Altruism in the computer software industry is not only advantageous but clearly
necessary for the production of useful and bug-free software.
Altruism is the core component of the Free Software Movement. It is
based on the simple principle that software is an intellectual creation
and cannot be kept behind closed doors if it is to prosper and become
useful. Through the GNU Public License ( http://www.gnu.org) the Free
Software Foundation has been able to distribute and keep free the
flotilla of software currently in use- transparently- throughout
the world (more so than Microsoft's software.) As such, secrecy and
obscurity has no place in the software industry, and is detrimental
to the advancement of computing technology.
For years the sciences have sprung up unhindered by people just asking
questions. Maths and Philosophy, being at the root of all modern
sciences, have been able to lead the way into unexplored territory.
It is time now to return to philosophy, in order that we may be able
to resolve a new set of problems, which seem to be brewing in the face
of globalisation, revolutionised by a medium, unlike any other since
the invention of the printing press, the computer and the Internet.
