Will future generations see Stallman as a genius or crackpot? The answer to that question depends partly on which side of the free software debate the reader currently stands and partly upon the reader's own outlook for the future. It also looks at how the latest twists and turns in the software marketplace have diminished Stallman's leadership role in some areas while augmenting it in others.įinally, Free as in Freedom examines both Stallman and the free software movement from historical viewpoint. How did this paradox come about? Free as in Freedom provides an answer. Like Alan Greenspan in the financial sector, Richard Stallman has assumed the role of tribal elder within the hacking community, a community that bills itself as anarchic and averse to central leadership or authority. The book documents Stallman's personal evolution from teenage misfit to prescient adult hacker to political leader and examines how that evolution has shaped the free software movement. Free as in Freedom interweaves biographical snapshots of GNU project. It examines Stallman's unique personality and how that personality has been at turns a driving force and a drawback in terms of the movement's overall success.įree as in Freedom examines one man's 20-year attempt to codify and communicate the ethics of 1970s era 'hacking' culture in such a way that later generations might easily share and build upon the knowledge of their computing forebears. Buy a cheap copy of Free as in Freedom: Richard Stallmans.

Free as in Freedom interweaves biographical snapshots of GNU project founder Richard Stallman with the political, social and economic history of the free software movement. Free as in freedom by Sam Williams, 2002, OReilly edition, in English.

Free as in Freedom by Sam Williams