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So if I make a proprietary application that only runs on, say, Ubuntu, does that mean GNU/Linux is no longer really free, since you can't replace your distro wi
by icebraining 8y ago
So if I make a proprietary application that only runs on, say, Ubuntu, does that mean GNU/Linux is no longer really free, since you can't replace your distro with Arch without losing access to my application?
- jstanley 8y agoIf your application is an intrinsic part of pretty much every GNU/Linux system, then yeah, pretty much. It's not GNU/Linux that's not free, but it makes it hard to use a GNU/Linux system that is free.
- jjeaff 8y agoPlay store is not a requirement. You can use f-droid or something similar and it has most everything you might need.
- jstanley 8y agoI know, and I do. In fact I don't have play services installed at all. Unfortunately most people consider the play store to be a necessity, so its non-free nature is a problem.
- notacoward 8y ago> does that mean GNU/Linux is no longer really free I'd say it's a bit of a different situation, since the two are not being designed to work together and aren't even being developed by the same people. If the Ubuntu developers made your proprietary app key to the useful running of the system, which is the more exact analogy, then I'd say yeah, they would have made it non-free.
- icebraining 8y agoWhat app is key to the useful running of Android and that refuses to run on a modified system?