Re: a list of software compiled by completely free toolchain

[Alan Mackenzie]

'Evening, Gabriel!

Gabriel Striewe <linux@gabriel-striewe.de> wrote:
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> Hello all,

> Python (if I am not right, I am sure there exist other examples of this
> case) as of now seems to still depend on Visual C being compiled on
> Windows and still causing problems being compiled with MinGW.

Is that really true?  Aren't there any free C compilers native to
Windows?  Hasn't GCC been targeted at Windows native?

> Now, assuming that providing open source software on Windows doesn't
> give Windows an unfair advantage having all this good software
> available on it, but rather to the contrary, makes it easier?for
> Windows users making the transition to Linux, ....

Which I believe would actually be the case.  As well as making it easier
for free software programmers to hack Windows, thus making it more of a
free-for-all.

> ...., since all the software they started using on Windows (open source
> software, of course) is available on Linux, too, doesn't this mean
> Python is not as free as it could be?

Perhaps, in theory.  If this particular lack of freedom were ever to bite
some day, I suspect it would be fixed in days rather than weeks.

> What if one day Visual C in its license forbids using it to compile
> open source software? Is that completely impossible?

I suspect it wouldn't happen in practice, even if it's possible in
theory.  It would signify Microsoft waving the white flag of surrender.
Also, who'd buy a compiling system for several hundred euros, were it to
restrict the licensing of their own programs?

> On the Gnu website there is a list of completely free linux
> distributions. Would this website be also a place for a list of
> software which

> a) exists on Linux as well as Windows, making the transition to a good
> operating system possible

That'd be a delicate suggestion, since it would, to some extent, be
advocating the use of proprietary software, or at least look a bit like
it.

> b) can (on Windows) be compiled using a completely free toolchain (that
> is, MinGW)

Can't all free software written in C be built with MinGW?

> Any hints whether such a site / interest group already exists are
> greatly appreciated.

I don't know of any.

> Thanks

> Gabriel Striewe

-- 
Alan Mackenzie (Nuremberg, Germany).