free software, unfree software, ethics and social behaviour

Januar 16th, 2010

Some of my answers to basic questions

Written in a survey about attitudes towards free software.

Is proprietary (=unfree) software immoral or unethical?

it isn't immoral (moral = what's the current stance of mainstream society), but it is unethical.

In a society where people are used to being forbidden to give bread to a starving child, giving bread you'd otherwise throw away to that child instead could well be immoral.

So only software which allows you to act ethically is ethical - and that's free software. Even better is free software under strong copyleft licenses like the GPL, because that protects our right to act ethically for any future versions of the software.

Do you believe that proprietary software is "illegitimate"?

No.

Legitimate doesn't mean "not contrary to existing law". Even in countries where the police is allowed to torture people, torture is illegitimate. At least that's my understanding. It means that something is wrong and should be forbidden.

I believe that people have the right to make unfree software (people also have the right to do tv-shows like "popstars"). I don't think anyone should use that software, though.

I can't force people to adher to my ethics without acting against my ethics myself. But I can try to convince tham that my understanding of ethics is right.

Do you believe that proprietary software is "antisocial"?

In many cases yes. But it depends on the case,

Note

If I had to develop unfree software to earn enough to live a more or less comforting life, I'd likely choose to do so. That's why I fight now, so I can earn money ethically right later on. Or at least enable my children to do so (more detailed in german).

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ethical issue?

On Mai 6th, 2012 tony (nicht überprüft) says:

If you go to a backery and buy a cake, is it unethical if you don't get the recipe as well?
If you buy a radio, is it unethical if you don't get the construction plans for it?
If you buy some software, is it unethical if you don't get the source-code?
If you buy a processor, is it unethical if you don't get the "hardware description language"-description of the processor?

Stallman sees it as an ethical issue. Maby he is ultimately right. I simply don't know.
He's right that sharing is a good thing.
But is it really an ethical issue whether or not you get some recipe, construction plans or source-code??

Antworten

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Source code and ethics

On Mai 7th, 2012 Draketo says:

To me, the answer for all 4 questions is yes.

If the bakery goes broke and the baker does not pass on the recipe, I cannot ever get those cakes again. Try to tell that to my children.
If the radio breaks, I cannot bring it to someone to repair it easily. And the company which made them might already be gone - or charge huge sums for the repair (which only they can do).
If the software has backdoors, I cannot fix them. If it only allows certain actions, I am prevented from doing these, even though there is no law for that.
If the processor contains a remote-controlled TPM chip, I have no way to get the same processor without that - even if I could create my own processors.

In the case of software this hits hardest, because the software controls my actions directly. But the same goes for everything else which is good enough that it becomes part of my life.

If I don’t want to miss it, I want to have the sources. Otherwise it can restrict my actions.

That logic also means that I want the legal right to use and change these sources. So if it is good enough to become part of my life, it has to be free licensed.

Sadly this is not yet the case for all goods I use (and I feel those shackles). But a free Operating System is a good start.

Best wishes,

Arne

Unpolitisch sein
heißt politisch sein
ohne es zu merken
- Arne Babenhauserheide

Antworten

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