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Date:      Sat, 16 May 1998 07:07:49 -0500 (EST)
From:      "John S. Dyson" <dyson@FreeBSD.ORG>
To:        eivind@yes.no (Eivind Eklund)
Cc:        jak@cetlink.net, chat@FreeBSD.ORG
Subject:   Re: commercial software (definitive)
Message-ID:  <199805161207.HAA03332@dyson.iquest.net>
In-Reply-To: <19980516131158.03409@follo.net> from Eivind Eklund at "May 16, 98 01:11:58 pm"

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Eivind Eklund said:
> On Sat, May 16, 1998 at 10:01:49AM +0000, John Kelly wrote:
> > On Fri, 15 May 1998 22:57:38 -0500 (EST), "John S. Dyson"
> > <toor@dyson.iquest.net> wrote:
> > 
> > >When GPLed parts of the system have to be hacked on, it is
> > >understood apriori that the work will not be a part of the
> > >competitive advantage ... (I do like hacking on GCC and stuff,
> > >but know that any potential competitive advantage is lost
> > 
> > Some in management believe that competitive advantage must include
> > trade secrets.  But the truth is that superior customer service is far
> > more powerful in gaining competitive advantage.  That's why I believe
> > that limitations of the GPL are mostly imaginary.
> 
> Then the GPL people should ask themselves: Do we want a world where
> success isn't determined by technical excellence at all, but by
> 'customer service' (mostly handholding) and marketing _only_?
> 
> I know that I don't want such a world.
> 
Don't we already have a marketing only world mostly anyway (Microsoft?)
Big support companies can be and are just as predatory as big software
houses like Microsoft.

-- 
John                  | Never try to teach a pig to sing,
dyson@freebsd.org     | it just makes you look stupid,
jdyson@nc.com         | and it irritates the pig.

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