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jeremybenn |
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"http://www.oasis-open.org/docbook/xml/4.5/docbookx.dtd"
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[ ]>
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ISO C++
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library
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</code></pre></td>
</tr>
<tr valign="middle">
<td>21</td>
<td></td>
<td></td>
<td class="code"><pre><code> Free Software Needs Free Documentation</code></pre></td>
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<td>22</td>
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<td class="code"><pre><code> <indexterm></code></pre></td>
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<td>23</td>
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<td class="code"><pre><code> <primary>Appendix</primary></code></pre></td>
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<td>24</td>
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<td class="code"><pre><code> <secondary>Free Documentation</secondary></code></pre></td>
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<td>25</td>
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<td class="code"><pre><code> </indexterm></code></pre></td>
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<td>26</td>
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<td class="code"><pre><code>
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The biggest deficiency in free operating systems is not in the
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software--it is the lack of good free manuals that we can include in
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these systems. Many of our most important programs do not come with
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full manuals. Documentation is an essential part of any software
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package; when an important free software package does not come with a
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free manual, that is a major gap. We have many such gaps today.
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Once upon a time, many years ago, I thought I would learn Perl. I got
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a copy of a free manual, but I found it hard to read. When I asked
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Perl users about alternatives, they told me that there were better
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introductory manuals--but those were not free.
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Why was this? The authors of the good manuals had written them for
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O'Reilly Associates, which published them with restrictive terms--no
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copying, no modification, source files not available--which exclude
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them from the free software community.
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That wasn't the first time this sort of thing has happened, and (to
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our community's great loss) it was far from the last. Proprietary
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manual publishers have enticed a great many authors to restrict their
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manuals since then. Many times I have heard a GNU user eagerly tell
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me about a manual that he is writing, with which he expects to help
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the GNU project--and then had my hopes dashed, as he proceeded to
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explain that he had signed a contract with a publisher that would
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restrict it so that we cannot use it.
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Given that writing good English is a rare skill among programmers, we
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can ill afford to lose manuals this way.
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Free documentation, like free software, is a matter of freedom,
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not price. The problem with these manuals was not that O'Reilly
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Associates charged a price for printed copies--that in itself is fine.
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(The Free Software Foundation sells printed copies of
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free GNU manuals, too.) But GNU manuals are available in source code
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form, while these manuals are available only on paper. GNU manuals
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come with permission to copy and modify; the Perl manuals do not.
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These restrictions are the problems.
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The criterion for a free manual is pretty much the same as for free
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software: it is a matter of giving all users certain freedoms.
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Redistribution (including commercial redistribution) must be
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permitted, so that the manual can accompany every copy of the program,
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on-line or on paper. Permission for modification is crucial too.
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As a general rule, I don't believe that it is essential for people to
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have permission to modify all sorts of articles and books. The issues
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for writings are not necessarily the same as those for software. For
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example, I don't think you or I are obliged to give permission to
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modify articles like this one, which describe our actions and our
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views.
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But there is a particular reason why the freedom to modify is crucial
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for documentation for free software. When people exercise their right
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to modify the software, and add or change its features, if they are
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conscientious they will change the manual too--so they can provide
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accurate and usable documentation with the modified program. A manual
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which forbids programmers to be conscientious and finish the job, or
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more precisely requires them to write a new manual from scratch if
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they change the program, does not fill our community's needs.
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While a blanket prohibition on modification is unacceptable, some
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kinds of limits on the method of modification pose no problem. For
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example, requirements to preserve the original author's copyright
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notice, the distribution terms, or the list of authors, are ok. It is
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also no problem to require modified versions to include notice that
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they were modified, even to have entire sections that may not be
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deleted or changed, as long as these sections deal with nontechnical
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topics. (Some GNU manuals have them.)
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These kinds of restrictions are not a problem because, as a practical
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matter, they don't stop the conscientious programmer from adapting the
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manual to fit the modified program. In other words, they don't block
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the free software community from making full use of the manual.
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However, it must be possible to modify all the technical
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content of the manual, and then distribute the result in all the usual
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media, through all the usual channels; otherwise, the restrictions do
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block the community, the manual is not free, and so we need another
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manual.
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Unfortunately, it is often hard to find someone to write another
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manual when a proprietary manual exists. The obstacle is that many
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users think that a proprietary manual is good enough--so they don't
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see the need to write a free manual. They do not see that the free
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operating system has a gap that needs filling.
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Why do users think that proprietary manuals are good enough? Some
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have not considered the issue. I hope this article will do something
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to change that.
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Other users consider proprietary manuals acceptable for the same
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reason so many people consider proprietary software acceptable: they
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judge in purely practical terms, not using freedom as a criterion.
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These people are entitled to their opinions, but since those opinions
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spring from values which do not include freedom, they are no guide for
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those of us who do value freedom.
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Please spread the word about this issue. We continue to lose manuals
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to proprietary publishing. If we spread the word that proprietary
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manuals are not sufficient, perhaps the next person who wants to help
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GNU by writing documentation will realize, before it is too late, that
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he must above all make it free.
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We can also encourage commercial publishers to sell free, copylefted
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manuals instead of proprietary ones. One way you can help this is to
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check the distribution terms of a manual before you buy it, and
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prefer copylefted manuals to non-copylefted ones.
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[Note: We now maintain a web page
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that lists free books available from other publishers].
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Copyright © 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007 Free Software Foundation, Inc., 51 Franklin Street, Fifth Floor, Boston, MA 02110-1301, USA
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Verbatim copying and distribution of this entire article are
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permitted worldwide, without royalty, in any medium, provided this
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notice is preserved.
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Report any problems or suggestions to webmaster@fsf.org.
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