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Richard Stallman
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Open-source software - Wikipedia en.wikipedia.org 14 facts
claimThe Free Software Foundation considers free software to be a subset of open-source software, and Richard Stallman notes that DRM software can be developed as open source while failing to qualify as free software because it restricts user freedom.
perspectiveRichard Stallman, leader of the Free software movement and member of the Free Software Foundation, opposes applying the term 'open source' to what he refers to as 'free software,' considering the equation of the two terms incorrect and misleading.
perspectiveRichard Stallman of the Free Software Foundation (FSF) opposes the term 'Open Source' being applied to what the FSF refers to as 'free software', despite initially accepting the term.
claimRichard Stallman believes the main difference between the terms 'open source' and 'free software' is that the choice of term signals the user's goals: development (open source) or a social stance (free software).
perspectiveRichard Stallman opposes the pragmatism of the Open Source Initiative because he fears that the Free Software Foundation's idealistic standards for software freedom are threatened by compromising on those ideals.
quoteRichard Stallman described the term 'free software' as 'free as in free speech, not free beer,' meaning the term refers to freedom rather than price.
claimRichard Stallman created the concept of copyleft to prevent his work from being used in proprietary software, allowing the use of his work by anyone under specific terms.
perspectiveRichard Stallman opposes the pragmatism of the Open Source Initiative because he fears that compromising on the Free Software Foundation's idealistic standards for software freedom threatens the ideals of freedom and community.
perspectiveRichard Stallman maintains a preference for the original concept of free software because it takes a strong moral stance against proprietary software, despite the overlap between free software and open source in terms of software operation.
claimRichard Stallman created the GNU General Public License (GNU GPL) in 1989, which was subsequently updated in 1991.
perspectiveRichard Stallman argues in his 2007 essay 'Why "Free Software" is better than "Open Source"' that the term 'Free Software' is philosophically superior to 'Open Source' because it emphasizes user freedom over development methodology.
claimRichard Stallman created the GNU operating system in 1984, with the name 'GNU' being a recursive acronym for 'Gnu's Not Unix'.
perspectiveRichard Stallman considers equating the terms "free software" and "open-source software" to be incorrect and misleading, despite agreeing that they describe almost the same category of software.
accountRichard Stallman resigned from MIT in 1984 to create the free operating system GNU after proprietary software practices at his lab prevented source code from being shared and improved.
Free and open-source software - Wikipedia en.wikipedia.org 8 facts
claimThe Free Software Foundation (FSF) defines free software as a matter of liberty rather than price, a definition adopted from Richard Stallman's work.
claimRichard Stallman's GNU Manifesto and the Four Essential Freedoms outlined the ethical stance of the Free software movement, emphasizing user control over software.
claimRichard Stallman wrote an article titled 'KERNEL-DEV: UDI and Free Software' for Linux Today.
referenceSam William authored 'Free as in Freedom: Richard Stallman's Crusade for Free Software', published by O'Reilly Media in 2002.
perspectiveRichard Stallman argues that the term 'FOSS' fails to be neutral, preferring the term 'Free/Libre and Open Source Software' (FLOSS) instead.
perspectiveRichard Stallman argues that the 'Open Source' movement misses the point of 'Free Software' in an essay published by the Free Software Foundation.
claimThe earliest known publication of Richard Stallman's free software definition appeared in the February 1986 edition of the Free Software Foundation's 'GNU's Bulletin' publication.
accountRichard Stallman launched the GNU Project in 1983 at MIT with the goal of developing a complete Free software operating system and restoring user freedom.
