
The day that changed the way we see software (1983) - skbohra123
http://www.gnu.org/gnu/initial-announcement.html
======
jcnnghm
Looking back, this is probably one of the most important initiatives in the
last 30 years, though I don't usually like Stallman. I've personally found
more utility in the BSD and MIT licenses, but the GNU initiative really
spawned the free software movement as a whole. It's interesting to think where
we would be today if Linux and the GNU userland tools were never created.
Would it have been possible to build something like Google without free
software, or would it have gotten killed by licensing and vendor fees? In any
case, Stallman really did change everything.

~~~
acqq
Stallman made free Emacs, then free GCC. He hasn't managed to make the widely
usable free kernel at the time, but he prepared everything but that, which
made possible for GNU licensed Linux kernel to become the part of the whole
free system. It's an immense feat.

Some other important dates:

March 1985 -- The GNU Manifesto <http://www.gnu.org/gnu/manifesto.html>

22 Mar 87 -- first release of GCC <http://gcc.gnu.org/wiki/History>

------
jsankey
I wonder how many people who read this at the time wrote it off as
unrealistic. Although there are several stated goals that have still not been
reached, the difference between the goals and reality are small in the scheme
of things. (Much like the difference between any original plan and the outcome
-- just usually plans are not of this scale!)

You have to hand it to the few that believed, and put in the work to reach
critical mass...

------
Tichy
"After this we will add [...] an Empire game"

Interesting - any idea how popular that game still is? Most popular version
seems to be from <http://www.wolfpackempire.com/> ?

I remember finding that site years ago, but it seemed too complicated to get
into back then.

In this 15 minute guide it sounds more comprehensible:
[http://www.toger.us/modules.php?name=Content&pa=showpage...](http://www.toger.us/modules.php?name=Content&pa=showpage&pid=3)

Too bad it seems to require a lot of micromanagement, which is usually not to
my taste.

Might be fun/worthwhile to create a JavaScript client?

~~~
wtracy
It basically looks like the precursor to Civilization and friends.

------
narrator
For the two most important dates in the history of software, I nominate:

September 26th 1983 : Faulty Soviet software almost ends the world.

September 27th 1983 : Gnu Project announced.

------
Luyt
Maybe he should have announced it as 'Freedom Unix'? That way 'free' wouldn't
have been interpreted as in 'free beer' ;-)

~~~
hakl
I think unfettered Unix sounds good.

------
DougBTX
Mobile sites which _force_ horizontal scrolling annoy me. Perhaps I'll read
this later.

------
a_wanderer
He was referring to GNU/Hurd, of course..

~~~
pjscott
And then his plans switched to GNU/Linux, which had much more success. What's
the point of talking about this?

