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-revision 1.111 by rms,
Mon Feb 20 07:46:37 2012 UTC
+revision 1.129 by rms,
Mon Feb 17 01:35:57 2014 UTC
 Line 1
  <!--#include virtual="/server/header.html" -->
+ <!-- Parent-Version: 1.75 -->
- <title>What is free software? - GNU Project - Free Software Foundation (FSF)</title>
+ <title>What is free software?
+ - GNU Project - Free Software Foundation</title>
  <meta http-equiv="Keywords" content="GNU, FSF, Free Software Foundation, Linux, Emacs, GCC, Unix, Free Software, Operating System, GNU Kernel, HURD, GNU HURD, Hurd" />
  <meta http-equiv="Description" content="Since 1983, developing the free Unix style operating system GNU, so that computer users can have the freedom to share and improve the software they use." />
- <link rel="alternate" title="What's New" href="http://www.gnu.org/rss/whatsnew.rss" type="application/rss+xml" />
- <link rel="alternate" title="New Free Software" href="http://www.gnu.org/rss/quagga.rss" type="application/rss+xml" />
- <!--#include virtual="/server/banner.html" -->
  <!--#include virtual="/philosophy/po/free-sw.translist" -->
+ <!--#include virtual="/server/banner.html" -->
  <h2>What is free software?</h2>
  <h3>The Free Software Definition</h3>
  <blockquote>
+ <p>
  The free software definition presents the criteria for whether a
  particular software program qualifies as free software.  From time to
  time we revise this definition, to clarify it or to resolve questions
  about subtle issues.  See the <a href="#History">History section</a>
  below for a list of changes that affect the definition of free
  software.
+ </p>
  </blockquote>
  <p>
  &ldquo;Free software&rdquo; means software that respects users'
- freedom and community.  Roughly, the users have the freedom to run,
+ freedom and community.  Roughly, it means that <b>the users have the
- copy, distribute, study, change and improve the software.  With these
+ freedom to run, copy, distribute, study, change and improve the
- freedoms, the users (both individually and collectively) control the
+ software</b>.  Thus, &ldquo;free software&rdquo; is a matter of
- program and what it does for them.
+ liberty, not price.  To understand the concept, you should think of
- </p>
+ &ldquo;free&rdquo; as in &ldquo;free speech,&rdquo; not as in
+ &ldquo;free beer&rdquo;.
- <p>
- When users don't control the program, the program controls the users.
- The developer controls the program, and through it controls the users.
- This nonfree or &ldquo;proprietary&rdquo; program is therefore an
- instrument of unjust power.
  </p>
  <p>
- Thus, &ldquo;free software&rdquo; is a matter of liberty, not price.
+ We campaign for these freedoms because everyone deserves them.  With
- To understand the concept, you should think of &ldquo;free&rdquo; as
+ these freedoms, the users (both individually and collectively) control
- in &ldquo;free speech,&rdquo; not as in &ldquo;free beer&rdquo;.
+ the program and what it does for them.  When users don't control the
+ program, we call it a &ldquo;nonfree&rdquo; or
+ &ldquo;proprietary&rdquo; program.  The nonfree program controls the
+ users, and the developer controls the program; this makes the
+ program <a href="/philosophy/free-software-even-more-important.html">
+ an instrument of unjust power</a>.
  </p>
  <p>
-Line 66 
 four essential freedoms:
+Line 67 
 four essential freedoms:
  </ul>
  <p>
- A program is free software if users have all of these freedoms.  Thus,
+ A program is free software if it gives users adequately all of these
- you should be free to redistribute copies, either with or without
+ freedoms.  Otherwise, it is nonfree.  While we can distinguish various
- modifications, either gratis or charging a fee for distribution, to
+ nonfree distribution schemes in terms of how far they fall short of
+ being free, we consider them all equally unethical.</p>
+ <p>The rest of this page clarifies certain points about what makes
+ specific freedoms adequate or not.</p>
+ <p>Freedom to distribute (freedoms 2 and 3) means you are free to
+ redistribute copies, either with or without modifications, either
+ gratis or charging a fee for distribution, to
  <a href="#exportcontrol">anyone anywhere</a>.  Being free to do these
  things means (among other things) that you do not have to ask or pay
  for permission to do so.
-Line 105 
 make them.
+Line 114 
 make them.