Open-source license - Wikipedia en.wikipedia.org 6 facts
accountRichard Stallman founded the free software movement in response to the rise of proprietary software.
quoteRichard Stallman stated that "the central idea of copyleft is to use copyright law, but flip it over to serve the opposite of its usual purpose: instead of a means of privatizing software, [copyright] becomes a means of keeping software free."
accountRichard Stallman founded the free software movement to counter the spread of proprietary software and closed development models while working as a graduate student at the MIT Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory.
accountDuring the 1980s, Richard Stallman initiated the GNU Project to create a free operating system, authored essays on freedom, established the Free Software Foundation, and wrote several free-software licenses.
perspectiveRichard Stallman wrote the GNU General Public License (GPL) with the goal of increasing the body of available free software, which contrasts with traditional proprietary software licenses written with the goal of increasing profit.
accountThe term "Copyleft" and the slogan "All rights reversed" were used by Principia Discordia and Tiny BASIC before Richard Stallman adopted the term in 1984 for the GNU operating system after receiving a manual with a "Copyleft Ⓛ" sticker from programmer Don Hopkins.
What Is Open Source Software? - IBM ibm.com 6 facts
claimThe GNU General Public License (GPL), innovated by Richard Stallman, is the first copyleft software license and requires that anyone who enhances the source code must publish their edited version freely to all.
claimRichard Stallman opposed the restriction on users customizing proprietary software to accomplish their work.
quoteRichard Stallman championed the concept that software should be freely available for customization, famously stating: "software should be free—as in speech, not beer."
claimRichard Stallman's GPL license stipulates that anyone can rewrite the software as long as the resulting code is published free for all to use.
claimThe term 'open source' was adopted in 1999 because many felt that Richard Stallman’s term 'free software' inaptly emphasized 'free of cost' as the principal value of the software.
accountRichard Stallman founded the Free Software Foundation and led the development of an open source alternative to the AT&T-owned Unix operating system.
Open-source hardware - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia smoothieware.github.io Apr 15, 2016 5 facts
quoteRichard Stallman stated in a 1999 article on kernel.org that while the freedom to copy software is a social imperative, the freedom to copy hardware is not as important because hardware is difficult to copy.
claimRichard Stallman, the founder of the Free Software movement, expressed skepticism in 1999 regarding the idea and relevance of what is now known as open-source hardware, which he referred to as 'Free hardware'.
quoteRichard Stallman stated on linuxtoday.com: "I see no social imperative for free hardware designs like the imperative for free software."
perspectiveRichard Stallman prefers and suggests the term 'free hardware design' over 'open source hardware', consistent with his earlier rejection of the term 'open source software'.
claimIn a 2015 Wired article, Richard Stallman adapted his viewpoint on open-source hardware, acknowledging its importance while maintaining that there is no ethical parallel between free software and free hardware.
Open-source hardware - Wikipedia en.wikipedia.org 2 facts
perspectiveRichard Stallman argued for the necessity of free digital hardware designs in his 2015 article 'Why We Need Free Digital Hardware Designs' published in Wired and his 2015 paper 'Free Hardware and Free Hardware Designs' published by the Free Software Foundation.
perspectiveIn a 2015 article in Wired Magazine, Richard Stallman acknowledged the importance of free hardware but maintained that it lacks an ethical parallel with free software.
What Is Open Source Software and Why Use OSS? coursera.org Dec 31, 2025 2 facts
accountOpen source software began when MIT programmer Richard Stallman developed the GNU General Public License.
claimRichard Stallman developed the GNU General Public License to help developers access, explore, and understand other people’s work, fostering a community dedicated to learning and enhancing code.
Open Hardware Licenses - The Turing Way book.the-turing-way.org 1 fact
claimThe GNU General Public License (GPL), developed by Richard Stallman, is a popular copyleft license used for software within open source hardware projects.
The Open Source Definition - Wikipedia en.wikipedia.org 1 fact
accountRichard Stallman promoted the Free Software Definition to differentiate free software from open source after the Debian Free Software Guidelines (DFSG) became the Open Source Definition.
What is OSS? - CircleCI circleci.com Jun 10, 2024 1 fact
referenceThe General Public License (GPL) is a license exclusively for the GNU project created by Richard Stallman and managed by the Free Software Foundation (FSF). Under the GPL, copyright notices cannot be removed, and derived programs must be published under the GPL.
What is Open Source Software? - HotWax Systems hotwaxsystems.com Aug 11, 2025 1 fact
accountRichard Stallman founded the Free Software Foundation (FSF) in 1985, which was built around four essential freedoms: to run, study, modify, and share software without restriction.