Have You Ever Contributed In Free Software Development?

[Vitel]

'Yes' means that

• you have your own free software project(s) and/or
• you were/are involved in development of a free software project(s) and/or
• you wrote a patch(es) and/or
• you filed a bug(s) and/or
• you contributed in another way (art/translation/testing/etc).

Inspired by this quote:

End user and development are strongly connected in GNU. You use a program, you've found an issue. What should you do? You should file a bug. You may need to install a debugger, obtain a stack trace, apply patches provided by devs, recompile you application, etc. That's the way it is for lots of GNU users (not devs).

If you think this is what the unspoken majority of Linux users do then you live in a fantasy land. "A lot" is immaterial if it's still a minority.

 

[Exophase]

You really think this site is a representative sampling of the several million Linux users?

Consider:
- People who have had computers built for them by a family member who installed Linux (often to save the cost of buying Windows)
- People using Linux on a commodity device like a phone (ie, Android)
- People buying OEM desktops and laptops/netbooks in poorer countries where Linux is heavily used to save on upfront cost

What can you use to draw a correlation between those people and those showing interest in a niche device who are probably more technically inclined than most? This site contains far, far more software developers than an average population sampling would indicate, and Linux has far too many users for me to believe that a huge percentage of them are developers.

 

[u9i]

I voted yes, but as Exophase said, I think you live in a fantasy land

 

[Prometheus]

I voted no, and I've also got to agree with Exophase.

I also have relatives who've had me do Linux installations for them, so there are several more people to add to the "No" camp.

 

[MDave]

Do you have to be a Linux user to say 'Yes'?

 

[Vitel]

You really think this site is a representative sampling of the several million Linux users?

Of course not. I'm not talking about this far-from-IT majority.
As you mentioned below (and as this poll will demonstrate), there are many guys involved in software development, but even they don't quite understand (according to my previous thread) the terminology like Linux, GNU, distribution, free software, etc. And this is a problem IMHO.

 

[paddy]

I voted yes as i am currently working on a free game project but also i have nes rom hacks ? don't
know if that counts but it's free software in a way for people to use ,and i do custom windows and linux
installs for family and friends, also i have done bug reporting and creating music for someone elses project.

 

[Vitel]

Do you have to be a Linux user to say 'Yes'?

No, you don't.

 

[Prometheus]

I voted yes as i am currently working on a free game project but also i have nes rom hacks ? don't
know if that counts but it's free software in a way for people to use ,and i do custom windows and linux
installs for family and friends, also i have done bug reporting and creating music for someone elses project.

I believe Vitel is referring to a very specific usage of the word free - i.e., "freedom" as opposed to "free of charge". If the projects you're referring to don't fall under that definition, then you probably should have voted no.

 

[paddy]

free software development ? i read this as free of charge.And all the stuff i have done so far that i have stated have been free of charge, but also the work i have done has been free to use and redistribute.

 

[Vitel]

free software development ? i read this as free of charge.And all the stuff i have done so far
that i have stated have been free of charge, but also the work i have done has
been free to use and redistribute.

OMG. http://www.gnu.org/philosophy/free-sw.html

 

[Wolenber]

Man, I've patched like, one bug in an actually project, ever.
The most I've done that's ever really helped anyone is write a little scouting program for our local robotics team.

 

[paddy]

Do you mean free as in open source ? and free to do what ever you want with it ,and to that end you are asking have i contributed to the makings of this open source free software then i say yes but this all seems like a way of catching people out with what they think is free ,i know about linux and what it stands for to a point ,but i must admit that this FREEDOM you are refering to is going way over my head ,if it's free to work with ,then isn't it simply free of charge as well otherwise it would not be free ? or are you talking about free to change alter once you buy it ? there are a few ways to look at this and quite frankly i don't quite get your point.

Like i say ,i have worked on free open software in the past ,and i will continue to do so and that software will always be free to the user to do what ever they want with it ,alter it mod it or destroy ,what ever they like,this is why i have answered YES in the poll if i am wrong ,then please be more specific in your poll as i simply don't get it.

 

[Vitel]

Do you mean free as in open source ? and free to do what ever you want with it ,and to that end
you are asking have i contributed to the makings of this open source free software then i say yes
but this all seems like a way of catching people out with what they think is free ,i know about linux
and what it stands for to a point ,but i must admit that this FREEDOM you are refering to is going
way over my head ,if it's free to work with ,then isn't it simply free of charge as well otherwise
it would not be free ? or are you talking about free to change alter once you buy it ? there are
a few ways to look at this and quite frankly i don't quite get your point.

