[H-GEN] re: OpenSolaris

[Robert Brockway]

On Sun, 13 Feb 2005, James C. McPherson wrote:

> I used to be a linux-bigot and recommended it and purely GPLd
> software at every turn. At some point I realised that this was
> an inappropriate attitude to have and espouse, because it does
> not meet everybody's needs -- it's an all black and white way
> of looking at a world which most definitely includes shades of
> grey.

This is pretty much the curve I was on too.  My position now is basically:

1.  Computers are ultimately tools.
2.  Identify what you need from these tools to achieve your aims.
3.  Use the software the provides for your needs.

Having said this, I happen to believe that thanks to a combination of 
technical and licensing reasons OSS is very often the best solution to 
a problem.

Out official company position is to prefer the use of OSS in forming 
solutions for clients but we don't restrict ourselves.  We are completely 
upfront about this, as if the company name & web site didn't give it away 
anyway :) So far we have not had to recommend non-OSS software to clients.

> This comes back to my point above -- there are a lot more shades
> of grey in this world, and trying to cram everything into 1, 2,
> 3 or 4 licenses just isn't going to work because everybody who
> writes software, assembles solutions and has any need to do anything
> with computers will find that there is nothing that fits best.

Certainly different groups have different aims.

My fear is that the number of licenses will grow to a point (if it has not 
already) where inter-license management of a cdrom of distributed software 
will become a nightmare for distributors and users alike.

> The use of the word "Common" in the title of the license does not
> in any way imply that Sun wants the license to become the be-all
> and end-all of licenses. There is another implication to the use
> of the word "Common" which I'll leave as an exercise to the reader...

Reminds me of the two distinct meanings of "free" in English.  The French 
don't have this problem.

Cheers,

Rob

-- 
Robert Brockway B.Sc.
Senior Technical Consultant, OpenTrend Solutions Ltd.
Phone: 416-669-3073 Email: rbrockway at opentrend.net http://www.opentrend.net
OpenTrend Solutions: Reliable, secure solutions to real world problems.
Contributing Member of Software in the Public Interest (http://www.spi-inc.org)