indiatimes selling linux?

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nope....Then wats the meaning of OPEN source??? if some one is charging it should be the developer..not some crazy punk..I just need a YES/NO answer from TE and if its "NO" dammm there will be one mouthshut review and I will report this...
 
Dark Star said:
and as far as licensing is concerned I guess they must be payin some honorarium to the distro creator :)..
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i wonder if these guys really are , i mean , their prices are different , even among similar distros :P
 
greenhorn said:
i wonder if these guys really are , i mean , their prices are different , even among similar distros :P
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They dont need to pay royalties I believe. Thats the whole point of opensource :)

You are free to 'modify' and 'distribute' the code. Only conditions, any changes made must be put in the public domain so long as they are derived/or use a part of opensource code. So long as you sell it for a 'reasonable' price (cover download/media/distribution costs etc).

That applies to the standard GPL licenses at least.

You may not impose any further restrictions on the exercise of the rights granted or affirmed under this License. For example, you may not impose a license fee, royalty, or other charge for exercise of rights granted under this License, and you may not initiate litigation (including a cross-claim or counterclaim in a lawsuit) alleging that any patent claim is infringed by making, using, selling, offering for sale, or importing the Program or any portion of it.
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Each contributor grants you a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free patent license under the contributor's essential patent claims, to make, use, sell, offer for sale, import and otherwise run, modify and propagate the contents of its contributor version.
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^^^^

Those are direct quotes from the GPL :)

The GNU General Public License - GNU Project - Free Software Foundation (FSF)

So so long as you disclose any changes you make and comply with the GPL, you can sell/distribute stuff but everyone else can use your work for free as well :P

Refer to this link for a detailed explanation of the meaning of 'free' software fromteh GNU project itself:

Selling Free Software - GNU Project - Free Software Foundation (FSF)

Actually we encourage people who redistribute free software to charge as much as they wish or can. If this seems surprising to you, please read on.

The word “free” has two legitimate general meanings; it can refer either to freedom or to price. When we speak of “free software”, we're talking about freedom, not price. (Think of “free speech”, not “free beer”.) Specifically, it means that a user is free to run the program, change the program, and redistribute the program with or without changes.

Free programs are sometimes distributed gratis, and sometimes for a substantial price. Often the same program is available in both ways from different places. The program is free regardless of the price, because users have freedom in using it.

Non-free programs are usually sold for a high price, but sometimes a store will give you a copy at no charge. That doesn't make it free software, though. Price or no price, the program is non-free because users don't have freedom.

Since free software is not a matter of price, a low price isn't more free, or closer to free. So if you are redistributing copies of free software, you might as well charge a substantial fee and make some money. Redistributing free software is a good and legitimate activity; if you do it, you might as well make a profit from it.
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I could go on and on putting quotes :P Basically refer to the whole page on Selling Free Software - GNU Project - Free Software Foundation (FSF) to clear any such doubts :)
 
y would any1 buy ubuntu/kubuntu? we get it free shipped from shipit.ubuntu.com n that too in as much quantity as we want.

+spending Rs200-300 for something you get free wid Rs100-150 magzines like linuxforyou n digit....is pointless. ppl who know abt linux will never buy from these sites unless they are offering something more that that.
 
Still they are not charging any exorbitant amount and hopefully they will be paying a part to original distros . Not all distros send free cd's at home. If you need latest version of some distro and don't have a good broadband connection, you should not wait till it comes free with some magazine :P . There are many websites providing this service.
 
Its perfectly legal and ethical here. One problem I see with these services is that they don't clearly label the CDs such as whether it is 32 bit or 64 bit or what the "variant" is like Ubuntu's "desktop" vs. "alternate" images...
 
madnav said:
y would any1 buy ubuntu/kubuntu? we get it free shipped from shipit.ubuntu.com n that too in as much quantity as we want.

+spending Rs200-300 for something you get free wid Rs100-150 magzines like linuxforyou n digit....is pointless. ppl who know abt linux will never buy from these sites unless they are offering something more that that.
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companies that have commercial linux distros are in fact offering more than the free cds that you get with magazines. i'm not completely sure on the exact rules but i believe that you are allowed to charge for any packages that you create by yourself. the price is not for the actual linux core, but everything around it.
 
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