User Linux

[Rui Miguel Seabra]

On Wed, 2004-02-11 at 23:24 +0800, Colin Charles wrote:
> On Wed, 2004-02-11 at 22:34, Rui Miguel Seabra wrote:
> > > Windows won't play a DVD out of the box. A choice of removing the MP3
> > > playing option is good - you just need to get the fix. It shows we as a
> > > Linux community are serious about not distributing software that helps
> > > piracy (in other industries).
> > 
> > You are so wrong in here.
> > 
> > The only thing it shows here is how we, as a community, are hurt by
> > allowing software patents to exist.
> 
> In that case, we'll have to include the Windows community. I don't
> recall why billg removed DVD playing support though (neither do I care).

Maybe he didn't want to pay the patent fees. Although for MP3 he's quite
happy to pay them (and distribute the cost among all costumers).

> > If I lived in the USA, I would have no legitimate way to take my CD's
> > into MP3s (which is what a MP3 player -- much easier to find and buy
> > than one that also plays Ogg/Vorbis -- plays).
> 
> If you own them, you can.

No I can't. I'm not talking about owning or not the CD's but of not
being authorized by the owners of patents concerning MP3 (which are
valid in the USA). Remember that I only use Free Software. Remember that
Fedora Core only distributes Free Software. Since MP3 is patent
encumbered, RedHat and FC can't distribute MP3 related software.

> > There is no such act of that so called "piracy" (although I don't
> > understand what hijacking ships, murdering and stealing have to do with
> > copying).
> 
> "piracy" can be defined many times in the English language. Its just
> like the English word for "free".

Actually, the term piracy only started being pushed into this context
ever since WIPO started, so no, that's not the same case (by far) of
free as speech vs free as in beer.

It's totally artificial and created with the intention of subconsciously
associating someone who copies a work (without permission from the
owner) with a real pirate, who do real harm instead of not so big
profits.

Software patents are excellent helpers for guys like IBM, Microsoft and
such to engage in real act of "piracy" forbidding authors from using
their own hard work (remember the Eolas patent?)

Rui

-- 
+ No matter how much you do, you never do enough -- unknown
+ Whatever you do will be insignificant,
| but it is very important that you do it -- Gandhi
+ So let's do it...?

Please AVOID sending me WORD, EXCEL or POWERPOINT attachments.
See http://www.fsf.org/philosophy/no-word-attachments.html
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