“There is a very grey area in the GNU/Linux applications
arena. The grey area is the meeting ground between truly “free”
software (GPL) and applications that are merely ported…“
“For Linux, ported proprietary programs weasel their way into
the arena without really being free. Usually the source code is not
released, but it is free as in “Free Beer.” This is not the kind of
freedom GNU or the GPL promote, and this kind of porting could lead
to a corruption of that freedom. It leads one down the road of
convenience, a path Richard Stallman has warned against. An
application ported to Linux is a compromise on the way to
hell…”
“What has really frustrated me in the use of these proprietary
programs ported to GNU/Linux is the quandaries they get into trying
to give it free to individuals, but keeping it from spreading to
others and especially to businesses. This leads to registration
schemes that are complex, cumbersome and frustrating for the user.
As for myself, I am very reluctant to begin working with a word
processor, if I can’t get the registration working so that I will
be able to access my files after 30 days, or if I can’t get the
“help” files until the registration is complete.”