  <p>
  In order for freedoms 1 and 3 (the freedom to make changes and the
- freedom to publish improved versions) to be meaningful, you must have
+ freedom to publish the changed versions) to be meaningful, you must have
  access to the source code of the program.  Therefore, accessibility of
  source code is a necessary condition for free software.  Obfuscated
  &ldquo;source code&rdquo; is not real source code and does not count
-Line 171 
 you always have the freedom to copy and
+Line 180 
 you always have the freedom to copy and
  <p>
  Whether a change constitutes an improvement is a subjective matter.
- If your modifications are limited, in substance, to changes that
+ If your right to modify a program is limited, in substance, to changes that
- someone else considers an improvement, that is not freedom.
+ someone else considers an improvement, that program is not free.
  </p>
  <p>
-Line 188 
 the program, so you won't have trouble m
+Line 197 
 the program, so you won't have trouble m
  </p>
  <p>
- A special issue arises when a license requires changing the name by
- which the program will be invoked from other programs.  That
- effectively hampers you from releasing your changed version so that it
- can replace the original when invoked by those other programs.  This
- sort of requirement is acceptable only if there's an suitable aliasing
- facility that allows you to specify the original program's name as an
- alias for the modified version.</p>
- <p>
  Rules that &ldquo;if you make your version available in this way, you
  must make it available in that way also&rdquo; can be acceptable too,
  on the same condition.  An example of such an acceptable rule is one
 Line 209 
 are also acceptable.
  </p>
  <p>
+ A special issue arises when a license requires changing the name by
+ which the program will be invoked from other programs.  That
+ effectively hampers you from releasing your changed version so that it
+ can replace the original when invoked by those other programs.  This
+ sort of requirement is acceptable only if there's a suitable aliasing
+ facility that allows you to specify the original program's name as an
+ alias for the modified version.</p>
+ <p>
  In the GNU project, we use
  <a href="/copyleft/copyleft.html">copyleft</a>
  to protect these freedoms legally for everyone.  But
-Line 227 
 eliminate or override these restrictions
+Line 236 
 eliminate or override these restrictions
  is refuse to impose them as conditions of use of the program.  In this
  way, the restrictions will not affect activities and people outside the
  jurisdictions of these governments.  Thus, free software licenses
- must not require obedience to any export regulations as a condition of
+ must not require obedience to any nontrivial export regulations as a
- any of the essential freedoms.
+ condition of exercising any of the essential freedoms.
+ </p>
+ <p>
+ Merely mentioning the existence of export regulations, without making
+ them a condition of the license itself, is acceptable since it does
+ not restrict users.  If an export regulation is actually trivial for
+ free software, then requiring it as a condition is not an actual
+ problem; however, it is a potential problem, since a later change in
+ export law could make the requirement nontrivial and thus render the
+ software nonfree.
+ </p>
+ <p>
+ It is acceptable for a free license to specify which jurisdiction's
+ law applies, or where litigation must be done, or both.
  </p>
  <p>
-Line 297 
 help you can ensure that the license rea
+Line 321 
 help you can ensure that the license rea
  and avoid various practical problems.
  </p>
- <h2 id="beyond-software">Beyond Software</h2>
+ <h3 id="beyond-software">Beyond Software</h3>
  <p>
  <a href="/philosophy/free-doc.html">Software manuals must be free</a>,
-Line 319 
 has been extended to a definition of <a
+Line 343 
 has been extended to a definition of <a
  free cultural works</a> applicable to any kind of works.
  </p>
- <h2 id="open-source">Open Source?</h2>
+ <h3 id="open-source">Open Source?</h3>
  <p>
  Another group has started using the term &ldquo;open source&rdquo; to mean
-Line 330 
 word &ldquo;open&rdquo; <a href="/philos
+Line 354 
 word &ldquo;open&rdquo; <a href="/philos
  never refers to freedom</a>.
