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Free software is software that is distributed in a manner that allows its users to run the software for any purpose, to redistribute copies of, and to examine, study, and modify, the source code. The term was coined in 1983, with 'free' denoting the broad freedom given to users, rather than software that is free of charge (which is freeware). Alternative terms for free software include 'software libre' and 'free and open source software' (or 'FOSS'). open source is not always free, though. The free software movement was launched in 1983 with the primary goal of developing free software replacements for the proprietary software that was at that point heavily relied upon. Projects born from the movement include GNU, the Linux kernel, Mozilla Firefox, LibreOffice, FreeBSD, and, on network servers, Samba, and the Apache web server.
LATEX, written as LaTeX in plain text, is a document preparation system for the TeX typesetting program.
It offers programmable desktop publishing features and extensive facilities for automating most aspects of typesetting and desktop publishing, including numbering and cross-referencing, tables and figures, page layout, bibliographies, and much more. LaTeX was originally written in 1984 by Leslie Lamport and has become the dominant method for using TeX—few people write in plain TeX anymore. The current version is LaTeX2ε. Both LaTeX and TeX are free software.
LaTeX is based on the idea that authors should be able to concentrate on writing within the logical structure of their document, rather than spending their time on the details of formatting. It encourages the separation of layout from content, whilst still allowing manual typesetting adjustments where needed. Because the author specifies the logical structure of the document, and lets the LaTeX system worry about the presentation, it is often regarded as superior to word processors and most other desktop publishing systems, which allow trivially easy visual layout changes but tend to intertwine content and form so tightly that consistency and automation are often difficult. LaTeX also provides great flexibility in formatting while maintaining the identity of structure, which purely structural systems like SGML and XML do not directly address.
LaTeX can be arbitrarily extended by using the underlying macro language for developing custom formats. For example, there are numerous commercial implementations of the whole TeX system (which includes LaTeX), and vendors may offer extra features like phone support and additional typefaces.
LaTeX is distributed under a free software licence, the LaTeX Project Public License (LPPL). The LPPL is not compatible with the GNU General Public License, as it requires that modified files indicate that they have been modified in some way; this was done to ensure that files that depend on other files will produce the expected behavior and avoids problems similar to DLL hell. The LPPL is DFSG compliant since its version 1.3.
Featured and good articles
A number of articles on Free Software topics have been designated featured or good articles:
Please consider improving other Free Software articles; with your attention, they could be added to this list!
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 CNET Insider Secrets - Open Source Free Software This video explains how there are open source free software alternatives to some of the most popular commercial software. OpenOffice, Firefox, Audacity, GIMP... |  The Luminosity of Free Software E2 Mapping coolness with Marble * Fork-a-rific: the trend of big Free software projects forking * Vivaldi hardware: the path to making our own device (wha-a-a... |  Stephen Fry - Free Software Stephen Fry on the birthday of GNU/Linux and Free (as in speech) software. |  How and Where to Find Free Software Also SIGN UP on http://vid.io/xdP for my daily tech bargains! http://live.pirillo.com - Software can be expensive these days. Thankfully, most types of softw... |  Free Software You MUST Download - Tom's Top 5 Free is great but amazingly useful software that works great and is also free, is the best. They say information wants to be free. We could debate that all n... |  Why Free Software ? Jeremy Allison explains why Free Software is important. |  Richard Stallman, Free Software Lecture, Australian National University, 2004 Richard Stallman lecture on the Free Software Movement, GNU, GNU/Linux and what it means to be a free softare developer. Australian National University, 2004... |  Top 10 Graphic Design Programs (Free / Open Source) You can find download links at http://tjfree.com/software/ Here are 10 useful graphic design programs that are free to use. To download them, just go to Goog... |  Comparing Free Virtual Machine Software Checking out an alternative to Virtual Box called VM Ware Player. |  Stallman interview on free software A short interview with RMS on patents and Copyright. |
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PC Magazine
Tue, 21 May 2013 21:18:16 -0700
Whether you like installed software or prefer accessing tools via the Web, this list of task list programs—the first collection in our new monthly series of Best Free Software—is going to keep you working on schedule. (Note this is not about project ...
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ZDNet
Wed, 15 May 2013 03:48:35 -0700
The French free software advocacy group April says it's against the lack of scrutiny over the matter of DRM, and the study is "far from acknowledging the failure of DRM regulation by authorities like Hadopi". Those who make cultural works don't appear ...
|  Free Software Magazine |
Free Software Magazine
Mon, 20 May 2013 00:48:16 -0700
I don't think many people have realised that we are on the verge of a technological revolution. The computing world is changing, and this is the first time GNU/Linux is catching the revolution as it begins. Computers are getting smaller and smaller ...
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Patch.com
Mon, 20 May 2013 17:35:31 -0700
free software to jailbreak and unlock iphone 5 6.1.4. Posted by Zara, May 20, 2013 at 08:34 pm. Comment Recommend. Flag as Inappropriate. GORGEOUS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! iOS 6.1.4/6.1.3 Jailbreak iPhone 4S and iPhone 5!!!!! iOS 6.1.4/6.1.3 Jailbreak iPhone 4S ...
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Tom's Hardware Guide
Wed, 15 May 2013 16:27:23 -0700
Though we're more than happy to pay good money for quality software, we can't deny the joy that comes with a sale, special offer, or giveaway. The Tom's Guide team has put together a list of some of our favorite paid applications that have either gone ...
|  ABC News |
InformationWeek
Tue, 14 May 2013 06:11:52 -0700
Windows 8's gloomy narrative could be rewritten when Windows Blue arrives later this year. The first step is to give it away for free. 12 Comments. Tweet; Mail Mail; Print Print · Michael Endler | May 14, 2013 09:06 AM. On May 10, Microsoft VP of ...
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The H
Wed, 01 May 2013 04:44:18 -0700
This flows from the origins of free software, which was written entirely by people who were not paid to do so. That meant the motivations were different: for some it was an ethical issue, for others a question of fun. But for all, a key kind of payment ...
|  Boing Boing |
CNET (blog)
Thu, 25 Apr 2013 10:35:17 -0700
The Free Software Foundation, never a friend to digital rights management, has taken issue with its arrival in the Web standards world. In a letter from the FSF, Electronic Frontier Foundation, Creative Commons, and other allied groups yesterday, the ...
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