Paul Frields is heading the fight for software freedom. He'll be here Sept. 20 for Software Freedom Day.

Paul Frields stands up to Microsoft

Date published: 9/13/2008

AN ARGUMENT can be made that Fred- ericksburg is America's cradle of freedom.

After all, it's where George Washington grew up. It's where the myth of chopping down the cherry tree and standing up ramrod straight to tell his father, "I cannot tell a lie," is supposed to have happened. The story itself is a lie. But he really did become true to himself and fearless here--the man who would stand up to King George III and lead the United States to freedom.

Now it's home to a Paul Frields, a man who's a key figure in the fight for software freedom--a man who's standing up to Microsoft, and who just has to be on Bill Gates' enemies list.

And he'll be helping to host Fredericksburg's Software Freedom Day on Sept. 20 that's part of a global, grassroots effort to convince the public on the importance of software freedom and the availability of free and open source software. The Fredericksburg Linux Users Group will be celebrating Software Freedom Day on Sept. 20 at the Central Rappahannock Regional Library downtown all day, giving demonstrations and handing out free software.

The event essentially asks the question: "Isn't paying for software like throwing a silver dollar across the Rappahannock? And not in a good way?"

Frields, of Raleigh, N.C.-based Red Hat Inc., is a real player in the open source world, and he lives and works in Fredericksburg. Red Hat, founded in 1995, is a free and open source software company and a major Linux distribution vendor known for its enterprise operating system Red Hat Enterprise Linux. He's Red Hat's Fedora Project Leader. Fedora is a community-supported free and open-source Linux-based operating system.

Date published: 9/13/2008