Karnataka - Mysore   

Extend due credit to GNU community: Stallman

MYSORE: Champion of free software and creator of the GNU computer operating system Richard Stallman delivered a lecture at the Sri Jayachamarajendra College of Engineering (SJCE) on Monday.

Mr. Stallman spoke on issues relating to open source software, which allowed one to use it without fear of being spied on and modify it according to the requirement.

He also put forth his views about why one should stand up against proprietorship of software, which gains control over individuals using them even without their knowledge.

Stating that there were four freedom concepts relating to open source software, Mr. Stallman said the user should be able to run it as he wished, study the source code, make copies and use it to contribute to community growth.

Mr. Stallman also appealed to people to extend due credit to the GNU community led by him, which stood for total freedom in computing, as the initiator of the movement as against Linus Torvalds’ Linux, which was merely an open-source kernel that later embraced GNU but with a less progressive philosophy.

“If one asks me if I would violate the law enforced upon me by the proprietor of software by making a copy and sharing it with my friend, or abide by the law, I would chose the former because it is less evil,” he said.

Rejecting the term piracy, Mr. Stallman said, “Firstly, it is wrong to impose restrictions on anything that is being used by the masses.

Find other ways to control it rather than handcuffing them like this,” he said.

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