不让用户配置的软件都不是自由软件

An unconfigurable software is not a free software

The NetworkManager in Ubuntu makes me annoyed. I guess here is right place to complain this issue.

It took me a whole evening to seek the configuration file for NetworkManager's dnsmasq (actually dnsmasq-base). The result was bad. Seems not a file for configuring 'dnsmasq', even though I created dnsmasq.conf in /etc .

The dnsmasq is not complete, being only dnsmas-base. What's worse is NetworkManager doesn't allow fully installed dnsmasq. See Ubuntu 's page:

https://help.ubuntu.com/community/Dnsmasq

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Note that the package "dnsmasq" interferes with Network Manager which can use "dnsmasq-base" to provide DHCP services when sharing an internet connection. Therefore, if you use network manager (fine in simple set-ups only), then install dnsmasq-base, but not dnsmasq. If you have a more complicated set-up, uninstall network manager, use dnsmasq, or similar software (bind9, dhcpd, etc), and configure things by hand.
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Are they conflicted? And why?

Thus I was looking for solution in NetworkManager. However there are very few places to configure NetworkManager except a few lines!!

https://help.ubuntu.com/community/NetworkManager

This is what I want to argue,

An unconfigurable / unhackable software is not a free software.

It limits the use for end users. Don't tell me that I can modify the source code or something. The majority of users don't have the ability to manage the C language. Right?

I know NetworkManager is so convenient to setup wifi connection. And I know I can just change to an alternative.
But the thing is, it finally just constrained the freedom for users!!! And it just interferes too much to the availability of other softwares.

V69EX

2015-11-15 20:38:34 +08:00

我觉得一个软件最好兼容 IT 小白和有一定技能的人，对前者，展示的是一个封装好的界面，只需要简单的配置甚至不用配置即可运行，对后者，则开放各种隐藏在界面之后的配置。这才是最佳的软件。

像 iOS/Android 这类玩意，对 IT 人群来说，用起来是极不爽的，不仅不开放，还极力限制， Android 相对好一点，但绝对也属于傻瓜式系统。

ryd994

2015-11-16 05:06:04 +08:00

“ Don't tell me that I can modify the source code or something. The majority of users don't have the ability to manage the C language. Right? ”
根据信息论，你要想获得修改源码那个级别的可定制性，那配置文件最终就会成为一门（类）编程语言。到时候你是不是又要说配置太麻烦的 freeware 不是 freeware ？
如果你不想用，你可以不用，同时欢迎你提交改进代码。这不叫自由什么叫自由？你不会编程没关系，你可以雇佣专业的啊。难道写个 freeware 文档还要包含 C 语言从入门到精通么？你要 30 天版的还是 3 个月版的？

GNiux

2015-11-16 17:26:25 +08:00

@ryd994
> 根据信息论，你要想获得修改源码那个级别的可定制性，那配置文件最终就会成为一门（类）编程语言。

请问这个结论是怎么推出的？根据信息论的什么？愿闻其详。

相反，借此，正是(用户)不想获得源代码级别的可定制性，才需要 human readable 的配置文件啊。否则都直接改源码好了。

这是一个专为移动设备优化的页面（即为了让你能够在 Google 搜索结果里秒开这个页面），如果你希望参与 V2EX 社区的讨论，你可以继续到 V2EX 上打开本讨论主题的完整版本。

https://www.v2ex.com/t/236328