[Fsf-friends] My thoughts on the IP and Software

[Raju Mathur]

>>>>> "Mahesh" == Mahesh T Pai <paivakil@vsnl.net> writes:

    Mahesh> [snip]

    >>> .... only way a person can make money from GPl'ed software is
    >>> by 1)training people to use it and 2) distributing it .

    Mahesh> That is precisely how non GPL'ed s/w too makes money.
    Mahesh> There are more ads for training people for being MCSEs out
    Mahesh> there.  I have seen an occasional ad for RHCE training.
    Mahesh> Will somebody please show me an ad for GNU/Linux training?

Actually there are a number of ways by which you can make money out of
free software.  While ESR has listed them in his `The Magic Cauldron'
(http://tuxedo.org/~esr/writings/magic-cauldron/), here are a few that
come to mind immediately:

1. Charge the entity who requires the software for developing it,
release as GPL.  Many people/companies wouldn't care what license
you develop software for them under as long as the solution meets
their needs.

2. Sell the software and make each previous version GPL.  Alladin
follows this model with Ghostscript: the current version is closed,
whenever a new version comes out the current version is released as
open source while the new version, in its turn, is closed.

3. Training in free software.  People I know (including me) made money
training in Linux, etc.

4. Customising and enhancing free software.  In many cases free
software will not meet the customer's precise needs.  There is a
market for people to customise it and/or add features for specific
customers and get paid for it.  I have earned money from this activity
too.

5. Installing free software.  I don't know whether Linux is difficult
to install but there's definitely a market, maybe a pretty large one
at that, for installing Linux and integrating into existing
infrastructure.

6. Support for free software solutions.  There is definitely a large
market for professional technical support for free software.  I know
of companies who are crying out for it.

    >>> ... i have to make my software difficult to use so that i can
    >>> earn from it.

    Mahesh> Law of free market will apply here. If it is difficult to
    Mahesh> use, users will reject it.  Some say Free s/w is 'free' as
    Mahesh> in 'free market'.

    >>> As regards to 2) How much money can you actually make by
    >>> distributing GPL'ed software?

    Mahesh> In the November issue of a popular magazine, I saw a Linux
    Mahesh> based (dunno if it is GNU/Linux) product advertised for
    Mahesh> Rupees 120,000/-.  ( number twelve, followed by four
    Mahesh> zeros) for non - Indians on the list, that is approx
    Mahesh> 23,000 US dollars.

    >>> The only way the software creator can earn from his creation
    >>> is by restricting certain freedoms

Not true: see above.

There appears to be a fundamental misconception here:

Please differentiate between commercial and proprietary software.  Any
software, including free software, can be commercial.  The act of
making money out of software by itself does not reduce its freedom.
The act of not making the source available under a free software
license does.  The first is commercial, the second is proprietary.
The mistake or equating the two seems to stem from the ambiguous
meanings of the word `free', hence FLOSS (Free/Libre Open Source
Software) may be a better term to use.

And no, Fred, I'm not going to force anyone to use that term.  The
AK-47'd toughs who appear and shoot your kneecaps off whenever you use
the term `free software' or `open source' when you actually mean FLOSS
are purely a figment of your imagination ;-)

Regards,

-- Raju

    Mahesh> [snip]

-- 
Raju Mathur               raju@kandalaya.org      http://kandalaya.org/
                      It is the mind that moves