I'm a Proud Luddite. That's Why I Use Linux

moody__•about 2 hours ago

And now GNU/Linux is freely taking money from corporate overlords and ponying up money to frontier model companies. I don't know what possess people to think Linux is still some cool counter culture thing, it's not. It's just still wearing the mask of one because people have selective hearing.

FLeXMurphy•about 1 hour ago

I can't speak on everyones behalf and I am not just referencing Linux here, I am also referencing the great family of BSDs, but having the full source available as part of the install is what I'm all about. If that is _counter cultural_ then so be it, but it isn't the main intent. But having the source to the kernel, the OS, the apps I use, complete with stellar man pages and other manuals... I'm set.

vouaobrasil•about 3 hours ago

From the article:

> I am just trying to point out that the FOSS movement is not anything new, not really. It is just another manifestation of a drive that has been with us since time immemorial: the thirst for freedom.

I think that was true at one time, but I don't think it is true any more. With all due respect to FOSS, which is great, I think the movement has lost its ways. FOSS has become an industry to itself. If FOSS really still means freedom, why are so many people adopting closed technologies like AI to do open source? FOSS has become more about producing FOSS now, rather than creating software that actually means something. Even Linus Torvalds has used the rationale that his job is to make the kernel a great kernel and if AI can help him do that, all the better.

But I think the spirit of FOSS would be to make software that represents the human spirit, not simply produce it. Yes, there are a few developers who still feel that way, but by and large, technology has warped our way of thinking so that we care more about the final product than what we have to do to get there.

No doubt there's still some momentum of freedom in FOSS, but I think for the most part it's been thoroughly subsumed into the mainstream and it certainly no longer aligns with the Luddite tradition of restraint and keeping things small.

Personally, I've lost all faith in open source.

tmtvl•18 minutes ago

FOSS is an interesting beast in that it's comprised of both Open Source (the Linux kernel) and Free Software (the GNU project). Linus is more pragmatic than Stallman so depending on where you personally fall in the idealistic vs pragmatic scale you may lean more towards either one of their philosophies.

I'm a Proud Luddite. That's Why I Use Linux

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