Free as in Freedom Paperback: Richard Stallman's Crusade for Free Software

About this book

Free as in Freedom interweaves biographical snapshots of GNU project founder Richard Stallman with the political social and economic history of the free software movement. It examines Stallmans unique personality and how that personality has been at turns a driving force and a drawback in terms of the movements overall success.Free as in Freedom examines one mans 20-year attempt to codify and communicate the ethics of 1970s era "hacking" culture in such a way that later generations might easily share and build upon the knowledge of their computing forebears. The book documents Stallmans personal evolution from teenage misfit to prescient adult hacker to political leader and examines how that evolution has shaped the free software movement. Like Alan Greenspan in the financial sector Richard Stallman has assumed the role of tribal elder within the hacking community a community that bills itself as anarchic and averse to central leadership or authority. How did this paradox come about? Free as in Freedom provides an answer. It also looks at how the latest twists and turns in the software marketplace have diminished Stallmans leadership role in some areas while augmenting it in others.Finally Free as in Freedom examines both Stallman and the free software movement from historical viewpoint. Will future generations see Stallman as a genius or crackpot? The answer to that question depends partly on which side of the free software debate the reader currently stands and partly upon the readers own outlook for the future. 100 years from now when terms such as "computer " "operating system" and perhaps even "software" itself seem hopelessly quaint will Richard Stallmans particular vision of freedom still resonate or will it have taken its place alongside other utopian concepts on the ash-heap of history?