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diff --git a/talermerchantdemos/blog/articles/en/nonfree-games.html b/talermerchantdemos/blog/articles/en/nonfree-games.html new file mode 100644 index 0000000..c85f5f7 --- /dev/null +++ b/talermerchantdemos/blog/articles/en/nonfree-games.html @@ -0,0 +1,155 @@ +<!--#include virtual="/server/header.html" --> +<!-- Parent-Version: 1.86 --> +<title>Nonfree DRM'd Games on GNU/Linux: Good or Bad? +- GNU Project - Free Software Foundation</title> +<!--#include virtual="/philosophy/po/nonfree-games.translist" --> +<!--#include virtual="/server/banner.html" --> +<h2>Nonfree DRM'd Games on GNU/Linux: Good or Bad?</h2> + +<p>by <a href="http://www.stallman.org/">Richard Stallman</a></p> + +<p>A well known company, Valve, that distributes nonfree computer games +with Digital Restrictions Management, recently announced it would +distribute these games for GNU/Linux. What good and bad effects can +this have?</p> + +<p>I suppose that availability of popular nonfree programs on +the GNU/Linux system can boost adoption of the system. However, the aim of GNU +goes beyond “success”; its purpose is +to <a href="/philosophy/free-software-even-more-important.html"> bring +freedom to the users </a>. Thus, the larger question is how this +development affects users' freedom.</p> + +<p>The problem with these games +is not that <a href="/philosophy/words-to-avoid.html#Commercial"> they are +commercial</a>. (We see nothing wrong with that.) It +is not that <a href="/philosophy/selling.html"> the developers +sell copies</a>; that's not wrong either. The problem is that the +games contain software that is +<a href="/philosophy/free-sw.html">not free</a> +(free in the sense of freedom, of course).</p> + +<p>Nonfree game programs (like other nonfree programs) are unethical +because they deny freedom to their users. (Game art is a different +issue, because +it <a href="/philosophy/copyright-versus-community.html">isn't +software</a>.) If you want freedom, one requisite for it is not +having or running nonfree programs on your computer. That much is +clear.</p> + +<p>However, if you're going to use these games, you're better off using +them on GNU/Linux rather than on Microsoft Windows. At least you avoid +<a href="http://upgradefromwindows8.org/">the harm to your freedom that Windows +would do</a>.</p> + +<p>Thus, in direct practical terms, this development can do both harm +and good. It might encourage GNU/Linux users to install these games, +and it might encourage users of the games to replace Windows with +GNU/Linux. My guess is that the direct good effect will be bigger than +the direct harm. But there is also an indirect effect: what does the +use of these games teach people in our community?</p> + +<p>Any GNU/Linux distro that comes with software to offer these games +will teach users that the point is not freedom. <a +href="/distros/common-distros.html">Nonfree software in GNU/Linux +distros</a> already works against the goal of freedom. Adding these +games to a distro would augment that effect.</p> + +<p>Free software is a matter of freedom, not price. A free game need +not be gratis. It is feasible to develop free games commercially, +while respecting your freedom to change the software you use. Since +the art in the game is not software, it is not ethically imperative to +make the art free — though free art is an additional +contribution. There is in fact free game software developed by +companies, as well as free games developed noncommercially by +volunteers. Crowdfunding development will only get easier.</p> + +<p>But if we suppose that it is <em>not feasible</em> in the current +situation to develop a certain +kind of free game — what would follow then? There's no good in +writing it as a nonfree game. To have freedom in your computing, +requires rejecting nonfree software, pure and simple. +You as a freedom-lover won't use the nonfree game if it exists, so +you won't lose anything if it does not exist.</p> + +<p>If you want to promote the cause of freedom in computing, please +take care not to talk about the availability of these games on +GNU/Linux as support for our cause. Instead you could tell people +about the <a href="https://libregamewiki.org/Main_Page">libre games +wiki</a> that attempts to catalog free +games, <a href="http://forum.freegamedev.net/index.php"> the Free Game +Dev Forum</a>, and the LibrePlanet Gaming +Collective's <a href="http://libreplanet.org/wiki/Group:LibrePlanet_Gaming_Collective"> +free gaming night.</a> </p> + +<h3>Notes</h3> + +<p> +<a href="http://web-old.archive.org/web/20191125215630/http://onpon4.github.io/articles/gaming-trap.html"> +Watch out for +“nonfree game data” that actually contains software.</a></p> + +</div><!-- for id="content", starts in the include above --> +<!--#include virtual="/server/footer.html" --> +<div id="footer"> +<div class="unprintable"> + +<p>Please send general FSF & GNU inquiries to +<a href="mailto:gnu@gnu.org"><gnu@gnu.org></a>. +There are also <a href="/contact/">other ways to contact</a> +the FSF. Broken links and other corrections or suggestions can be sent +to <a href="mailto:webmasters@gnu.org"><webmasters@gnu.org></a>.</p> + +<p><!-- TRANSLATORS: Ignore the original text in this paragraph, + replace it with the translation of these two: + + We work hard and do our best to provide accurate, good quality + translations. However, we are not exempt from imperfection. + Please send your comments and general suggestions in this regard + to <a href="mailto:web-translators@gnu.org"> + <web-translators@gnu.org></a>.</p> + + <p>For information on coordinating and submitting translations of + our web pages, see <a + href="/server/standards/README.translations.html">Translations + README</a>. --> +Please see the <a +href="/server/standards/README.translations.html">Translations +README</a> for information on coordinating and submitting translations +of this article.</p> +</div> + +<!-- Regarding copyright, in general, standalone pages (as opposed to + files generated as part of manuals) on the GNU web server should + be under CC BY-ND 4.0. Please do NOT change or remove this + without talking with the webmasters or licensing team first. + Please make sure the copyright date is consistent with the + document. For web pages, it is ok to list just the latest year the + document was modified, or published. + + If you wish to list earlier years, that is ok too. + Either "2001, 2002, 2003" or "2001-2003" are ok for specifying + years, as long as each year in the range is in fact a copyrightable + year, i.e., a year in which the document was published (including + being publicly visible on the web or in a revision control system). + + There is more detail about copyright years in the GNU Maintainers + Information document, www.gnu.org/prep/maintain. --> + +<p>Copyright © 2013, 2015, 2016, 2018, 2020 Free Software Foundation, Inc.</p> + +<p>This page is licensed under a <a rel="license" +href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">Creative +Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License</a>.</p> + +<!--#include virtual="/server/bottom-notes.html" --> + +<p class="unprintable">Updated: +<!-- timestamp start --> +$Date: 2020/06/01 10:25:36 $ +<!-- timestamp end --> +</p> +</div> +</div><!-- for class="inner", starts in the banner include --> +</body> +</html> |