want Ubuntu to stay free_, and we don't need non free
> firmwares pollution in the default kernel packages. It's quite easy to
> install afterwards when needed.
>
> Readings in english and in french :
> *In english :
> http://fasmz.org/~pterjan/blog/?date=20060609
>
> "Ubuntu image and reality regarding freedom"
>
> *In french :
> http://matixco.org/marchives/bourguinux/2006-July/001314.html
>
> "Savoir qu'il n'est pas "facile" d'installer un logiciel proprio ne
> m'intéresse pas. Ce qui m'intéresse c'est d'être informé. Ainsi, si
> j'en ai envi, je peux installer, par exemple, le driver ipw2100-fw, je
> fais : pacman -S ipw2100-fw Par contre, un message me prévient que le
> driver n'est pas libre. Loin des méthodes d'ubuntu ;)"
>
> _Translation_ :
> knowing that it's not easy to install a proprietary
> software does not interest me. What interest me is to get the
> information. So, if I wish, I can install, for example, the ipw2100-fw
> driver, I invoke pacman -S ipw2100-fw. On the other hand, a message
> warns me that the driver is not free. Far from the Ubuntu methods ;)".
>
> He is a free software actor in his region, I know him and met
> personally. And I know is most interested that all Linux distributions
> stay clean.
>
> This other man on the list answers :
> http://matixco.org/marchives/bourguinux/2006-July/001315.html
>
> "Le driver des ipw est libre. Ce qui ne l'est pas c'est le firmware qui
> n'a à mon avis _rien_ à faire dans une distribution qui se veut libre.
> D'ailleurs, si on télécharge un kernel sur ftp.kernel.org, on trouve
> par exemple les drivers (libres) pour des cartes wifi basées sur des
> Prism mais les firmwares (propriétaires) pour ces cartes n'y sont
> pas..."
>
> _Translation_ :
> The ipw driver is free, what is not is the firmware, which in my
> opinion has nothing to do in a distribution that wants to be free.
> You can also see that if we download a kernel on ftp.kernel.org, we
> find the (free) drivers pour wifi cards based on Prism but the
> (proprietary) firmwares for theses cards aren't there..."
>
> Best greetings, Joyce Markoll.
>

Please disregard this FUD. Thank you.

Dotan Cohen
http://what-is-what.com


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