During an evening, the Liege Linux Team organised conferences where I made an introduction to free software. After some definitions, I quickly show most comman tasks done with free software, some interesting myths for end users and some important actors in the free software world.
1. Definition
Facts
Myths
Actors
Conclusions
Introduction to Free Software
Definition, facts, myths, actors
Jean-Etienne Poirrier
http://www.poirrier.be/
June 28th, 2007
Jean-Etienne Poirrier Introduction to Free Software
2. Definition
Facts
Freedom
Myths
What are free software?
Actors
Conclusions
Software
Jean-Etienne Poirrier Introduction to Free Software
3. Definition
Facts
Freedom
Myths
What are free software?
Actors
Conclusions
Free ... Software?
Jean-Etienne Poirrier Introduction to Free Software
4. Definition
Facts
Freedom
Myths
What are free software?
Actors
Conclusions
Freedom
No subordination, no thrall, no constraint, no pressure applied by others
Jean-Etienne Poirrier Introduction to Free Software
5. Definition
Facts
Freedom
Myths
What are free software?
Actors
Conclusions
In the actual computer world ...
obliged to buy a computer with an imposed operating system
“intellectual property ” → theft, piracy
outlandish and incompatible file formats
lack of transparency regarding security
Jean-Etienne Poirrier Introduction to Free Software
6. Definition
Facts
Freedom
Myths
What are free software?
Actors
Conclusions
Free Software 4 Freedoms
The freedom to run the program, for any purpose.
1
The freedom to study how the program works, and adapt it to your needs.
2
Access to the source code is a precondition for this.
The freedom to redistribute copies so you can help your neighbor.
3
The freedom to improve the program, and release your improvements to
4
the public, so that the whole community benefits. Access to the source
code is a precondition for this.
Jean-Etienne Poirrier Introduction to Free Software
7. Definition
Facts
Freedom
Myths
What are free software?
Actors
Conclusions
Some licences ...
More info: http://www.gnu.org/licenses/
Jean-Etienne Poirrier Introduction to Free Software
8. Definition Operating System
Facts Word processors
Myths Spreadsheets
Actors Internet
Conclusions Games
Operating Systems
Linux (RedHat, Fedora, Debian, Ubuntu, SuSE, ...),
FreeDOS, FIASCO, ReactOS, S.Ha.R.K., V2OS, ...
Jean-Etienne Poirrier Introduction to Free Software
9. Definition Operating System
Facts Word processors
Myths Spreadsheets
Actors Internet
Conclusions Games
Write texts
Writer, AbiWord, KWord, ...
Jean-Etienne Poirrier Introduction to Free Software
10. Definition Operating System
Facts Word processors
Myths Spreadsheets
Actors Internet
Conclusions Games
Do some computation
Calc, Gnumeric, KSpread, ...
Jean-Etienne Poirrier Introduction to Free Software
11. Definition Operating System
Facts Word processors
Myths Spreadsheets
Actors Internet
Conclusions Games
Surf on the web
Firefox, Konqueror, ...
Jean-Etienne Poirrier Introduction to Free Software
12. Definition Operating System
Facts Word processors
Myths Spreadsheets
Actors Internet
Conclusions Games
Play
Wormux, minesweeper, sudoku, 3D, racing, chess, ...
Jean-Etienne Poirrier Introduction to Free Software
13. Definition Difficulties
Facts Windows, Linux, MacOS, ...
Myths Cost
Actors Security
Conclusions Languages management
Myths about Free Software
Jean-Etienne Poirrier Introduction to Free Software
14. Definition Difficulties
Facts Windows, Linux, MacOS, ...
Myths Cost
Actors Security
Conclusions Languages management
Too complicated for normal people?
Jean-Etienne Poirrier Introduction to Free Software
15. Definition Difficulties
Facts Windows, Linux, MacOS, ...
Myths Cost
Actors Security
Conclusions Languages management
They already are used in kindergarten!
GCompris, educational software for children from 2 to 10 years old
Jean-Etienne Poirrier Introduction to Free Software
16. Definition Difficulties
Facts Windows, Linux, MacOS, ...
Myths Cost
Actors Security
Conclusions Languages management
They became easy to install
And are they easy to use? Just listen to the next 2 presentations!
Jean-Etienne Poirrier Introduction to Free Software
17. Definition Difficulties
Facts Windows, Linux, MacOS, ...
