Re: When can we expect a version 1.0 of the GNU Operating System?

[Bruno Félix Rezende Ribeiro]

Em Fri, 21 Nov 2014 10:33:09 -0500
address@hidden (Alfred M. Szmidt) escreveu:

>    The Web site of the GNU Project emphasizes how important freedom is
>    for users, but it says that the GNU Project was launched in 1984 to
>    develop the GNU system and that its primary goal is to offer a
>    Unix-compatible system that would be 100% free software. [1]
> 
> Which we achived back in the 90s, so our goal is to continue to make
> sure that we provide a 100% free software system by replacing any new
> fangled software that deprives users of their free.

We haven't really achieved it until now.  I believe the GNU project's
distribution of the GNU system that the Guix team is working on will get
us there.  Of course, GNU hackers will continue to work on free
replacements for proprietary software, and those will be part
of the GNU system.


> It isn't to make things easier (though important), or technically
> superious (also important): a free software program that is
> impossible to install and technically inferior is still better than
> the alternative.

O.o That's not the point.


>    I think you are confusing the goals of the GNU Project with the
>    goals of the Free Software Foundation.
> 
> The goals of the FSF and GNU project are exactly the same: kick the
> software hoarders out.

What a silly sentence!  It's completely misleading.  Of course GNU and
FSF were brought into existence so we could fight and win the battle
against proprietary software.  However, they have very distinct and
complementary roles to achieve that common goal.


>    The release of the GNU Operating System is very important for
>    freedom.
> 
> Maybe it is important, but it would be important for the GNU project
> as such, not for user freedom since it does not bring anything new to
> the able (and by this I mean in the sense of freedom -- we already
> have a 100% free system in the form of gNS, Trisquel, etc).

That's important for computer users' freedom because it will be
simpler for the GNU project's ideas to reach the end user.  That way
we can convey GNU philosophy and ideals more effectively; and that will
raise awareness, which is the most important thing for helping the
free software movement.


> [...] GUIX is a 100% operating system [...]

Please, GNU Guix is a package manager, and that's very different from
an operating system.  The Guix team is working on a distribution of the
GNU system for the GNU project, though.


> From the GNU projects point of view, the goal is simple, 100% free
> operating system.  Since we have that,

We still don't have that, but we are pretty close.


> [...] and we have other challanges to fight it is clear that those
> challanges are of higher priority, either software like LibreJS,
> seeing that we can still boot our computers with coreboot (not even a
> GNU project or entirely aligned with our goals), or working on music
> and videos formats unencumbered by patents like FLAC, and Theora.
> And whatever else these nasty people will throw our way...

Those are issues that concern the free software community at large.  We
have FSF campaigning for it, and every technical contribution that can
be done at GNU system level, is our responsibility as well.  But it
doesn't change the fact that our job is to develop the GNU system.


-- 
 ,= ,-_-. =.  Bruno Félix Rezende Ribeiro (oitofelix) [0x28D618AF]
((_/)o o(\_)) There is no system but GNU;
 `-'(. .)`-'  GNU Linux-Libre is one of its official kernels;
     \_/      All software must be free as in freedom;