If you want to look at the source code, you are not allowed. If you want to help with improvement of the software, you are not allowed. If you want to change some part of an application just on your device, you are not allowed. These are all rules imposed by one of the widely known technological corporation – Microsoft (1). Especially in the period of the 70s and 80s, this corporation (monopoly) had the power of mercilessly controlling, dominating and manipulating its users throughout the globe. All people – lovers of the technological advantages were held up under the clemency of the monopoly. It was asked from them to cut themselves off from a cooperating community, and refuse to share the software even with their closest relatives. They were supposed to keep it just for themselves, and let the multi-billion companies receive greater incomes, while the population was entering into a phase of thrilling poverty.
Over time, the chains have been loosen up. Even though the Microsoft Corporation stayed on its idea of assigning numerous restrictions on its users, other alternatives were developed as well. One highly influential and expandable community, called the Open Source or the Free Software Community fights for the existence of a cooperative, collaborative and unselfish technological world organisation. It includes many programmers, developers, and open-minded people who, by working on Linux and by making their contributions, get involved in the revolution against this ethically incorrect idea that the “monopoly” enforces. Today, Linux, the archetype for creating the Open Source Community and developing software available for everyone, became Microsoft’s worse nightmare (Raimond).
The foundations of the Free Software community began in the 1980s with the GNU operating system. In 1991, the last, but one the most essential components of GNU was created – a kernel called Linux (4). Therefore, Linux is not an operating system, but the core – the heart of the operating system. It was the period of 1991–1993 when Linux started to improve dramatically. Known as the “infancy of Linux”, this period was crucial for the creation of the (GNU) operating system which does not force its users to succumb to it. Linux is the platform for “organiz[ing] and control[ling] hardware and software”, and its function is to “ensure that applications continue to run when hardware upgrades and updates occur”(2).
The GNU operating system was founded by Richard Stallman, who established this idea after becoming programmer at the MIT Artificial Intelligence Laboratory. He, together with Linus Torvalds, Bruce Perens, and Eric Rainmond were one of the first contributors to the Open Source Community(4). Linus Torvalds is mostly known as the creator of the Linux kernel. Eric Rainmond with his book The Cathedral and the Bazaar played an important role in ethically awakening many people to choose open, rather than closed, authoritarian operating system. From living under the hierarchical cathedral, he encouraged them to change to decentralised bazaar that gives the freedom for everyone to contribute fixes and get involve in the creation of more efficient and safe technological community. The “Bazaar”, as Rainmond calls it, is a community of hackers – enthusiastic and skilful people who love to learn, modify and improve the performance of their technological devices. The “bazaar”, unlike the “cathedral”, is established under the four “essential freedoms” (3). These include “the freedom to run the program, for any purpose (freedom zero)”, “the freedom to study how the program works and change it […] as you wish (freedom one)”, “the freedom to […] help your neighbour (freedom two)”, and “the freedom to redistribute copies to […] the whole community (freedom three)”(3).
Except for encouraging others to contribute, the Open Source community organises Installfest where people may come, bring their computers (no matter how heavy they are), and find someone experienced enough with GNU/Linux to help them install it on their electronic device. That’s the reason why it is called “Community” not “Corporation”; besides, everyone is willing to help, not to charge. The founder, Stallman would add: “Free software refers not to price, but to freedom; […] think of it as a freedom of speech, not free beer” (4).
Nowadays, there are more than 60 million Linux users worldwide. Precisely, 60 million people in the world use computers in freedom at this moment. This astounding spread of the Free Software Community for a period of 20 years reflects to the human nature and their willingness to “study, change, improve”(4) and help other people in building a collaborative society. What every person is seeking for is the right of being free, and that is exactly what the Free Software Community fights for.
The Linux addicted,
Elena Petrevska
Cited Pages:
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Microsoft Corporation
(http://www.microsoft.com/about/legal/en/us/IntellectualProperty/Copyright/Default.aspx)
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http://www.howstuffworks.com/operating-system.htm
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http://www.gnu.org/philosophy/free-sw.html
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http://www.gnu.org/
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https://linuxcounter.net/
од el3na77 на 15 мај 2012, 13:38