thenewbies 2010-06-24 23:46:43

Sometimes, open source is awesome, as in the case with Firefox and GIMP, but sometimes it's just pathetic, and there's no point in using the software, like open source antivirus software.

I think that using the best software is the best idea, regardless of license. I happen to use open source, because it provides great alternatives to paid programs. I won't switch to an open source alternative if there is one, unless I'm sure it's good.

For example, in Ubuntu and Windows, I use Adobe's Flash player, but I don't use Gnash, since it can't compare with Flash player. In the case of Firefox and IE, Firefox exceeds IE in quality, so it's a good idea to switch that way.

I think Mint's philosophy about software licenses is an effective way of thinking about software:

"We believe in the open-source philosophy and release the source code for all of our work. We owe a lot to the Free Software movement and to the GPL but we also owe a lot to all developers who have had good ideas and created great tools and who have been working to make software better.

"Some of them have released their source code as well and have thus granted us more freedom and more flexibility. Others released their software with proprietary licenses and no source code, and although this doesn't give us the freedom we would like, it still contributes to make software better.

"We like Software in general, Free Software even more, but we do not believe in boycotting Proprietary Software."