I am dead serious when I say this: for ethical reasons, I avoid pretty much anything that's licensed under the GPL.
Ask HN: Are there any tools you don't use/support for ethical reasons?
11–16 of 16 posts
Re: Ask HN: Are there any tools you don't use/support for ethical reasons?
#12The opposite question would be as, if not more, interesting: are there tools that you use or support out of a sense of moral obligation?
Yes:
iojs
llvm
clang
ghc
v8
react
meteor
Mac OS X
Re: Ask HN: Are there any tools you don't use/support for ethical reasons?
#13The opposite question would be as, if not more, interesting: are there tools that you use or support out of a sense of moral obligation?
Yes: iojs llvm clang ghc v8 react meteor Mac OS X
I am curious why you feel morally obligated to use OS X, React and Meteor. Your other comment mentions avoiding the GPL but I am unaware of GPL-licensed competitors to React or Meteor, so I assume it's a different reason than with Clang vs GCC.
Re: Ask HN: Are there any tools you don't use/support for ethical reasons?
#14Earlier quoted context omitted.
Yes: iojs llvm clang ghc v8 react meteor Mac OS X
I am curious why you feel morally obligated to use OS X, React and Meteor. Your other comment mentions avoiding the GPL but I am unaware of GPL-licensed competitors to React or Meteor, so I assume it's a different reason than with Clang vs GCC.
My reason is that I want to use the best available tool I can get my hands on, so that I can do right by the people that use my software (provide them with the new features and support they want, as quickly and cost-effectively as is possible).
GPL advocates say that doing right by my users amounts to providing them with 100% of the source code of the applications that I and any collaborators write.
Most of my users are not technical, and could not care less about the source code behind the apps they use. They just want something that's easy to use and reliable.
Some people see this very differently than I do, but my take is that being moral means doing right by and for yourself first, where "yourself" includes concern for the specific people and things that are important in your life. For people you don't know personally, the right attitude is benevolence (unless and until a particular person gives you a good reason to avoid them.)
Maybe some people say that I could live by that standard with the GPL, but my own judgement is that I (as well as the people and things that I care about) am far better off without being encumbered by it in the slightest.
Re: Ask HN: Are there any tools you don't use/support for ethical reasons?
#15Anything from Walmart Labs. I just can't bring myself to use any of their open-source projects. I know it is a separate entity, but it just makes the code.. smell bad.
I won't even set foot in a walmart store anymore, not since it won the gender-discrimination lawsuit that was pressed by its female employees.
slow clap
Re: Ask HN: Are there any tools you don't use/support for ethical reasons?
#16Google updated its algorithm, but still s*cks. I'm also using https://swisscows.com. It provides great results, it's more secure, doesn’t store tracking cookies or user queries.