108 lines
4.6 KiB
Markdown
108 lines
4.6 KiB
Markdown
|
### GitHubbub! GitHub Does Not Value Software Freedom.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
<div class="inline-img"></div>
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
If you hit this page expecting to have been taken to my GitHub profile, then
|
||
|
|
this is probably not what you were looking for. But let me tell you why
|
||
|
|
you're here.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Before providing a link to something hosted on a service, it is wise to
|
||
|
|
consider whether doing so is a good idea---whether the service or website
|
||
|
|
is antithetical to the message you are trying to send to your
|
||
|
|
readers/visitors, or whether it deserves clarification. There's a little
|
||
|
|
bit of both here.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
#### Non-Free JavaScript
|
||
|
|
[Free software][freesw] guarantees your freedom to study, modify, and share
|
||
|
|
the software that you use. We value these freedoms on the desktop, so why
|
||
|
|
should we compromise when websites serve proprietary JavaScript
|
||
|
|
[just because it creates the illusion of remote execution][whyfreejs]? When
|
||
|
|
you visit a website that serves JavaScript to the client, your web browser
|
||
|
|
is automatically [downloading and executing (often without your permission)
|
||
|
|
untrusted software][jstrap]. If that JavaScript is not
|
||
|
|
[freely licensed][ilibrejs], then the software running in your web browser
|
||
|
|
is proprietary.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
**When you visit `github.com`, you download over 200kB of obfuscated code,
|
||
|
|
much of which is proprietary.** This code provides many website features
|
||
|
|
that are fairly essential, and *do not work with JavaScript disabled*:
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
- Change repository names or descriptions;
|
||
|
|
- Delete repositories;
|
||
|
|
- Add an SSH key to your account;
|
||
|
|
- Fork repositories;
|
||
|
|
- Create pull requests;
|
||
|
|
- Enable and disable project features;
|
||
|
|
- Use the wiki and issue trackers;
|
||
|
|
- View graphs of statistics;
|
||
|
|
- And others.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
That is---GitHub forces you to run proprietary software in order to use much
|
||
|
|
of their website. This is unethical.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
#### Desire To Remain Non-Free
|
||
|
|
I contacted GitHub back in April 2014, pointing out these concerns and
|
||
|
|
asking if they would be able to either liberate their JavaScript, or make
|
||
|
|
GitHub's essential functionality work without JavaScript enabled. The first
|
||
|
|
response I received was from one of their "JavaScript Developers":
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
> Hi Mike,
|
||
|
|
>
|
||
|
|
> Thanks for getting in touch with us here. Some of our internal projects are
|
||
|
|
> specific to running GitHub, and as such will probably remain closed. We do
|
||
|
|
> make an effort to open source projects that we create that we think would be
|
||
|
|
> beneficial to the community, some of which is JavaScript.
|
||
|
|
>
|
||
|
|
> You can see a list of some of the open source projects that power GitHub
|
||
|
|
> here:
|
||
|
|
>
|
||
|
|
> https://github.com/showcases/projects-that-power-github
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
This response is unfortunately misguided: yes, it is good that GitHub
|
||
|
|
produces free software, but it is a false assumption that their proprietary
|
||
|
|
code would serve no benefit to the community: the very existence of
|
||
|
|
their proprietary software
|
||
|
|
[gives them unjust control over their users][unjust]. Relinquishing that
|
||
|
|
control is of benefit to the community.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
I replied to the above message, clarifying my point. After receiving no
|
||
|
|
response, I forwarded the e-mail to GitHub's original founders: [Tom
|
||
|
|
Preston-Werner][tom], [Chris Wanstrath][chris], and [PJ Hyett][pj]. The
|
||
|
|
response I received from Chris was blunt and discouraging:
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
> Hey Mike,
|
||
|
|
>
|
||
|
|
> We have no plans to release github.com's JavaScript as free software at
|
||
|
|
> this time, nor do we have plans to remove the site's dependence on
|
||
|
|
> JavaScript. Thanks for the interest.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
The original correspondence is provided here:
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
1. [Original request][gh-request] to `support@github.com`, Tom, Chris, and
|
||
|
|
PJ.
|
||
|
|
2. [Reply to my original request][gh-request-reply] from one of the developers.
|
||
|
|
3. [My reply to the developer][gh-request2] providing more information and
|
||
|
|
asking for a commitment.
|
||
|
|
4. [Forward of my reply][gh-request3] to Tom, Chris, and PJ, after having
|
||
|
|
received no response from the developer.
|
||
|
|
5. [Response from Chris Wanstrath][gh-request3-reply] stating that GitHub
|
||
|
|
has "no plans" to liberate its JavaScript or "remove the site's
|
||
|
|
dependence on JavaScript".
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
[freesw]: https://www.gnu.org/philosophy/free-sw.html
|
||
|
|
[whyfreejs]: https://www.gnu.org/software/easejs/whyfreejs.html
|
||
|
|
[jstrap]: https://www.gnu.org/philosophy/javascript-trap.html
|
||
|
|
[librejs]: https://www.gnu.org/software/librejs/free-your-javascript.html
|
||
|
|
[unjust]: https://www.gnu.org/philosophy/free-software-even-more-important.html
|
||
|
|
[tom]: https://github.com/mojombo
|
||
|
|
[chris]: https://github.com/defunkt
|
||
|
|
[pj]: https://github.com/pjhyett
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
[gh-request]: /docs/gh/email-request
|
||
|
|
[gh-request-reply]: /docs/gh/email-request-reply
|
||
|
|
[gh-request2]: /docs/gh/email-request2
|
||
|
|
[gh-request3]: /docs/gh/email-request3
|
||
|
|
[gh-request3-reply]: /docs/gh/email-request3-reply
|