Question for TLUGgers: How can Canada take a leading role in FOSS?

[Jamon Camisso]

Christopher Browne wrote:
> An attempt to found a Canadian FSF would founder almost certainly as
> there isn't anyone with a comparable level of monomania that would be
> the clear authority.  Regionalism would further fragment this, as
> there is no satisfactory place to found the organization.  Why
> shouldn't someone in Calgary start another foundation that represents
> them?  Ditto for Montreal.

Perhaps the foundational approach is not the way to go then. Perhaps 
treating Linux as a product like any other, marketing it as such to 
consumers/businesses would be the better approach. Anything tinged with 
ideology (whatever that is) or political rhetoric automatically tunes 
people out -- but products, not so much. As users, developers, and 
advocates, we should in the marketing business, not in the now well 
established technical support business, or political arena (more on this 
in a moment). Not that there isn't a place for either, just that at the 
moment I'd say (and am for that matter) that energy should be directed 
at getting people to take notice outside of the aforementioned areas.

>> We have, on this list, some of the smartest people anywhere. It would
>> be a shame if we couldn't harness that group intelligence to do some
>> good for our society.

Intelligence or cleverness, which is more important to convincing 
someone to consider Linux? For that matter, just getting people to 
understand *what* Linux is would be a huge task but would probably do 
more good than any amount of politicking or mega/monomaniacal ravings or 
vision.

> The trouble is that politics is HARD...

And essentially meaningless empty rhetoric directed at making it appear 
that governments are engaged in something other than hiding the fact 
that they are trying to hide from the public who originally gave them 
their mandate. Politics is not the avenue *yet*. Someday it will be, but 
right now, people don't even know what Linux is. They've heard the name 
for sure -- there is a huge amount of curiosity out there -- it's just a 
matter of getting people's attention *without* resorting to politics.

Jamon
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