[ Thanks to Brent
Toderash for this link. ]
“Volley no. 1 came from TUCOWS Linux Webmaster Chad Simonds, who
said that Linux reviews were bought rather than earned. Volley no.
2 came from ZDNet and said – well, not much other than “What else
is new?” Slashdot is still discussing the matter.”
“The accusation was made against smaller Linux publications –
probably including the likes of Penguinista.org, though not us
specifically. I wouldn’t stop there, though – but I’d be a little
more suspect about certain non-free operating systems and software,
especially if the manufacturer of said product(s) is(are) a major
shareholder in the publication doing the review. No names
mentioned, of course, but we Penguinistas call it the “Lapdog
Press.” Such reviews should always contain disclosures to indicate
if any consideration was received, whatsoever.”
“Free review copies are provided by book publishers and software
companies, and have been for aeons. …Gutenburg probably gave away
review copies of the Bible… but are good reviews “bought” for
Linux distributions? Hard to imagine when most of the product is
free anyway. … Journalistic integrity. Disclosure. Such
things should apply to all review articles, recommendations,
studies, surveys – on second thought, there may be a story in here
somewhere after all. But trust me, it’s not a story about a $30
“freebie.”