COMMENT ⊗   VALID 00003 PAGES
C REC  PAGE   DESCRIPTION
C00001 00001
C00002 00002	jmc
C00009 00003	a213  1102  23 Jul 90
C00016 ENDMK
C⊗;
jmc
This makes up for a lot of dubious MacArthur awards
a213  1102  23 Jul 90
AM-Happy Hacker,0668
Eccentric Computer Programmer Wins MacArthur Award
By DANA KENNEDY
Associated Press Writer
    CAMBRIDGE, Mass. (AP) - ''Genius grant'' recipient Richard Stallman
is noted as much for his eccentricities as he is for his prodigious
talent as a computer programmer.
    He can be found in his cluttered office, his hair long and matted,
his bare feet cradling an open box of crackers on the cot where he
sleeps.
    Stallman, 37, last week was among 36 recipients of MacArthur
Foundation grants.
    Stallman, who will receive $240,000 during the next five years, is
more than a gifted nerd.
    In an era when his genius could earn him millions, Stallman eschews
material possessions and leads a crusade for ''free'' computer
software.
    ''Clearly, I could have gone to some company and made a lot of
money,'' said Stallman, sitting cross-legged on a couch outside his
office.
    ''But I'm more interested in a certain quality of life. When a
program is free, a community of enthusiasts develops,'' he said.
    The term ''free software'' does not refer to cost, but to the idea
of being able to openly share information about computer techniques
and applications, in contrast to commercial software applications,
which are restricted and sometimes patented. With free software,
people can trade programs and information freely, not unlike the idea
of one person buying a cassette tape or a CD and allowing others to
copy them.
    Without free software, Stallman argues, computer enthusiasts are
unable to improve existing programs because their knowledge is
restricted. The brave new world pioneered by freewheeling computer
''hackers'' in the 1970s led to a static commercial ethic that
threatens future progress, he said.
    ''It's not in the public interest, everything has turned into a
commercial trade secret,'' he said.
    Stallman is one of the founders of the League for Programming
Freedom, which has 135 members.
    The group is planning a protest march Aug. 2 at the Cambridge
headquarters of Lotus Development Corp. A federal judge recently
sided with the company, ruling it illegal to develop a program that
uses the same commands and menus as an existing program.
    Stallman sees himself as a true hacker.
    A Harvard graduate, he began working on the computer system at the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1971. In the highly charged
atmosphere of MIT's artificial intelligence community, he was a
legendary hacker, usually at his keyboard 10 hours a day, seven days
a week for years.
    Eighteen months ago, he developed tendinitis in his hands and now
must employ a typist to carry out his commands.
    ''I'm determined not to let it stop me,'' he said in an interview.
    He earns what can be considered little more than stipend money by
working occasionally as a consultant, but only on what he considers
free software. He has no grand plans for the no-strings-attached
grant, apart from a trip to the Soviet Union, where he was invited to
meet with programmers.
    He recalls the early days in the mid-1970s as near-Utopia in the
hacker community. But around 1980, when many hackers cashed in on
their talents and went corporate, Stallman found himself a maverick.
    ''All software was originally free,'' said Stallman. ''There was a
real communal feeling. Then, in the '80s, it all changed.''
    But Stallman stuck to his ideals. He left MIT in 1983 to begin
working on the development of his own system of free software. His
products are priced far less than comparable systems, he said. He has
a staff of 15 people.
    ''What I set out to do was to make a complete free system,''
Stallman said. ''I want to use nothing but free software.''
    In the rare hours when he leaves the computer pulsing in his tiny
cubicle, Stallman socializes with other hackers. He has had a
girlfriend for the past year, unusual for him, he said.
    His farewell is always the same: ''Happy hacking!''
    
 
AP-NY-07-23-90 1349EDT
***************

a213  1102  23 Jul 90
AM-Happy Hacker,0668
Eccentric Computer Programmer Wins MacArthur Award
By DANA KENNEDY
Associated Press Writer
    CAMBRIDGE, Mass. (AP) - ''Genius grant'' recipient Richard Stallman
is noted as much for his eccentricities as he is for his prodigious
talent as a computer programmer.
    He can be found in his cluttered office, his hair long and matted,
his bare feet cradling an open box of crackers on the cot where he
sleeps.
    Stallman, 37, last week was among 36 recipients of MacArthur
Foundation grants.
    Stallman, who will receive $240,000 during the next five years, is
more than a gifted nerd.
    In an era when his genius could earn him millions, Stallman eschews
material possessions and leads a crusade for ''free'' computer
software.
    ''Clearly, I could have gone to some company and made a lot of
money,'' said Stallman, sitting cross-legged on a couch outside his
office.
    ''But I'm more interested in a certain quality of life. When a
program is free, a community of enthusiasts develops,'' he said.
    The term ''free software'' does not refer to cost, but to the idea
of being able to openly share information about computer techniques
and applications, in contrast to commercial software applications,
which are restricted and sometimes patented. With free software,
people can trade programs and information freely, not unlike the idea
of one person buying a cassette tape or a CD and allowing others to
copy them.
    Without free software, Stallman argues, computer enthusiasts are
unable to improve existing programs because their knowledge is
restricted. The brave new world pioneered by freewheeling computer
''hackers'' in the 1970s led to a static commercial ethic that
threatens future progress, he said.
    ''It's not in the public interest, everything has turned into a
commercial trade secret,'' he said.
    Stallman is one of the founders of the League for Programming
Freedom, which has 135 members.
    The group is planning a protest march Aug. 2 at the Cambridge
headquarters of Lotus Development Corp. A federal judge recently
sided with the company, ruling it illegal to develop a program that
uses the same commands and menus as an existing program.
    Stallman sees himself as a true hacker.
    A Harvard graduate, he began working on the computer system at the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1971. In the highly charged
atmosphere of MIT's artificial intelligence community, he was a
legendary hacker, usually at his keyboard 10 hours a day, seven days
a week for years.
    Eighteen months ago, he developed tendinitis in his hands and now
must employ a typist to carry out his commands.
    ''I'm determined not to let it stop me,'' he said in an interview.
    He earns what can be considered little more than stipend money by
working occasionally as a consultant, but only on what he considers
free software. He has no grand plans for the no-strings-attached
grant, apart from a trip to the Soviet Union, where he was invited to
meet with programmers.
    He recalls the early days in the mid-1970s as near-Utopia in the
hacker community. But around 1980, when many hackers cashed in on
their talents and went corporate, Stallman found himself a maverick.
    ''All software was originally free,'' said Stallman. ''There was a
real communal feeling. Then, in the '80s, it all changed.''
    But Stallman stuck to his ideals. He left MIT in 1983 to begin
working on the development of his own system of free software. His
products are priced far less than comparable systems, he said. He has
a staff of 15 people.
    ''What I set out to do was to make a complete free system,''
Stallman said. ''I want to use nothing but free software.''
    In the rare hours when he leaves the computer pulsing in his tiny
cubicle, Stallman socializes with other hackers. He has had a
girlfriend for the past year, unusual for him, he said.
    His farewell is always the same: ''Happy hacking!''
    
 
AP-NY-07-23-90 1349EDT
***************