Does the FSF handle any of Gnome's finances? As a GNU package, I thought there still was a relationship between the FSF and Gnome.
I ask because as a fellow GNU-in-arms, I might be able to make a case for sending you a bit of Octave's money. We gotta look out for each other, right?
Our counsel has advised us that we will need that much to oppose the registration of the first set of 10 trademark applications.
> Is that how much the SFLC needs? I assume you're picking the SFLC to represent you, right?
We're currently working with pro-bono counsel from an independent attorney. The amount is how much we've been advised that we'll need to successfully defend the trademark.
> Does the FSF handle any of Gnome's finances?
No; the GNOME Foundation is an independent 501(c)3.
> As a GNU package, I thought there still was a relationship between the FSF and Gnome.
Not a financial relationship, but GNOME is still part of the GNU project.
> I ask because as a fellow GNU-in-arms, I might be able to make a case for sending you a bit of Octave's money. We gotta look out for each other, right?
The thought is appreciated, but if you're talking about funds donated to GNU Octave, I don't think that'd be appropriate. We're raising funds specifically for this defense campaign, rather than using general donations to GNOME; for the same reason, we shouldn't be using donations people offered to Octave for Octave development. But thanks for your consideration.
One thing you could do: we'd appreciate it if you promoted the campaign further across other projects, such as via the news feeds and social media accounts of those projects.
The funds were donated to the FSF for Octave. However, many of us in Octave use Gnome, so I could see a point in saying that we in Octave need to ensure that Gnome works well for us. Also, we collect the funds in a rather ambiguous language, without any promise of how they will be spent, within the boundaries of the FSF's 503(c).
> One thing you could do: we'd appreciate it if you promoted the campaign further across other projects, such as via the news feeds and social media accounts of those projects.
We don't have much of a web presence, but I'll promote the Gnome problem in whatever scanty resources we have. Of course, the FSF is also doing this for you, right?
I know your intent is good, but reading things like this make me less likely to donate to free software projects without strong management. You should take the intent of the donor into more consideration than what you think is fair use, even if your language is somewhat ambiguous.
So far all we've done with them is fund developer conferences (travel expenses and the like).
> we nevertheless got in touch with them and asked them to pick another name. Not only did Groupon refuse, but it has now filed even more trademark applications
I can't say anything about specific plans for legal actions, sorry.
> It was almost inconceivable to us that Groupon, with over $2.5 billion in annual revenue, a full legal team and a huge engineering staff would not have heard of the GNOME project, found our trademark registration using a casual search, or even found our website, but we nevertheless got in touch with them and asked them to pick another name. Not only did Groupon refuse, but it has now filed even more trademark applications
"We love open source at Groupon. We have open sourced a number of projects on github. Our relationship with the open source community is more important to us than a product name. We’ve been communicating with the Gnome Foundation for months to try to come to a mutually satisfactory resolution, including alternative branding options, and we’re happy to continue those conversations. And if we can’t come up with a resolution, we’ll be glad to look for another name."