FSF blogs
Too Late for Bulgaria (2005-04-19 to 2005-04-22)
For an open audience of university students and the public interested in Free Software, Stallman attended a videoconference in Sofia, Bulgaria. In 1995, of all the countries in Europe, the one I would most have loved to visit was Bulgaria. Bulgarian folk dances were the most exciting, and I loved to do them. I loved the music as well, and learned to play many of the tunes on my recorder. It is no coincidence that I used a Bulgarian folk dance tune for the Free Software Song. If anyone had invited me to Bulgaria, I would have arranged to stay there for a few weeks, and found an opportunity to study dancing and listen to a lot of music. However, Bulgaria in the 90s had other priorities. No one ever invited me to go there andspeak.
Digging the Value of Source
An example of why we need to know the reach of our intellectual interests.
Impressions of Syria (2005-02-28 to 2005-03-03)
In late February, when I mentioned to people in Europe that I was soon going to Syria, they were worried for me. They thought that the tension resulting from the US decision to blame Syria for the assassination of Hariri would somehow make visiting Syria dangerous.
About the Free Software Directory
One of our most important projects is the Free Software Directory.
Censorship envy and licensing
Why we don't have political terms in our licenses (even for really important issues).
Delhi (2005-01-31 to 2005-02-03)
I arrived at Delhi at 3am on a flight that had been delayed by an hour and a half. I had expected to do a lot of work on the flight, but I was unexpectedly drowsy and nodded off for a few hours. When I arrived at the airport, the wait for passport control was only 20 minutes, and I spent part of the time explaining free software to another passenger who was curious about it. My bag was already in the carousel when I reached it, so I exited into the terminal and passed along the line of people holding up signs. None had my name on it. The person who was supposed to meet me was not there.
Response to Fox News Article
Jim Prendergast's recent article mistakenly called me a "leader in the open source community". While I appreciate the praise that might be read into that expression, it is not the case: I do not advocate "open source" and never did. I founded the Free Software Movement in 1984. "Free", here refers to freedom, not price; specifically the freedom to redistribute and change the software you use. With free software, the users control the software; with non-free software, the developer has control of the software and its users.