  </p>
- <h2 id="History">History</h2>
+ <h3 id="History">History</h3>
  <p>From time to time we revise this Free Software Definition.  Here is
- the list of changes, along with links to show exactly what was
+ the list of substantive changes, along with links to show exactly what
- changed.</p>
+ was changed.</p>
  <ul>
+ <li><a href="http://web.cvs.savannah.gnu.org/viewvc/www/philosophy/free-sw.html?root=www&amp;r1=1.128&amp;r2=1.129">Version
+.129</a>: State explicitly that choice of law and choice of forum
+ specifications are allowed.  (This was always our policy.)</li>
+ <li><a href="http://web.cvs.savannah.gnu.org/viewvc/www/philosophy/free-sw.html?root=www&amp;r1=1.121&amp;r2=1.122">Version
+.122</a>: An export control requirement is a real problem if the
+ requirement is nontrivial; otherwise it is only a potential problem.</li>
+ <li><a href="http://web.cvs.savannah.gnu.org/viewvc/www/philosophy/free-sw.html?root=www&amp;r1=1.117&amp;r2=1.118">Version
+.118</a>: Clarification: the issue is limits on your right to modify,
+ not on what modifications you have made.  And modifications are not limited
+ to &ldquo;improvements&rdquo;</li>
  <li><a href="http://web.cvs.savannah.gnu.org/viewvc/www/philosophy/free-sw.html?root=www&amp;r1=1.110&amp;r2=1.111">Version
 .111</a>: Clarify 1.77 by saying that only
  retroactive <em>restrictions</em> are unacceptable.  The copyright
-Line 422 
 versions you distribute to the author.</
+Line 459 
 versions you distribute to the author.</
  </ul>
  <p>There are gaps in the version numbers shown above because there are
- other changes in this page that do not affect the definition as such.
+ other changes in this page that do not affect the definition or its
- These changes are in other parts of the page.  You can review the
+ interpretations.  For instance, the list does not include changes in
- complete list of changes to the page through
+ asides, formatting, spelling, punctuation, or other parts of the page.
+ You can review the complete list of changes to the page through
  the <a href="http://web.cvs.savannah.gnu.org/viewvc/www/philosophy/free-sw.html?root=www&amp;view=log">cvsweb
  interface</a>.</p>
- </div>
+ </div><!-- for id="content", starts in the include above -->
  <!--#include virtual="/server/footer.html" -->
  <div id="footer">
- <p>
+ <p>Please send general FSF &amp; GNU inquiries to
- Please send FSF &amp; GNU inquiries to
  <a href="mailto:gnu@gnu.org">&lt;gnu@gnu.org&gt;</a>.
  There are also <a href="/contact/">other ways to contact</a>
- the FSF.
+ the FSF.  Broken links and other corrections or suggestions can be sent
- <br />
+ to <a href="mailto:webmasters@gnu.org">&lt;webmasters@gnu.org&gt;</a>.</p>
- Please send broken links and other corrections or suggestions to
- <a href="mailto:webmasters@gnu.org">&lt;webmasters@gnu.org&gt;</a>.
+ <p><!-- TRANSLATORS: Ignore the original text in this paragraph,
- </p>
+         replace it with the translation of these two:
+         We work hard and do our best to provide accurate, good quality
+         translations.  However, we are not exempt from imperfection.
+         Please send your comments and general suggestions in this regard
+         to <a href="mailto:web-translators@gnu.org">
+         &lt;web-translators@gnu.org&gt;</a>.</p>
+         <p>For information on coordinating and submitting translations of
+         our web pages, see <a
+         href="/server/standards/README.translations.html">Translations
+         README</a>. -->
+ Please see the <a
+ href="/server/standards/README.translations.html">Translations
+ README</a> for information on coordinating and submitting translations
+ of this article.</p>
+ <!-- Regarding copyright, in general, standalone pages (as opposed to
+      files generated as part of manuals) on the GNU web server should
+      be under CC BY-ND 3.0 US.  Please do NOT change or remove this
+      without talking with the webmasters or licensing team first.
+      Please make sure the copyright date is consistent with the
+      document.  For web pages, it is ok to list just the latest year the
+      document was modified, or published.
+      If you wish to list earlier years, that is ok too.
+      Either "2001, 2002, 2003" or "2001-2003" are ok for specifying
+      years, as long as each year in the range is in fact a copyrightable
+      year, i.e., a year in which the document was published (including
+      being publicly visible on the web or in a revision control system).
+      There is more detail about copyright years in the GNU Maintainers
+      Information document, www.gnu.org/prep/maintain. -->
- <p>
+ <p>Copyright &copy; 1996-2002, 2004-2007, 2009, 2010, 2012, 2013
- Please see the
+ Free Software Foundation, Inc.</p>
- <a href="/server/standards/README.translations.html">Translations
- README</a> for information on coordinating and submitting
- translations of this article.
