In Europe there is no destinction between Open Source and Free Software
You mean, you don't understand the difference between Open Source and Free Software. Let me explain it to you briefly.
"Free Software" can be used as the basis for more Free Software. A programmer could take components of the Gnu Scientific Library, for example, and use them to add functionality to the OpenOffice spreadsheet. The "Free Software" license ensures that this adds to the body of free software - the enhanced OpenOffice, if distributed at all, has to be distributed as Free Software, so that the beneficial cycle of learning, re-use, and enhancement by others can continue.
"Open Source" software is in almost all respects the opposite. You cannot take components of "Open Source" software and use them to enhance other software of your choice. For practical purposes, an "Open Source" licence has nothing in common with a "Free Software" licence except that you can read the source code.
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Re:In Europe
Posted by: nomad47 on March 21, 2003 04:59 PMYou mean, you don't understand the difference between Open Source and Free Software. Let me explain it to you briefly.
"Free Software" can be used as the basis for more Free Software. A programmer could take components of the Gnu Scientific Library, for example, and use them to add functionality to the OpenOffice spreadsheet. The "Free Software" license ensures that this adds to the body of free software - the enhanced OpenOffice, if distributed at all, has to be distributed as Free Software, so that the beneficial cycle of learning, re-use, and enhancement by others can continue.
"Open Source" software is in almost all respects the opposite. You cannot take components of "Open Source" software and use them to enhance other software of your choice. For practical purposes, an "Open Source" licence has nothing in common with a "Free Software" licence except that you can read the source code.
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