10.
In writing this chapter, I’ve elected to focus more on the social significance of Emacs than the software significance. To read more about the software side, I recommend Stallman’s 1979 memo. I particularly recommend the section titled “Research Through Development of Installed Tools” (#SEC27). Not only is it accessible to the nontechnical reader, it also sheds light on how closely intertwined Stallman’s political philosophies are with his software-design philosophies. A sample excerpt follows:
EMACS could not have been reached by a process of careful design, because such processes arrive only at goals which are visible at the outset, and whose desirability is established on the bottom line at the outset. Neither I nor anyone else visualized an extensible editor until I had made one, nor appreciated its value until he had experienced it. EMACS exists because I felt free to make individually useful small improvements on a path whose end was not in sight.
Chapter 7 notes
1.
See Richard Stallman, “Initial GNU Announcement” (September 1983).
2.
See Marshall Kirk McKusick, “Twenty Years of Berkeley Unix”,
3.
See Richard Stallman (1986).
4.
Multiple sources: see Richard Stallman interview, Gerald Sussman email, and Jargon File 3.0.0.
5.
See http://www.as.cmu.edu/~geek/humor/See_Figure_1.txt
6.
See “MIT AI Lab Tourist Policy”.
7.
See H. P. Newquist,
8.
9.
10.
See Steven Levy,
11.
See Bill Gates, “An Open Letter to Hobbyists” (February 3, 1976).
To view an online copy of this letter, go to
12.
See Richard Stallman,
Stallman adds his own footnote to this statement, writing, “As an atheist, I don’t follow any religious leaders, but I sometimes find I admire something one of them has said”.
13.
See Richard Stallman, “The GNU Manifesto” (1985).
Chapter 8 notes
1.
See “Grateful Dead Time Capsule: 1985-1995 North American Tour Grosses”.
2.
