When I launched the development of the GNU system, I explicitly said the purpose of developing this system is so we can use our computers and have freedom, thus if you use some other free system instead but you have freedom, then it's a success. It's not popularity for our code but it's success for our goal.

Summary

This quote by Richard Stallman, the founder of the Free Software Movement and the GNU Project, highlights the underlying goal of the movement. Stallman emphasizes that the aim is not to achieve popularity or widespread adoption of the GNU system, but rather to ensure that computer users have the freedom to use their computers as they desire. If another free system exists that guarantees this freedom, it is considered a success for the movement's overall objective, irrespective of its popularity or usage. The essence lies in advocating user liberation rather than simply promoting specific software.

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