Power of Words

Joe Casad, Editor in Chief

Dear Linux Magazine Reader,

The Free Software Foundation's website has a page titled "Some Confusing or Loaded Words or Phrases to Avoid (or Use with Care)" [1]. The text on this page is from the book Free Software, Free Society: Selected Essays of Richard M. Stallman, which is also available online in PDF format [2].

Stallman's list of confusing terms highlights some of the principle concerns of the FOSS community. Many of the entries in the list cover classic FSF topics that will be very familiar to observers of the software scene. As you might guess, Stallman thinks of "Linux System" as a confusing term (preferring instead GNU/Linux, which gives a share of credit to the GNU project), and he cautions against using terms like "Digital Rights Management." I noticed that, among these better known arguments were some observations that reveal how language operates to filter perceptions. A few of the highlights:

• Commercial - People often talk about the rivalry between "commercial and free software." The term commercial software should never be used as a synonym for "nonfree" because that assumes free software can't also be commercial.

• Content - According to Stallman, using the word content as a noun to describe written works adopts an attitude that "... regards these works as a commodity whose purpose is to fill a box and make money."

• Creator - Publishers and copyright holders use this term to elevate the moral standing of authors by "... implicitly comparing them to a deity."

• Software industry - The word industry implies that "software is always developed by a sort of factory ... ."

• Ecosystem - In one of the most thought-provoking entries, Stallman challenges the use of the word ecosystem for any human community because it implies the absence of intention and ethics. He writes, "In an ecosystem, species evolve according to their fitness: if a species is weak and goes extinct, that's neither right nor wrong, merely an ecological phenomenon ... . By contrast, beings that adopt an ethical stance toward their surroundings, and have ideas of ethical responsibility, can decide to preserve things that, on their own, would tend to vanish - such as civil society, democracy, human rights, peace, public health, clean air and water, endangered species ... and computer users' freedom."

• Protection - According to Stallman, this term, which is often used by lawyers in the context of patent or copyright proceedings, "... carries the implication of preventing destruction or suffering; therefore, it encourages people to identify with the owner or publisher who benefits from copyright rather than with the users who are restricted by it."

Richard Stallman, founder of the FSF and father of the GNU Public License (GPL), has never been one to avoid controversy - and he has found plenty of it recently, both outside and inside the FOSS community. But even those who disagree with him on cloud computing, DRM, and GNU/Linux must admit that the great pioneer-provocateur is a very smart fellow with lots to say about society and the role of software within it.

I encourage you to browse through Stallman's "Confusing Words and Phrases" list, and, if you haven't done so already, check out the Free Software Definition [3] - essential reading for any follower of free software.