The Reasons I Love GNUstep -- Speaking for Free Software

Recently, I had a discussion with RMS about being a speaker for Free Software.   In the end I was told simply to record some of my talks and that I would be given some feedback, but during the discussion I explained why I think GNUstep is important to free software and I believe that this is something that I think is important for other people to understand as well:

Hey Richard,

That shouldn't be hard to do.  I get invited to speak about GNUstep a
lot.  Not just about the technical aspects, but about it's importance
to free software.

While I have your attention, I would like to tell you the following...

I tend to see GNUstep as very important to the free software movement
as it facilitates developers moving away from environments such as
Cocoa and UIKit.  Apple has always been a power for control and an
enemy of freedom which is why I am so passionate about GNUstep.  I
don't like that they have locked down users like they have.

I realize that the rest of the community may not share my view and,
honestly, I have been somewhat disheartened as of late as I have
always had trouble getting other developers to see GNUstep as I do.
They focus on GNOME and KDE and consider Objective-C ugly or not
elegant.  I think that's a shame.   Which brings me to my final point.
  
Apple has recently introduced a new language called Swift.   It has
become abundantly clear that they have no intention of releasing Swift
even as open source (which I understand is a different movement, but
it would, at least, be a step for them in something which resembles
the right direction).

I feel like speaking about free software and, specifically, speaking
about how GNUstep can play an important role in it is why I would like
to be listed on the speakers list.   It would give me more of an
opportunity to speak out about Apple's evils and generally raise
awareness.

Thanks, GC

So, if anyone would like me to come and speak about free software or about GNUstep, please let me know.  I would be grateful for the opportunity.

Recent Article About Swift Confirms Apple's Position

I really do hate being right sometimes.  I believe that's enough said on the subject, don't you?  All I know now is that action must be taken.   The era of closed source languages is over and has been for some time.

ToDo for GNUstep

My personal todo list on GNUstep at the moment in no particular order:

1. XIB v5 support, currently working on this.
2. Complete XIB/NIB creation via Gorm
3. NSMetadata classes
1. Involves looking into GWorkspace to see how metadata is extracted for files and to separate this functionality out.
4. Printing on Windows. Integration with PrintDlg and GDI Printing API on Windows.
5. Fix issues in buildtool/xcodebuild clone.
6. WebKit implementation/Browser using CEF+elements of SWK
7. Class Parser bugs fixed for ProjectCenter.

GNUstep's position on Swift

I wanted to make this post to make it clear to the community regarding GNUstep's position on the new Swift language.    If the language is released as open source then GNUstep will fully support it.  If it is, however, not released as open source then we will either take steps to create an implementation ourselves or provide any assistance needed to a group of people other than ourselves who are willing to take that on.

I believe that the language itself is a good one and that it represents an opportunity for more people to take part in the OSX, iOS and GNUstep communities if it's properly done.

My previous post was to illustrate the dangers of lock-in if that is, indeed, Apple's intention.  Those warnings should not be construed as any condemnation of the language itself.  This post is not backpedaling, only a clarification of my previous position (see the comments in the previous post).

Swift

Swift is a new programming language developed by Apple as a replacement for Objective-C.   I've had some time to review the language by reading the iBook which Apple made available on it for free.   It seems to me that the language is very javascript  like in it's design and is a clear concession to those who don't like Objective-C's syntax.   The real purpose behind this language, however, is a little darker.  I believe that it's ultimate purpose is lock-in.   The more developers start using Swift the less they are going to be able to move to other platforms (such as Android).   

Please be cautious when using it and make sure that the only platform you wish to release on is iOS because that is very likely the decision you ARE making if you choose swift.

The language itself is a very nice language, the implications of it are what concern me.  Anything which impacts user/developer freedoms makes me concerned.