The Jargon of Freedom: 60 Words and Phrases with Context

Aug 03, 2010, 03:03 (0 Talkback[s])
(Other stories by Terry Hancock)

[ Thanks to steve hill for this link. ]

"What exactly does it mean when Richard Stallman says that the Creative Commons' Attribution-ShareAlike license has a "Weak Copyleft"? Why exactly is it that "Freeware" and "Non-Free Software" mean the same thing, while "Free Software" is something else entirely? And what is this business with "Free Beer", and where can I get some? If you've asked yourself these questions, this column is for you.

"There's a great deal of jargon surrounding the various cultures and ideas around software freedom. I'm going to take you on a brief tour to try to make some sense out of the language. Each set of terms arises from a particular philosophy and movement of people, so it'll also be necessary to introduce some of those movements."

Complete Story

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