On Wed, 2002-11-27 at 16:19, energon wrote:
Anybody care to relate GPL software with the science of Ayurveda ? (since Ayurveda is non-proprietory, and doesn't have any side effects ;) errm...strings attached :)
A good example that one of my friends was giving was a comparison of Free Software to Mathematics.
Science wouldn't be where it is if a mathematician said, "I wont tell you how the theorem works inside. I will just give you the proof". There is no way we can extend the theorem to form postulates nor can we find ways of seeing if the theorem is correct.
Just what mathematics means to science, software (which is an application of mathematics) means to engineering and technology (which is an application of science). Imagine what would have happened to science if mathematicians refused to expose their theorems. Imagine how advanced technology would be if all software enabled engineers to extend the software.
-Suraj