rms@MOLE.AI.MIT.EDU (Richard Stallman) (03/06/91)
The Free Software Foundation urges X Windows users not to use Motif, for two reasons. Motif competes directly with other toolkits that are free software. In this way, it undermines part of the X Windows project. And programs that use Motif won't be able to run on a GNU system, since Motif is not free and won't be available on GNU systems. Available free toolkits include the Athena widgets and Interviews (which uses C++ as its abstract object paradigm). XView, an implementation of Open Look, is also supposed to be free, though there is a mixup in the copying conditions on the version now available.
haydens%bullwinkle@XN.LL.MIT.EDU (Hayden Schultz) (03/08/91)
What's the big deal with Motif anyway? Everything I've read indicates that there's no significant increase in functunality vs Open Look, and it's a real pain when developing applications. Independant journals I've read (I don't remember which one off hand) indicate that there are currently almost twice as many Open Look applications availible as Motif. It seems like this issue is yet another example of OSF attempting to split Unix users into separate camps. Not only that, but users are willing to pay for the privilige rather than using equivalent free software. Hayden Schultz (haydens@juliet.ll.mit.edu) << respond here please
carlton@HUSC10.HARVARD.EDU (david carlton) (03/09/91)
In article <gordon.668373734@madhouse> gordon@b11.ingr.com (Gordon Streeter) writes: rms@MOLE.AI.MIT.EDU (Richard Stallman) writes: >The Free Software Foundation urges X Windows users not to use Motif, >for two reasons. ...niether of which have anything to do with the utility of Motif -- the product or the standard. One might conclude that the Foundation is not interested in whether we get what we need, but only in whether we conform to its philosophy. Alternatively, one might conclude that the FSF is quite interested in whether we get what we need; they just take a longer-term point of view on these matters, and have developed a philosophy which they think leads to a more effective way of giving the users what they need in the long run. david carlton carlton@husc9.harvard.edu