Fear of a Free Planet

Imagine this: thousands of intelligent, motivated people from all over the world gather together to combine their creative effort in a grand project. This project is hugely complex, and extremely powerful. The creators have mutually decided to make their invention freely available for all the world to use, and any who are able are welcome to join in the effort. Almost all contribute as volunteers, motivated by the sheer joy of creation, the camaraderie of the development group, or simply to be a part of something so big, and so worthwhile.

Sound like a fantasy? It's happening, right now.

The grand project is called Free Software. Here "Free" means "freedom", not "without cost" (although most of it is free in the financial sense also, but this is of secondary importance). Users of Free Software are free to use it in any way that they like. They are invited to copy it and give it to whomever they choose. They are guaranteed the right to examine the software's source code, and even to modify the code, or incorporate it into new programs. However, with freedom comes responsibility: if one chooses to modify the code and distribute the modified program, the modified program must also be Free; in other words, you cannot refuse others the rights that you have been granted.

The community of Free Software developers has been wildly successful, far beyond any reasonable expectations. Our primary accomplishment is the GNU/Linux system, an extremely powerful unix-like operating system that runs on just about any kind of hardware you can think of, from wristwatches to mainframes.

Unfortunately, Linux's success has earned it some powerful enemies; most notably Microsoft. Pity poor Microsoft, who for decades has lorded over the world of software, unchallenged. Whenever a possible competitor came along, Microsoft simply bought them out, or wielded its monopoly power to drive them out of business (a crime for which they have been convicted and wrist-slapped in both the US and EU).

But here comes Linux, owned by no one, and owned by all. It can't be bought or bribed, because there's no one to pay. It can't be driven out of business, because it's not a business. What's a poor monopoly to do?

In the forthcoming series of posts, we'll see what Microsoft's solution to their Linux Problem is shaping up to be. Buckle up, gentle reader, it's going to be an ugly ride.