Re: [gNewSense-users] What is the firefox problem?

[Benj. Mako Hill]

<quote who="Damian Wardingley" date="Tue, Dec 12, 2006 at 08:42:58PM +0000">
> Can someone please elaborate on the "firefox problem" - something to
> do with a trademark on the Firefox-encircles-the-globe logo, right?
> but Linus has the trademark Linux, doesn't he?

There are trademarks in many free software projects. The reason that
Debian is going to be shipping IceWeasel instead of Firefox is not
because they don't like the license, the license haven't changed, but
because the FireFox developers have told told Debian that they are not
comfortable with the changes or the Debian developers and don't want
Debian to distribute FF using the FF trademark.

Some people have said that in order to prevent such reactions from the
Mozilla Founadtion, or to act in solidarity with Debian and in protest
of the Mozilla Foundations, other distributions should also switch
from Firefox to Ice Weasel.

As far as I am concerned (and I haven't thought about this incredibly
deeply yet), this is a tactical decisions, and not a freedom issue.
As a result, either decision might be justified.

> Does this same trademark problem afflict Thunderbird email?

Yes, it does. Debian has/is rebranding their Thunderbird as Ice Dove
IIRC. I'm not quite as up to date on this because I do not use
Thunderbird.

> If not firefox, then which? Epiphany is the "default" GNOME browser,
> but I must admit I've never used it. Any good? (I use firefox now
> 'cos I started using it when I was on Windows).

You could use Ice Weasel. I also like Epiphany and Galeon. Both are
based on Mozilla's Gecko engine of course.

Later,
Mako


-- 
Benjamin Mako Hill
address@hidden
http://mako.cc/

Creativity can be a social contribution, but only in so
far as society is free to use the results. --RMS