[Fsf-friends] Re: Pitching free software directly before UN and other govt. circles

[Ramanraj K]

Russell Nelson wrote:

>Ramanraj K writes:
> > Would you consider pitching "free software" directly before the UN and 
> > other government circles?
>
>Probably not.  You're re-opening a battle we don't want to fight.
>Please accept that we'll call it open source, and you'll call it free
>software, and that we both mean the same thing.
>
>  
>

Dear Mr. Russell Nelson,

You may market "free software" as "open source" to the business 
community, highlighting one of the basic inherent qualities of free 
software.  

The issue is if you would consider pitching "free software" directly as 
"free software" before the law, to clearly distinguish free software 
from proprietary software.  Please do leisurely read the postings 
referred.  Please do not view this as a fight or battle, between the 
movements, for our real enemy is proprietary software.  Though I 
understand that both are one and the same to us, from the point of view 
of the copyright law, the expression "free software" makes it plain that 
copying, sale, exhibition, installation, modification, redistribution, 
and trading are "free" with "free software" but these rights are 
"restricted to/by proprietor" in the case of proprietary software.  The 
availability of source code, price, quality of software, development 
model etc. are qualites that cannot distinguish or differentiate our 
software from proprietary software. It would be in the best interests of 
our community to promote "free software" terminology in govt. circles to 
maintain clarity avoiding needless confusion.  Hence this request.  

Thanking you,

Regards,
K. Ramanraj.