Re: [Arm-netbook] getting allwinner SoC support upstream (was Re:Uploading linux (3.9.4-1))

[luke.leighton]

ok, so the deadline's almost up but the discussions of the past two or
so days have basically i think everything that needs to be said, and
i'm extremely grateful to everyone who's contributed, privately and
publicly, especially on such short notice.  i've passed it over to my
associates who will turn it into executive-level-speak: they
understand that the situation is sensitive and have far more sense
than i, which is good.

i'm not sure if i should admit this, but there's some irony here that
needs to be shared.  i passed the collation of input from people -
most of it verbatim - over to my associate who is used to dealing with
executive-level people, and he said it couldn't possibly go as-is to
them, not even to their assistant.  when i asked why he said it was
because it sounded too much like ordering them what decisions to make.
 if you've been following the shit-storm criticism that's been
directed at me, and you've also noticed the bit about "most of it
being verbatim" you have to appreciate the irony, really.

so *sigh* we have to trust my associates and their experience in
dealing with executives to work out a way to get the message across: i
understand the things about public communication on-list(s) being
important and so on and will fight to make sure those are got across
in some clear form.  the good news is that they *have* asked for
advice and for a report, so there *is* an opening, it's not an
unwelcome cold-call that we're engaging in, here.

the last thing i'd like to say is this: free (libre) software
developers and advocates are in an extremely... odd position of not
really being fully or adequately monetarily compensated for the true
level of service that they truly provide.  i mention "service" because
regardless of whether it's business or whether it's spare-time work
just for the heck of it, we *are* acting as servants to a great many
people, and in many cases those people who directly receive the
benefit of our work - millions if not hundreds of people now that the
linux kernel has made its way into android - have absolutely no way of
being able to identify us and pay us for that service.

i've never thought about giving up, but i *have* been thinking "what
the hell am i doing wrong i.e. why have i only received direct
donations of about $300 in *total* for all work done for the free
software community since 1995 including samba and exchange 5.5
reverse-engineering and much more", up until recently when i learned
some new insights that i thought it important to share, here.

the insight is this: that there is a separate tally which is inviolate
that keeps a *true* account of the level of service that we *truly*
provide to others, of which monetary compensation is only a partial
reflection [subtracted from that inviolate account, in some cases
resulting in a DEBT in the inviolate and true account - which will
need to be repaid - if the monetary compensation was too high or the
service provided too poor].

so, for anyone reading this who has seen the shit-storm of the past
few days and felt either embarrassed, or for any other reason has felt
that they should quit working with free software, please don't:
remember that the work itself is not necessarily the reward (although
that's important too), nor that you're providing service to others and
that that itself should be the reward, but that you *will* or *are*
receiving true and accurate compensation: believe it, because it's
true.

this is all a rather round-about way to say that for those people who
heard and are thinking of heeding russell's call to "be silent and to
ignore me", to do so would be a significant dis-service both to
yourself and to the hundreds of millions of end-users whom you are
serving, if the long-term and immediate-term projects that i have
embarked on are the success that i envision them to be.  even with
that having been said, it is, indeed, entirely your choice, that
nobody but you should make.

l.
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