Subj : Open Source
To   : All
From : Alan Zisman
Date : Mon Sep 19 2005 07:25 pm

In the past little while, there has been some discussion in this echo about the 
LINSPIRE Linux distribution and about its subscription-based method of 
installing 3rd-party software.
 
Within that thread, there were some messages that cast aspersions upon the 
motives or character of some of the people posting, and that responded 
emotionally to these aspersions. At that point, I wrote messages directed at 
several of the people involved in the back-and-forthing, in my role as 
moderator.
 
In doing so, I was perhaps less clear than I should have been, and have 
received some personal email about this. To clarify my intentions:
 
1) The thread being discussed was not off-topic, in my opinion. There should be 
room in the WIN95 echo to discuss the implications of Open Source software, of 
how companies and individuals can be motivated or rewarded to develop software, 
etc. 
 
2) People can disagree; that is why we have discussions, not just lectures. 
However, it is important that adults be able to disagree with one another 
without having to resort to name-calling.
 
3) Because WIN95 messages are public, messages addressed to one person are in 
fact, readable by all. As a result, moderator messages that are directed to an 
individual should be considered to be addressed to both parties in a dispute 
and actually to all participants in the echo. In future, I will try to do a 
better job of making sure that I address moderator messages to both parties in 
a quarrel or to ALL.
 
If you have any comments, questions, or further discussion on this, please feel 
free to contact me via email:
 
-- az (moderator WIN95: alan (at) zisman (dot) ca )

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