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I have never understood what the hell "free as in beer" means either.
by JohnJamesRambo 6y ago
I have never understood what the hell "free as in beer" means either.
- dodobirdlord 6y agoIf you see a sign advertising “Free Beer” you understand that the meaning of “free” in this context means “goods and/or services available at no cost”. The English word “free” means a lot of things and the meaning of “free” in the expression “Free Beer” is very different from the meaning in the expression “Free Speech”, where it is used to mean “not legally restricted”.
- JohnJamesRambo 6y agoI guess I just don't know any places that have free beer.
- garmaine 6y ago"Free beer" is often used to describe a social or work gathering. If the host/company pays for drinks, it's "free beer." As in, "hey come to the seminar with me on Thursday: there's pizza and free beer."
- humbledrone 6y agoIt's confusing to me too when it's phrased that way. Stallman's original quote makes much more sense, "Think free as in free speech, not free beer." In other words, contrasting free as in "no restrictions", versus free as in "no cost".
- dijit 6y agoGratis vs Libre. Even as a non-latin speaking person I can identify the difference between those types of "free". Or, alternatively "Free as in Freedom", which is another phrase I've heard coming from the FSF.
- Cybiote 6y agoPerhaps Freedoms vs Freebies?
- aksss 6y agoI always thought “free as in beer” meant that you could make your own beer if you were willing to put the discovery, learning, and work in to make it happen. And you were responsible for the output.
- MaxBarraclough 6y agoThat's not correct, the meaning is as humbledrone says. Free as in beer is used in contrast with Free as in freedom, and refers to something made available free of charge.