The Unix market that had
seemed so collegial even at the time of Stallman's
initial GNU announcement was becoming increasingly
competitive. In an attempt to tighten their hold on
customers, companies were starting to close off access
to Unix source code, a trend that only speeded the
number of inquiries into ongoing GNU software projects.
The Unix wizards who once regarded Stallman as a noisy
kook were now beginning to see him as a software Cassandra.
"A lot of people don't realize, until they've had it
happen to them, how frustrating it can be to spend a
few years working on a software program only to have it
taken away," says Chassell, summarizing the feelings
and opinions of the correspondents writing in to the
FSF during the early years. "After that happens a
couple of times, you start to say to yourself, `Hey,
wait a minute.'"
For Chassell, the decision to participate in the Free
Software Foundation came down to his own personal
feelings of loss. Prior to LMI, Chassell had been
working for hire, writing an introductory book on Unix
for Cadmus, Inc.
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