X-Git-Url: https://git.cworth.org/git?a=blobdiff_plain;f=doc%2Ffreemanuals.texi;fp=doc%2Ffreemanuals.texi;h=0000000000000000000000000000000000000000;hb=5c46f61cabb7912f25347b9300d1d585d7a635cb;hp=25343f9647535b730a9685f0a79b9ec1504765d5;hpb=138fc7e67e3d9845cd7d81aad0e9c7724784f9b9;p=tar diff --git a/doc/freemanuals.texi b/doc/freemanuals.texi deleted file mode 100644 index 25343f9..0000000 --- a/doc/freemanuals.texi +++ /dev/null @@ -1,89 +0,0 @@ -@cindex free documentation - -The biggest deficiency in the free software community today is not in -the software---it is the lack of good free documentation that we can -include with the free software. Many of our most important -programs do not come with free reference manuals and free introductory -texts. Documentation is an essential part of any software package; -when an important free software package does not come with a free -manual and a free tutorial, that is a major gap. We have many such -gaps today. - -Consider Perl, for instance. The tutorial manuals that people -normally use are non-free. How did this come about? Because the -authors of those manuals published them with restrictive terms---no -copying, no modification, source files not available---which exclude -them from the free software world. - -That wasn't the first time this sort of thing happened, and it was far -from the last. Many times we have heard a GNU user eagerly describe a -manual that he is writing, his intended contribution to the community, -only to learn that he had ruined everything by signing a publication -contract to make it non-free. - -Free documentation, like free software, is a matter of freedom, not -price. The problem with the non-free manual is not that publishers -charge a price for printed copies---that in itself is fine. (The Free -Software Foundation sells printed copies of manuals, too.) The -problem is the restrictions on the use of the manual. Free manuals -are available in source code form, and give you permission to copy and -modify. Non-free manuals do not allow this. - -The criteria of freedom for a free manual are roughly the same as for -free software. Redistribution (including the normal kinds of -commercial redistribution) must be permitted, so that the manual can -accompany every copy of the program, both on-line and on paper. - -Permission for modification of the technical content is crucial too. -When people modify the software, adding or changing features, if they -are conscientious they will change the manual too---so they can -provide accurate and clear documentation for the modified program. A -manual that leaves you no choice but to write a new manual to document -a changed version of the program is not really available to our -community. - -Some kinds of limits on the way modification is handled are -acceptable. For example, requirements to preserve the original -author's copyright notice, the distribution terms, or the list of -authors, are ok. It is also no problem to require modified versions -to include notice that they were modified. Even entire sections that -may not be deleted or changed are acceptable, as long as they deal -with nontechnical topics (like this one). These kinds of restrictions -are acceptable because they don't obstruct the community's normal use -of the manual. - -However, it must be possible to modify all the @emph{technical} -content of the manual, and then distribute the result in all the usual -media, through all the usual channels. Otherwise, the restrictions -obstruct the use of the manual, it is not free, and we need another -manual to replace it. - -Please spread the word about this issue. Our community continues to -lose manuals to proprietary publishing. If we spread the word that -free software needs free reference manuals and free tutorials, perhaps -the next person who wants to contribute by writing documentation will -realize, before it is too late, that only free manuals contribute to -the free software community. - -If you are writing documentation, please insist on publishing it under -the GNU Free Documentation License or another free documentation -license. Remember that this decision requires your approval---you -don't have to let the publisher decide. Some commercial publishers -will use a free license if you insist, but they will not propose the -option; it is up to you to raise the issue and say firmly that this is -what you want. If the publisher you are dealing with refuses, please -try other publishers. If you're not sure whether a proposed license -is free, write to @email{licensing@@gnu.org}. - -You can encourage commercial publishers to sell more free, copylefted -manuals and tutorials by buying them, and particularly by buying -copies from the publishers that paid for their writing or for major -improvements. Meanwhile, try to avoid buying non-free documentation -at all. Check the distribution terms of a manual before you buy it, -and insist that whoever seeks your business must respect your freedom. -Check the history of the book, and try reward the publishers that have -paid or pay the authors to work on it. - -The Free Software Foundation maintains a list of free documentation -published by other publishers, at -@url{http://www.fsf.org/doc/other-free-books.html}.