*BSD News Article 57520


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From: nate@trout.sri.MT.net (Nate Williams)
Newsgroups: comp.os.linux.advocacy,comp.unix.bsd.freebsd.misc
Subject: Re: Linux vs FreeBSD
Date: 14 Dec 1995 23:11:43 GMT
Organization: SRI Intl. - Montana Operations
Lines: 35
Distribution: comp
Message-ID: <4aqavf$ss5@helena.MT.net>
References: <489kuu$rbo@pelican.cs.ucla.edu> <4a54u5$jj5@josie.abo.fi> <4ahtib$ckq@helena.mt.net> <4angta$e2@pell.pell.chi.il.us>
Reply-To: "Nate Williams" <nate@sneezy.sri.com>
NNTP-Posting-Host: trout.sri.mt.net
Xref: euryale.cc.adfa.oz.au comp.os.linux.advocacy:31145 comp.unix.bsd.freebsd.misc:10988

In article <4angta$e2@pell.pell.chi.il.us>, Orc <orc@pell.chi.il.us> wrote:
>In article <4ahtib$ckq@helena.mt.net>,
>Nate Williams <nate@sneezy.sri.com> wrote:
[ Difficulties in providing on-line copies of GPL source code ]
>
>   You're forgetting the easy solution.  Burn a CD Rom and stuff a
>copy of everything, including the 2.6mb of kernel sources, onto that
>disk.  Util you reach the point where your application + the system
>is within 2.6mb of the capacity of the disk, you've managed to provide
>an easy to get at collection of the essentials for the system for an
>additional cost of about $.55 ($.04-$.40 for the CD, $.15 for the sleeve
>to stuff the CD in.)  Wouldn't that be easier than distributing an
>archive copy on tape, or, worse, not distributing an archive copy and
>forcing a FE to go to the site if a reinstall is necessary?

Okay, when it comes time to ship I'll hire you to do the CD for me. 
I'll pay you $0.55 + shipping to my customers to provide them CD's.

Now, I probably won't ship copies of my software, but since you can do
it so cheaply instead of me having to do all the costs (which would end
up costing me at *least* $50-60/CD) you can do it for and I can rest
assured I'm now following the GPL.

(If you couldn't tell, the above paragraphs were meant as sarcasm).

Cutting a custom CD costs *ALOT* more when you aren't a CD company.  It still
cheaper than using floppies, but it's not $0.55 CD.


Nate
-- 
nate@sneezy.sri.com    | Research Engineer, SRI Intl. - Montana Operations
nate@trout.sri.MT.net  | Loving life in God's country, the great state of
work #: (406) 449-7662 | Montana.
home #: (406) 443-7063 | A fly pole and a 4x4 Chevy truck = Heaven on Earth