I do not know much at all about plan9 so I cannot comment on it but in regards to GNU -
GNU/Linux would never have gained mass adoption if certain compromises were not made. If proprietary code were completely outlawed in Linux and the GNU userland then we would not see it everywhere today.
Instead of looking at what one individual does, let's zoom out to the level of individuals working together. For an important idea to come to fruition, both sides of the coin we are talking about must invariably be addressed.
The interesting thing about us is that we can mesh our brains into bigger collective systems which in themselves act as brains - it's a fractal shape. Some individuals are capable of achieving zen on their own. Some individuals can serve as parts of a greater brain (a mass of individuals communicating with each other). That greater brain must address both sides of the coin if it is to yield something novel.
We need fanatics like RMS to jumpstart GNU but we also need pragmatists to make something truly useful of it. One does not work without the other, in both directions, in my opinion.
Thinking about it, GNU/Linux is a good example of this relationship. Stallman is an idealist and laid down very important groundwork with the GPL and GNU applications. Linus is a pragmatist and built something imperfect but extremely useful upon that foundation. If Linux did not exist then GNU would be useless (see: the HURD). If GNU & the GPL did not exist, Linux would have been bought up by a corporation and would have barely seen the light of day. The combination of idealism and pragmatism profoundly changed the world.
Comments
I do not know much at all about plan9 so I cannot comment on it but in regards to GNU -
GNU/Linux would never have gained mass adoption if certain compromises were not made. If proprietary code were completely outlawed in Linux and the GNU userland then we would not see it everywhere today.
Instead of looking at what one individual does, let's zoom out to the level of individuals working together. For an important idea to come to fruition, both sides of the coin we are talking about must invariably be addressed.
The interesting thing about us is that we can mesh our brains into bigger collective systems which in themselves act as brains - it's a fractal shape. Some individuals are capable of achieving zen on their own. Some individuals can serve as parts of a greater brain (a mass of individuals communicating with each other). That greater brain must address both sides of the coin if it is to yield something novel.
We need fanatics like RMS to jumpstart GNU but we also need pragmatists to make something truly useful of it. One does not work without the other, in both directions, in my opinion.
Thinking about it, GNU/Linux is a good example of this relationship. Stallman is an idealist and laid down very important groundwork with the GPL and GNU applications. Linus is a pragmatist and built something imperfect but extremely useful upon that foundation. If Linux did not exist then GNU would be useless (see: the HURD). If GNU & the GPL did not exist, Linux would have been bought up by a corporation and would have barely seen the light of day. The combination of idealism and pragmatism profoundly changed the world.