SNIP

Jeremy Lunn
Melbourne, Australia
Homepage: http://www.austux.net/
http://www.jabber.org.au/ - the next generation of Instant Messaging.


Jabber® is a registered trademark of Jabber, Inc.


jabber.com
What is Jabber XCP?
Jabber XCP is a commercial software platform for moving your ideas
forward - in real-time. Deploy secure, scalable, enterprise instant
messaging.
/jabber.com

Now someone obviously is trying to sort of follow the netscape example
but has got the entirely wrong idea!

At least with netscape/mozilla us mozilla users know we are getting
*everything* the company has to offer except support and normally only
one release late except for bug fixes.

6/32 of the offerings for download from jabber.org are licensed
"commercial" ... that is, nearly 19% of the code is only available under
commercial licensing. If I offered you a free car (that was only -as
good- as any other free car) with 18% missing do you *really* think
you'd be getting a good deal ? Even if I said it was 18% by weight and
that, therefore, the motor wasn't included ?

I notice that a further 3 out of the remaining 26 offerings are licensed
under the "Jabber Open Source License" which is not available for
viewing (http://www.jabber.com/license/index.shtml) ... perhaps if one
chose to "register" it would be available but I object to having to
supply my details - When did "free" stop meaning "free" in the sense
that I know it especially in the so-called "land of the free" ?

So far we have 9/32 offerings that are not what are commonly called
"free" that are toted as being part of the complete package. Hmmmmm ...
lessee now ... (9/32) * 100 = 28.125% of the code base isn't free at
all - you're getting less and less of a car and more and more of a lemon
all of the time!

The LGPL has been deprecated (checkout
http://www.gnu.org/licenses/why-not-lgpl.html) the appache license is
considered by many to be overly restrictive
(http://yro.slashdot.org/yro/04/02/18/215242.shtml) as is the BSD
license (http://www.gnu.org/philosophy/bsd.html).

In fact, if I chase this a bit further it becomes apparent that this
"free" software is not at all what Stallman intended when he commenced
releasing "free" software. Unfortunately the "free beer" seems to have
taken the place of "free speech" ... and we all know that free beer
is only offered so that you will get drunk enough to buy spirits later
on!

Perhaps I don't understand the meaning of the word "free" but I
wholeheartedly support, no matter how misguided, the leading words of
Richard Stallman www.gnu.org.

Please, if you must advertise, understand and make clear what it is that
you are advertising - not everyone has the time to find out that
"claimed free" is not the same as "actually free"

Kind regards,

Ivan.