"Yet, despite the baying of mobs with pitch forks and
torches in the background, the topic of how FOSS presents itself to
the world at large has started to be raised in blogs. The consensus
is that FOSS has not taken control of its identity, and would be
more successful if it did.
"I am as uneasy as anyone when the idea of marketing is raised
-- maybe more so, since I worked in marketing for several years
before I found an honest job, and know its faults as only an
insider can. All the same, I welcome the discussion as distasteful
but increasingly necessary.
"Within the community, FOSS is well established as a brand.
However, outside the community, FOSS' identity is less clear. There
are at least seven reasons for this lack of clarity, all of which
need to be addressed if the community is going to grow much beyond
its current size."
