Dark Liquid

Jono Bacon of LUGRadio fame’s latest post has created quite a bit of debate over the Ubuntu binary driver inclusion decision and about software freedom in general. Here is my rather simple take on it all.

I think the issue is about freedom. Banning non-free drivers is taking away people freedom to choose whether they want to compromise or not. As long as a message or warning is displayed about the use of non-free software upon installation, the user is then free to make their own choice. Isn’t that what freedom is all about?

I’m not interested particularly in Linux ‘winning’ the desktop wars or wiping out all non-free software. I’m interested in giving people a choice and giving people the freedom to do things they love without without having to place all their eggs in a companies basket. I’m not opposed to people wanting to trust companies with their data or software needs, I just want people to be aware or the alternatives and why they can be better. Most of all, I want them to have the freedom to make a choice between free and non-free.