> I'm just concerned about the new linux consumers who might be shocked if
> they were told what percentage of the code they were getting in the
> $40-80 shrink-wrapped box was free GPLd software. Sort of a consumer
> information concern, in my opinion. Just like the right to know about
> organic food content... Agreed, Suse makes a fine product.
You have a point, but on the other hand, what the consumer is really
paying for in the shrink-wrapped package is: a nice set of CDs/DVDs to
keep around, a big fat manual, and the convenience of not having to
download and burn the entire distribution.
There's a gag article on freshmeat.net about how they're going to start
making weekly compilations of software listed on freshmeat, and sell CDs
on a subscription basis. The staff found this funny because doing so
would be expending a huge amount of effort in order to sell people
software (about 1% of which would be useful to any given person) which
would probably be obsoleted by newer versions by the time the CDs made it
through the USPS, and which is available for free download anyway.
However, there was a surprisingly large contingent of people who thought
they were serious, and another contingent who knew they were joking, but
asked if they would do it anyway. People will pay out the nose for
convenience...
Levi
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