hydrarchist writes
"Let's think about something else just for a little and not war, the propaganda, the pulverization of ethics, the despair..... Think of the new, the hopeful.... think about Free and Open Source Software and whether washing machines can be produced on a similar model, and whether it even matters."
The Two Economies
Graham Seaman
Or: Why the washing machine question is the wrong question
Introduction
Within capitalism, material goods are typically made:
o by people working for a wage
o for others who own the means of production
o in order to create profit
o by selling the product
The co-ordination between producers is indirect, through the market,
using money as a signalling mechanism.
Production of free software and other free goods can be contrasted
point by point with this list; non-material goods can be produced by
people:
o working because they chose to
o using their own means of production
o in order to create something useful or pleasurable
o which anyone can use
The co-ordination between producers is direct, mediated only by
technology.