*BSD News Article 57752


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From: root@dyson.iquest.net (John S. Dyson)
Subject: Re: Linux vs FreeBSD
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References: <489kuu$rbo@pelican.cs.ucla.edu> <4ao7hn$rf8@park.uvsc.edu> <4apvl8$pgs@daffy.anetsrvcs.uwrf.edu> <4atpt3$cqi@park.uvsc.edu>
Date: Sun, 17 Dec 1995 11:05:08 GMT
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In article <4atpt3$cqi@park.uvsc.edu>,
Terry Lambert  <terry@lambert.org> wrote:
>
>GPL suggests that everyone should become contract programmers
>or product support people if they want to be paid for doing
>programming.  Software itself shouldn't be sold above and
>beyond a reproduction fee.  The economics of such a situation
>dictate that the company that charges the least will get the
>money.  The company with the smallest R&D budget.
>
In fact, it is my position that GPL would force funded efforts
to be support only.  This would have the effect similar to taking
the population of architects and change them into janitors.  I
guess that it is time to get re-educated into another type of
profession -- like law!!!  PLEASE NOTE THE WORD "SIMILAR" ABOVE,
NOT ABSOLUTELY THE SAME, so discounting my concept on terminology
is quite bogus!!!!

Anyone who is a software developer and has done *real* customer
support knows this.  I guess that is the reason that some of
the GPL people quote ridiculous consulting rates.  I can
understand $150/Hr or so on Wall Street (with 7/24 availability
requirements and living on/near Manhattan) -- but for fixing GNU
software???  I guess they just don't like to support their
own stuff :-).  (I mean REAL customer support with $150Million
of business at stake -- and I HAVE been in that position!!! -- not just
fixing things at my own leasurely (retirement or sabattical) rate.)

John
dyson@freebsd.org