Software licensed to be freely used, modified and distributed
For other uses, see Free software (disambiguation).Not to be confused with Freeware.
GNU Guix. An example of a GNU FSDG complying free-software operating system running some representative applications. Shown are the GNOME desktop environment, the GNU Emacs text editor, the GIMP image editor, and the VLC media player.
Free software, libre software, or libreware[1][2] is computer software distributed under terms that allow users to run the software for any purpose as well as to study, change, and distribute it and any adapted versions.[3][4][5][6] Free software is a matter of liberty, not price; all users are legally free to do what they want with their copies of a free software (including profiting from them) regardless of how much is paid to obtain the program.[7][2] Computer programs are deemed "free" if they give end-users (not just the developer) ultimate control over the software and, subsequently, over their devices.[5][8]
The right to study and modify a computer program entails that the source code—the preferred format for making changes—be made available to users of that program. While this is often called "access to source code" or "public availability", the Free Software Foundation (FSF) recommends against thinking in those terms,[9] because it might give the impression that users have an obligation (as opposed to a right) to give non-users a copy of the program.
Although the term "free software" had already been used loosely in the past and other permissive software like the Berkeley Software Distribution released in 1978 existed,[10] Richard Stallman is credited with tying it to the sense under discussion and starting the free software movement in 1983, when he launched the GNU Project: a collaborative effort to create a freedom-respecting operating system, and to revive the spirit of cooperation once prevalent among hackers during the early days of computing.[11][12]
^GNU Project. "What is free software?". Free Software Foundation. Archived from the original on Nov 15, 2023.
^ ab"Richard Stallman". Internet Hall of Fame. Retrieved 26 March 2017.
Freesoftware, libre software, or libreware is computer software distributed under terms that allow users to run the software for any purpose as well...
The FreeSoftware Foundation (FSF) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization founded by Richard Stallman on October 4, 1985, to support the freesoftware movement...
share copies of software. Software which meets these requirements, The Four Essential Freedoms of FreeSoftware, is termed freesoftware. Although drawing...
Software is a collection of programs and data that tell a computer how to perform specific tasks. Software often includes associated software documentation...
This comparison of freesoftware for audio lists notable free and open source software for use by sound engineers, audio producers, and those involved...
their freedoms. Proprietary software is a subset of non-freesoftware, a term defined in contrast to free and open-source software; non-commercial licenses...
The FreeSoftware Definition written by Richard Stallman and published by the FreeSoftware Foundation (FSF), defines freesoftware as being software that...
publishers but prohibited by others. Unlike with free and open-source software, which are also often distributed free of charge, the source code for freeware is...
Opposition to software patents is widespread in the freesoftware community. In response, various mechanisms have been tried to defuse the perceived problem...
as an overview of and topical guide to freesoftware and the freesoftware movement: Freesoftware – software which can be run, studied, examined, modified...
Alternative terms for freesoftware, such as open source, FOSS, and FLOSS, have been a controversial issue among free and open-source software users from the...
FreeSoftware Magazine (also known as FSM and originally titled The Open Voice) is a Web site that produces a (generally bi-monthly) mostly free-content...
categories for software under copyright law, and therefore with licenses which grant the licensee specific rights, are proprietary software and free and open-source...
a list of free television software, and includes television-related software which is distributed as freesoftware – under a freesoftware licence, with...
Micro-cap are free proprietary softwares based on SPICE. Micro-Cap was released as freeware in July 2019, when its parent company Spectrum Software closed down...
under fair-use criteria. Free and open-source software, which is often referred to as open source software and freesoftware, is a maturing technology...
Debian FreeSoftware Guidelines (DFSG) is a set of guidelines that the Debian Project uses to determine whether a software license is a freesoftware license...
The FreeSoftware Directory (FSD) is a project of the FreeSoftware Foundation (FSF). It catalogs freesoftware that runs under free operating systems—particularly...
The FreeSoftware Foundation Europe (FSFE) is an organization that supports freesoftware and all aspects of the freesoftware movement in Europe, with...
A permissive software license, sometimes also called BSD-like or BSD-style license, is a free-software license which instead of copyleft protections,...
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