Like i say ,i have worked on free open software in the past ,and i will continue to do so
and that software will always be free to the user to do what ever they want with it ,alter
it mod it or destroy ,what ever they like,this is why i have answered YES in the poll
if i am wrong ,then please be more specific in your poll as i simply don't get it.

Are you a troll? I'm afraid you are.

 

[Gerix]

I wrote a program for a math professor once, but after he found out I wasn't a math or computer science major, he said he'd rather have someone else work on it. Plus, he didn't like the idea of it being open source, because he was worried someone would beat him to the journal.

Other than that, free software generally works, so I never feel the need to submit a bug report or rewrite code.

I like to think of Linux as more of a state of mind than an operating system. Anyway, it doesn't really matter in my opinion. If someone asks what operating system I use, I say Linux. If they don't know about Linux, they won't know about Gentoo. If they know about Linux, they might ask me which distro I'm using. I imagine someone could say, "Technically, that's incorrect." But where I live, it's "technically" illegal for a woman to get a haircut without her husband's consent. Try enforcing that and see what happens.

 

[Exophase]

Of course not. I'm not talking about this far-from-IT majority.
As you mentioned below (and as this poll will demonstrate), there are many guys involved in software development, but even they don't quite understand (according to my previous thread) the terminology like Linux, GNU, distribution, free software, etc. And this is a problem IMHO.

It's interesting you say that, because according to your previous thread it was you who didn't understand what "GNU" meant. You also have quite a narrow worldview regarding development contexts, it looks like your knowledge of embedded Linux is pretty limited in particular. I think we possibly all have a bit to learn about terminology and what have you, but maybe we shouldn't all approach it as being a "problem." Or maybe I should be saying that just because it's a problem to you doesn't mean you should consider other people to be perpetuating something problematic.

Quite frankly, when it comes to terminology it can be difficult for there to be such clear right and wrong. These things are generally agreed upon by consensus. I'm personally a little chafed by they likes of rms who insist on giving definitions and are expected to be taken authoritatively - for instance, rms may have coined the "free software" term, but it's too general and conflictingly self explanatory for him to really expect to have authority over it. Which is probably why alternatives such as "libre" have been introduced.

EDIT: Yay, I see the troll labeling isn't going to be stopping any time soon. "Wow, your post is too stupid for me to take seriously so I'm just going to assume you're trying to get a rise out of me", real respectful. If someone called me a troll over something like that I'd be pretty offended. Some people don't speak English natively, gasp, surprising I know. Until you gain the ability to actually look into a person's heart and determine their motivations you should resist the urge to make judgment calls based on very little.

 

[limetang]

Do you mean free as in open source ? and free to do what ever you want with it ,and to that end
you are asking have i contributed to the makings of this open source free software then i say yes
but this all seems like a way of catching people out with what they think is free ,i know about linux
and what it stands for to a point ,but i must admit that this FREEDOM you are refering to is going
way over my head ,if it's free to work with ,then isn't it simply free of charge as well otherwise
it would not be free ? or are you talking about free to change alter once you buy it ? there are
a few ways to look at this and quite frankly i don't quite get your point.

Like i say ,i have worked on free open software in the past ,and i will continue to do so
and that software will always be free to the user to do what ever they want with it ,alter
it mod it or destroy ,what ever they like,this is why i have answered YES in the poll
if i am wrong ,then please be more specific in your poll as i simply don't get it.

I know this is horribly off topic, but what's with all the new lines? Just keep typing and it'll wrap around...

As for the poll, I've never contributed anything to any free software projects because I don't have the knowledge or inclination. I expect this is true of the vast majority of Linux users.

 

[Gerix]

I know this is horribly off topic, but what's with all the new lines? Just keep typing and it'll wrap around...

It's free verse.

 

[paddy]

ffs , i am a troll and i can't type worth a fuck as well ... grrr lol anyway yes i have a bad habbit of going onto a new line before the end of the first line as the old forums used to mess all the text about and i would have to edit and replace the text ,sorry everyone for that and i will in future type all the way to the end.

Vitel ,i didn't really like your comment about being a troll and i was only trying to understand the terms of your statment as i openly wanted to contribute to your poll so thanks.

 

[Prometheus]

Are you a troll? I'm afraid you are.

I'm sorry, but it's very clear that he is not.

The fact is, most people see the "free software" definition that way, and it shouldn't be that difficult to see why.