- </p>
- <p>
- Copyright &copy; 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2004,
-, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2010 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
- </p>
  <p>This page is licensed under a <a rel="license"
  href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/3.0/us/">Creative
- Commons Attribution-NoDerivs 3.0 United States License</a>.
+ Commons Attribution-NoDerivs 3.0 United States License</a>.</p>
- </p>
- <p>
+ <!--#include virtual="/server/bottom-notes.html" -->
- Updated:
+ <p>Updated:
  <!-- timestamp start -->
  $Date$
  <!-- timestamp end -->
  </p>
  </div>
- <!-- <div id="translations"> -->
- <!-- <h4>Translations of this page</h4> -->
- <!--  -->
- <!-- Please keep this list alphabetical by language code. -->
- <!--      Comment what the language is for each type, i.e. de is German. -->
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- <!--      If you add a new language here, please -->
- <!--      advise web-translators@gnu.org and add it to -->
- <!--       - /home/www/html/server/standards/README.translations.html -->
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- <!--       to mail.gnu.org:/com/mailer/aliases -->
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- <!--      Please use W3C normative character entities. -->
- <!--  -->
- <!-- <ul class="translations-list"> -->
- <!-- Afrikaans -->
- <!-- <li><a href="/philosophy/free-sw.af.html">Afrikaans</a>&nbsp;[af]</li> -->
- <!-- Arabic -->
- <!-- <li><a href="/philosophy/free-sw.ar.html">&#1575;&#1604;&#1593;&#1585;&#1576;&#1610;&#1577;</a>&nbsp;[ar]</li> -->
- <!-- Azerbaijani -->
- <!-- <li><a href="/philosophy/free-sw.az.html">Az&#x0259;rbaycanca</a>&nbsp;[az]</li> -->
- <!-- Bulgarian -->
- <!-- <li><a href="/philosophy/free-sw.bg.html">&#x431;&#x44A;&#x43B;&#x433;&#x430;&#x440;&#x441;&#x43A;&#x438;</a>&nbsp;[bg]</li> -->
- <!-- Bengali -->
- <!-- <li><a href="/philosophy/free-sw.bn.html">&#2476;&#2494;&#2434;&#2482;&#2494;</a>&nbsp;[bn]</li> -->
- <!-- Bosnian -->
- <!-- <li><a href="/philosophy/free-sw.bs.html">bosanski</a>&nbsp;[bs]</li> -->
- <!-- Catalan -->
- <!-- <li><a href="/philosophy/free-sw.ca.html">catal&#x00e0;</a>&nbsp;[ca]</li> -->
- <!-- Czech -->
- <!-- <li><a href="/philosophy/free-sw.cs.html">&#x010c;esky</a>&nbsp;[cs]</li> -->
- <!-- Danish -->
- <!-- <li><a href="/philosophy/free-sw.da.html">dansk</a>&nbsp;[da]</li> -->
- <!-- German -->
- <!-- <li><a href="/philosophy/free-sw.de.html">Deutsch</a>&nbsp;[de]</li> -->
- <!-- Greek -->
- <!-- <li><a href="/philosophy/free-sw.el.html">&#x03b5;&#x03bb;&#x03bb;&#x03b7;&#x03bd;&#x03b9;&#x03ba;&#x03ac;</a>&nbsp;[el]</li> -->
- <!-- English -->
- <!-- <li><a href="/philosophy/free-sw.html">English</a>&nbsp;[en]</li> -->
- <!-- Esperanto -->
- <!-- <li><a href="/philosophy/free-sw.eo.html">Esperanto</a>&nbsp;[eo]</li> -->
- <!-- Spanish -->
- <!-- <li><a href="/philosophy/free-sw.es.html">espa&#x00f1;ol</a>&nbsp;[es]</li> -->
- <!-- Farsi (Persian) -->
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- <!-- French -->
- <!-- <li><a href="/philosophy/free-sw.fr.html">fran&#x00e7;ais</a>&nbsp;[fr]</li> -->
- <!-- Galician -->
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- <!-- Hebrew -->
- <!-- <li><a href="/philosophy/free-sw.he.html">&#x05e2;&#x05d1;&#x05e8;&#x05d9;&#x05ea;</a>&nbsp;[he]</li> -->
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