[maemo-developers] Hello Maemo - CFSONID 2008

[From: Allen Brown]

> On Wed, Jun 04, 2008 at 12:23:15PM +0200, Robert Schuster wrote:
>> So the answer is "no". As long as Maemo's goal is not 'providing a 100%
>> free platform' as well I[0] will not contribute[1] to it and I expect
>> that with more and more freedom respecting projects/products you will
>> have a hard time finding people who do.
>
> This is what I had in mind in my LinuxTag maemo.org presentation: there
> are people who will not want to contribute to Maemo just because Nokia
> does not completely adhere to the free software principles.
>
> By that I did not mean to imply that Nokia should put free software
> above their bottom line.  My point was that Nokia should evaluate the
> extra value received from free software zealots (this word is probably
> too strong, but I don't have the time right now to pick a better one)
> with value lost from opening their proprietary components.

Nokia will not be able to estimate the value of contributions
by outsiders.  However they can estimate the value lost from
opening up.  They won't bet a known against an unknown.

What they have done instead is to run an experiment.  That experiment
is the n800 and family.

I say all this as an outsider. I don't speak for Nokia.  Rather
I am describing the general attitudes I have experienced from
within a different large corporation.

> Unfortunately I'm no economist and I cannot evaluate either.  Looking
> at the increasing popularity of free software in the IT sector it seems
> to me that free software benefits outweigh proprietary benefits, but
> this is not a choice I can make for Nokia; it's one Nokia has to make
> for themselves.
>
> Marius Gedminas

Nokia is not likely to see it the same way.  Not until they see
proof.
-- 
Allen Brown  abrown at peak.org  http://brown.armoredpenguin.com/~abrown/
  One person, one vote (Except in Ohio or Florida.)