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Leaving the Cage Behind
One of the most common objections raised when considering a move to free software goes something like "I can't switch, because my favorite program isn't available on GNU/Linux." They perceive the inability to run a specific piece of proprietary software as a technical deficiency of the free system. They see it as a bug. This reaction misunderstands the point of the transition: They're judging the free world by its ability to replicate the prison walls they just left.
The goal of switching to free software is to gain full control over your computing, not to remain under the control of a proprietary software developer. The aim is to break free from that restrictive relationship entirely. When viewed this way, the fact that proprietary software doesn't follow you isn't a failure - it's evidence that the transition to freedom is happening.
To understand why this reaction is a fallacy, we must examine how they handle migration between different proprietary systems. When we examine these scenarios, it becomes immediately clear that the free software is being held to a uniquely impossible standard - a double standard that users would never apply to Apple, Microsoft, or Nintendo.