[mythtvnz] freeware vs open source (was USB remote receiver)

[Hadley Rich]

On Mon, 2009-06-15 at 13:10 +1200, Alan Walls wrote:
> I agree freeware and GPL are different but only to developers (and
> lawyers) (Aren't you both :-) ).  For people who don't want anything
> to do with compilers they are both the same thing.  Saying "GPL" would
> confuse rather than help these people.  The people who need to know
> the difference will do the research to find which is which.

Woh there. freeware and the GPL are very different for everyone whether
they be a developer or not. Sure the end user just gets to "get stuff
without paying for it" in both cases but that's not the point.

Just because the end user doesn't care about compiling it or looking at
the source doesn't mean that it doesn't benefit them that it's available
with open source programs. Someone else out there has more than likely
gone through the source and found any malware parts, things that phone
home etc. The same can't be said for "freeware".

hads
-- 
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New Zealand's Open Source Hardware Supplier