RMS Says "Software As a Service" Is Non-free 715
BillyG noted an RMS interview where he says "'Software as a service' means that you think of a particular server as doing your computing for you. If that's what the server does, you must not use it! If you do your computing on someone else's server, you hand over control of your computing to whoever controls the server. It is like running binary-only software, only worse: it's even harder for you to patch the program that's running on someone else's server than it is to patch a binary copy of a program running on your own computer. Just like non-free software, 'software as a service' is incompatible with your freedom."
Some people don't care (Score:4, Informative)
I have a business problem which a properly programmed computer can solve. I can either;
a) Hire a programmer, or a team of programmers, to create this application for me.
b) Utilize a proprietary application, with a contract to protect my rights.
Is the proprietary application free? No, but it does increase my efficiency 10x over. Would I get that kind of increase by hiring the programmers? Not after you take it to account all of the overhead I have with that plan. It just doesn't make business sense to go with option A, regardless of my personal belief on the topic.
As for my client? Ya, they simply do not care.
taxicab analogy (Score:3, Informative)
You don't get to do mechanical work on the cab. You don't care.
You are paying for the service -- which includes not having to worry about maintaining the thing.
The whole point of SAaS is turning over control and headaches to someone else.
Re:No need for him to lift a finger (Score:3, Informative)
My internet connection has only gone down 3 times that I can recall in the last 5 years.
2 of those times were blackouts. So I wasn't using my computer. The 3rd was because of a communication problem causing my service to get shutoff a few days before my new service was installed.
I'm not worried about losing the internets.
Re:He has a history (Score:4, Informative)
http://encyclopediadramatica.com/Richard_Stallman [encycloped...matica.com]
Re:He has a history (Score:3, Informative)
Loved your post, but a minor correction here:
"Socrates (another filthy slob who couldn't keep a normal living arrangement, and lived in a barrel) "
You must be referring to Diogenes the cynic http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diogenes_of_Sinope [wikipedia.org].
Socrates was not as filthy and he actually had a wife and a normal house.
Re:No need for him to lift a finger (Score:3, Informative)
Most small to medium businesses that I know of use consumer grade DSL or cable connections that are notorious for going out weekly for minutes or hours, and yearly for a day or more.
Re:Uh, why? (Score:3, Informative)
Re:Dupe? (Score:3, Informative)
" you must not use it! " (Score:3, Informative)
I will use what I want to use, which will be the tool I think is the best for the job. I am free to choose what I want to do and don't need RMS or anyone else telling my what I should and should not use based on some bullshit ideology.
Fuck you very much.