Bug#:      1584
Opened:    2007-06-25 23:06 GMT+3
Reporter:  Robert Schuster <thebohemian [at] gmx.net>
Summary:   provide system management software under free software licenses

Several applications and libraries found on the N800 internet tablet/IT OS
2007.10 are distributed under restricted and non-free license terms according
to the Debian Free Software Guidelines, Open Source Definition and Free
Software definition.

I hereby politely ask for distributing those components under terms that are
acceptable to the above mentioned guidelines.

The applications of interest are:
from the initfs: activate_panel, bt-cal, cal-tool, fb-chaimage, text2screen,
wlan-cal, wlan-fw-update, retu-time, show_image, dsme, battest, bootstate,
dsmetool, dspctl, waitfordsme and the script linuxrc

the libraries of interest are:
libbmeic.so, libcal.so, libdsme.so, libppu.so, libactivitymonitor.so,
libcalmodule.so, libhwwd.so, libinactivity-blank.so, liblifeguard.so,
libperipheral.so, libprocesswd.so, libstartup.so, libstate.so,
libtemperature.so

There may be other software artifacts which are of interest for which I will
file separate bugreports if there is a need for them.

Rationale:
When Nokia/Maemo decided to use a variant of the GNU operating system and Linux
as its kernel for implementing the Internet Tablet OS they profited from a
wealth of knowledge and work invested in various software projects. With the
help of free software licensing they were allowed to create a unique software
environment which exactly implements the Maemo projects' goals. Maemo has
gained and still gains from those software projects because they are
independently developed further giving Maemo more possibilities in the future.

One of the key goals of the GNU project is to give its user's the freedom to
implement their own ideas. This goal is to be reached by writing free software
and sometimes (in the early days often) replacing proprietary software.

The non-free bits in the core infrastructure of the IT OS 2007 are a road block
for efforts to create free operating systems/distributions besides IT OS on the
770/N800.

The reason for why it is helpful to have other operating system/distribution on
the N800 is simple: There are hundreds of GNU/Linux distributions out there.
Each one exists because there is a userbase that exactly likes their flavor of
GNU/Linux.

For the 770/N800 Internet Tablets there exists only one such distribution: The
Internet Tablet OS. With the sheer amount of GNU/Linux distributions for
desktops/workstations/servers/routers/PDAs on the one hand and the single OS
solution for the Internet Tablets on the other I doubt that it can handle all
the possible uses people have.

By releasing the above mentioned programs/libraries under free software
licenses people will be given the same possibilities the Maemo project had in
the first place.

Let us be free.