Free software movement
Social movement / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Not to be confused with Open-source-software movement, a related movement.
For related movements beyond software, see Open-source model.
The free software movement is a social movement with the goal of obtaining and guaranteeing certain freedoms for software users, namely the freedoms to run, study, modify, and share copies of software.[1][2] Software which meets these requirements, The Four Essential Freedoms of Free Software, is termed free software.
Although drawing on traditions and philosophies among members of the 1970s hacker culture and academia, Richard Stallman formally founded the movement[3] in 1983 by launching the GNU Project.[4] Stallman later established the Free Software Foundation in 1985 to support the movement.