[clug] Internode dumps FOSS for MS Exchange

[Lana Brindley]

On 17 February 2010 14:48, Chris Smart <mail at christophersmart.com> wrote:

> On Wed, Feb 17, 2010 at 2:19 PM, Lana Brindley <lanabrindley at gmail.com>
> wrote:
> >
> > You say that driving Linux adoption is the main reason for integrating
> > proporietary software support in Linux desktops. But you don't say why
> > having more people running Linux is a good thing. *Why* does a little
> > penguin die every time someone refuses to change? You cite Linus'
> > "unintended side effect" line, but are still arguing for widespread
> > adoption, which I don't really understand.
>
> The article sways back and forth deliberately. I wasn't really
> providing any answers, but asking questions.
>

Yes, I realised. I was just playing devil's advocate. Sorry!


>
> >
> > Some may call me elitist, but I really think it comes down to assessing
> our
> > priorities as a a community. If the community exists solely to drive
> market
> > share, then I'm not really interested in being involved. If the community
> > exists simply because we're a group of people excited about free
> software,
> > then I'll be in the front row.
>
> Yeah, so this is really what it boils down to (which I ask a few times
> in my articles). Is our focus on competing for market share, or just
> making cool free software?
>
> If it's the latter, then it doesn't matter if anyone else uses free
> software or not. If we're competing for the former, then it does
> matter.
> The more people who use free software, the better it becomes. So
> pushing the adoption of free software doesn't have to be about
> corporate market share.
>
>
I think it has a lot to do with the way that adoption is pushed, though.
There's ways and means of doing it, and I don't think that pandering to
corporate interests and producing glossy advertising campaigns is the way it
should be done. But then, I don't tend to think that method is smart no
matter what your product is (which is why, despite having a marketing
degree, I don't work in marketing, I guess).

L

-- 
Cheers! Lana

Good-bye. I am leaving because I am bored.
 - George Saunders

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