A classic example of an oxymoron

OK, so a Linux Nerd on Twitter has just posted me a page explaining what the “free” in Linux means. The fact that you need a long screed of text to explain that “free” does not mean “as in beer” but some lofty ideal about the freedom of information to spread unhindered by restrictions tells me that the Linux brigade needs to find a better word.

"Free as in speech/beer" has been floating round the Linuxsphere for yonks, it's an easy way to distinguish between what kind of "free" the software you're using is.

Is it. What does the phrase “free software” bring to mind? I bet if I asked my neighbours, or people in the street generally, they would suggest not paying for it. In a commercial environment - and we all live in one (seeing as though Communism has not taken a foothold here), primarily the word “free” means “no cost”. It means that in adverts, it means that when we “buy one, get one free”. As one pays for OS upgrades - Windows, Mac OSX, RISC OS (yes, that’s still going), you would expect to pay for Linux (an OS is a commercial product after all). But you don’t - so it’s free. Hence the need for an essay to explain the difference.

I still assert that there needs to be abetter word to encapsulate the semantics behind the “as in speech” to avoid further confusion.

There already is one - "Libre".

Gratis versus Libre