@c freemanuals.texi - blurb for free documentation.

@c This file is intended to be included within another document,

@c hence no sectioning command or @node.

@cindex free documentation

The biggest deficiency in the free software community today is not in

the software---it is the lack of good free documentation that we can

include with the free software.  Many of our most important

programs do not come with free reference manuals and free introductory

texts.  Documentation is an essential part of any software package;

when an important free software package does not come with a free

manual and a free tutorial, that is a major gap.  We have many such

gaps today.

Consider Perl, for instance.  The tutorial manuals that people

normally use are non-free.  How did this come about?  Because the

authors of those manuals published them with restrictive terms---no

copying, no modification, source files not available---which exclude

them from the free software world.

That wasn't the first time this sort of thing happened, and it was far

from the last.  Many times we have heard a GNU user eagerly describe a

manual that he is writing, his intended contribution to the community,

only to learn that he had ruined everything by signing a publication

contract to make it non-free.

Free documentation, like free software, is a matter of freedom, not

price.  The problem with the non-free manual is not that publishers

charge a price for printed copies---that in itself is fine.  (The Free

Software Foundation sells printed copies of manuals, too.)  The

problem is the restrictions on the use of the manual.  Free manuals

are available in source code form, and give you permission to copy and

modify.  Non-free manuals do not allow this.

The criteria of freedom for a free manual are roughly the same as for

free software.  Redistribution (including the normal kinds of

commercial redistribution) must be permitted, so that the manual can

accompany every copy of the program, both on-line and on paper.

Permission for modification of the technical content is crucial too.

When people modify the software, adding or changing features, if they

are conscientious they will change the manual too---so they can

provide accurate and clear documentation for the modified program.  A

manual that leaves you no choice but to write a new manual to document

a changed version of the program is not really available to our

community.

Some kinds of limits on the way modification is handled are

acceptable.  For example, requirements to preserve the original

author's copyright notice, the distribution terms, or the list of

authors, are ok.  It is also no problem to require modified versions

to include notice that they were modified.  Even entire sections that

may not be deleted or changed are acceptable, as long as they deal

with nontechnical topics (like this one).  These kinds of restrictions

are acceptable because they don't obstruct the community's normal use

of the manual.

However, it must be possible to modify all the @emph{technical}

content of the manual, and then distribute the result in all the usual

media, through all the usual channels.  Otherwise, the restrictions

obstruct the use of the manual, it is not free, and we need another

manual to replace it.

Please spread the word about this issue.  Our community continues to

lose manuals to proprietary publishing.  If we spread the word that

free software needs free reference manuals and free tutorials, perhaps

the next person who wants to contribute by writing documentation will

realize, before it is too late, that only free manuals contribute to

the free software community.

If you are writing documentation, please insist on publishing it under

the GNU Free Documentation License or another free documentation

license.  Remember that this decision requires your approval---you

don't have to let the publisher decide.  Some commercial publishers

will use a free license if you insist, but they will not propose the

option; it is up to you to raise the issue and say firmly that this is

what you want.  If the publisher you are dealing with refuses, please

try other publishers.  If you're not sure whether a proposed license

is free, write to @email{licensing@@gnu.org}.

You can encourage commercial publishers to sell more free, copylefted

manuals and tutorials by buying them, and particularly by buying

copies from the publishers that paid for their writing or for major

improvements.  Meanwhile, try to avoid buying non-free documentation

at all.  Check the distribution terms of a manual before you buy it,

and insist that whoever seeks your business must respect your freedom.

Check the history of the book, and try reward the publishers that have

paid or pay the authors to work on it.

The Free Software Foundation maintains a list of free documentation

published by other publishers, at

@url{http://www.fsf.org/doc/other-free-books.html}.