Myths Cost
Actors Security
Conclusions Languages management
Windows, Linux, MacOS, ...
Free Software are available on nearly all possible operating systems (free or not)
Jean-Etienne Poirrier Introduction to Free Software
18. Definition Difficulties
Facts Windows, Linux, MacOS, ...
Myths Cost
Actors Security
Conclusions Languages management
Shareware, freeware, free-as-in-free-beer software
But freely re-distributable with source code!
Jean-Etienne Poirrier Introduction to Free Software
19. Definition Difficulties
Facts Windows, Linux, MacOS, ...
Myths Cost
Actors Security
Conclusions Languages management
Free Software, security and support
Way better privileges and access management, software actions monitoring,
speed of bugs correction, ... (very active) Community support + support from
commercial companies
Jean-Etienne Poirrier Introduction to Free Software
20. Definition Difficulties
Facts Windows, Linux, MacOS, ...
Myths Cost
Actors Security
Conclusions Languages management
Free Software are very often multilingual
KDE is available in 34 languages, e.g.!
Jean-Etienne Poirrier Introduction to Free Software
21. Definition Difficulties
Facts Windows, Linux, MacOS, ...
Myths Cost
Actors Security
Conclusions Languages management
Linux is even available in Walloon !
Jean-Etienne Poirrier Introduction to Free Software
22. Definition
Richard M. Stallman
Facts
Eric S. Raymond
Myths
Linus Torvalds
Actors
Eben Moglen
Conclusions
Richard M. Stallman
54 years-old
hacker (noble meaning)
free software activist
software patents destroyer
father of the GNU project
(1983)
father of the Free Software
Foundation (1985)
father of the Emacs text editor
and other basic tools for
operating systems
http://www.stallman.org/
http://www.gnu.org/
Jean-Etienne Poirrier Introduction to Free Software
23. Definition
Richard M. Stallman
Facts
Eric S. Raymond
Myths
Linus Torvalds
Actors
Eben Moglen
Conclusions
Eric S. Raymond
50 years-old
hacker (noble meaning)
founder of the “Open Source”
movement
“The Cathedral and the
Bazaar”, 1997
disputed member of the
Community
http://www.catb.org/ esr/
http://www.opensource.org/
Jean-Etienne Poirrier Introduction to Free Software
24. Definition
Richard M. Stallman
Facts
Eric S. Raymond
Myths
Linus Torvalds
Actors
Eben Moglen
Conclusions
Linus Torvalds
38 years-old
creator of the Linux kernel
self-proclaimed “benevolent
dictator” of the Linux kernel
development
rarely goes out of his modesty
(but when he does, the entire
world knows it!)
http://www.cs.helsinki.fi/u/torvalds/
Jean-Etienne Poirrier Introduction to Free Software
25. Definition
Richard M. Stallman
Facts
Eric S. Raymond
Myths
Linus Torvalds
Actors
Eben Moglen
Conclusions
Eben Moglen
47 years-old
law professor
founder and director of the
Software Freedom Law Center
defending Free Software legal
interests
Free Software Foundation
member
GNU GPLv3 writer
“Anything that is worth copying
is worth sharing”
http://emoglen.law.columbia.edu/
http://www.softwarefreedom.org/
Jean-Etienne Poirrier Introduction to Free Software
26. Definition
Facts
Myths
Actors
Conclusions
Free Software ...
they are good, use them!
they can be freely copied and used
they allow us to easily do common tasks and much more!
they target all the ages, all the interests
they are not automatically free (as in free beer)
they are rather well documented
What are you waiting for?
Jean-Etienne Poirrier Introduction to Free Software
27. Definition
Facts
Myths
Actors
Conclusions
To know more...
LiLiT (Liege Linux Team) : http://www.lilit.be/ and its Meeting Parties,
Installation Parties and its participation to various other events
Free Software Foundation : http://www.fsf.org/
Framasoft : http://www.framasoft.net/ (in French)
Wikipedia : http://en.wikipedia.org
Jean-Etienne Poirrier Introduction to Free Software
28. Definition
Facts
Myths
Actors
Conclusions
Many thanks to...
LiLiT and its volunteers who prepared this evening
Richard Stallman and Linus Torvalds to initiate this movement, both at a
philosophical and technical standpoint
you for your attention and because you will try free software, right now!
This presentation is available on http://www.poirrier.be/
Jean-Etienne Poirrier Introduction to Free Software