Re: [tlug] [OT] Say _no_ to the Microsoft Office format as an ISO standard

[Jean-Christophe Helary <fusion@example.com>]

On 4 juil. 07, at 13:54, <burlingk@example.com>  
<burlingk@example.com> wrote:

>  On Wed, 4 Jul 2007 11:13:18 +0900,
>  Jean-Christophe Helary <fusion@example.com> wrote
>  in <E59CA5C5-59F9-40D5-9919-4737A507AC47@example.com>:
>
> > And I did not declare that use of "liberal-open-source-license code"
> > was stealing, it is closing the code and/or not contributing back
> > that is stealing.
>
> The vast majority of users for most code will be end users.
> End users don't generally contribute code back to the community.
> Most of them don't even send in bug reports.
>
> Are they stealing?

We are talking about _distribution_ of code, not about use of  
binaries. But I agree that my "and/or" was a little ambiguous. It is  
definitely an "and".

Users of proprietary code and users of open/free code are, for the  
great majority of them, in the exact same position: then don't give a  
damn about the thing as long as it works.

Still, even in proprietary soft there are community of users that  
share ideas and support each other. That too is contribution.

I am (non coder) admin in a GPLed project that releases code people  
can use "to feed their kids" and I consider that contributing goes  
way beyond code. I see this GPLed project (as well as any other one)  
as an opportunity for helping people with computer literacy "issues".  
It starts from using a few simple regexps to writing a short  
automation to reading the actual code and understand bits of it.

Jean-Christophe Helary