Some companies still struggle with Open Source software violations
Slow and Steady

"maddog" explains that the seemingly clear concept of Free and Open Source Software is not so clear to all involved, and that education takes time.
I have been programming since 1969 – more than 46 years. The GNU project started in 1984, more than 30 years ago, and I first saw Linux in May 1994, more than 21 years ago. For a large portion of that time I have been using and talking about Open Source in various forms.
Sometimes this work is exasperating. Issues that seem so clear and obvious to me (especially because I have seen others successfully implement what I have been talking about) still seem to stymie people I meet.
Recently, I was at an embedded systems conference and was happy to see some discussion about Free and Open Source Software. Some vendors were actively talking about projects like Coreboot, using Free Software, and the advantages that they see in it. It was gratifying to hear some of the same arguments that FOSS people have been making for years being taken as a matter of fact by these business people.
[...]
Buy this article as PDF
(incl. VAT)
Buy Linux Magazine
Subscribe to our Linux Newsletters
Find Linux and Open Source Jobs
Subscribe to our ADMIN Newsletters
Support Our Work
Linux Magazine content is made possible with support from readers like you. Please consider contributing when you’ve found an article to be beneficial.

News
-
There's a New Linux AI Assistant in Town
Newelle is a Linux AI assistant that can work with different LLMs and includes document parsing and profiles.
-
Linux Kernel 6.16 Released with Minor Fixes
The latest Linux kernel doesn't really include any big-ticket features, just a lot of lines of code.
-
EU Sovereign Tech Fund Gains Traction
OpenForum Europe recently released a report regarding a sovereign tech fund with backing from several significant entities.
-
FreeBSD Promises a Full Desktop Installer
FreeBSD has lacked an option to include a full desktop environment during installation.
-
Linux Hits an Important Milestone
If you pay attention to the news in the Linux-sphere, you've probably heard that the open source operating system recently crashed through a ceiling no one thought possible.
-
Plasma Bigscreen Returns
A developer discovered that the Plasma Bigscreen feature had been sitting untouched, so he decided to do something about it.
-
CachyOS Now Lets Users Choose Their Shell
Imagine getting the opportunity to select which shell you want during the installation of your favorite Linux distribution. That's now a thing.
-
Wayland 1.24 Released with Fixes and New Features
Wayland continues to move forward, while X11 slowly vanishes into the shadows, and the latest release includes plenty of improvements.
-
Bugs Found in sudo
Two critical flaws allow users to gain access to root privileges.
-
Fedora Continues 32-Bit Support
In a move that should come as a relief to some portions of the Linux community, Fedora will continue supporting 32-bit architecture.