In my field of work, it is common to add endnotes such as “avoid printing this mail. Save paper” or “this mail was sent at a time convenient to me. Please respond only during your work hours”.
I wanted to use this to encourage adoption of libre software. But I am not sure if this is a good way to do it.
Here are some options that I was thinking:
- Libre software is sustainable software.
- Make computing sustainable, use libre software.
- Make computing free and safer with libre software.
- The email sender pledges to use libre software where possible. Join the cause and help.
I have put the hyper-link for FSF in the first instance of Libre as an example. I am considering using GNU or other websites based on your suggestions.
What do you think?
I am the last person to have anything against libre software, but if I’d see that preachy line in a work email I’d roll my eyes and groan.
I don’t mean to be rude or shut down your idea, but I think recommendations like these need to be appropriate to the situation for them to have any effect - instead of being blasted per email at the “wrong time”.
I feel like a generic work email, especially if the topic is not even related to software, is the “wrong time”, because I’d hate spending my work attention on somebody’s oppinion (even if I agree with the opinion) and I can’t see that it is not work related until I have read it and understood the meaning. Which would be quite an anniying situation for me personally.
Cheers!
I think you’d only have to read it once, then you should be able to just filter it out next time you see it.
- Sent from my iPhone
I disagree with the other poster. Work isn’t (shouldn’t be) a place that is disjoint from the rest of our time. Making such an effort can be worth :)
My point is not about seperation, but about conscent.
If you come to me at work and ask “Can I tell you something work unrelated, that might interest you?” then I have the option to choose.
Maybe at the moment I am stressed, or doing some heavy mental lifting and don’t want any distractions - then I can decline and not be force educated on some topic.
Maybe on another day I have a free mind and not much to do - then I can accept and listen to it and potentially find it interesting and worthwhile to try out.
An email leaves no such choise and thus the message could be not only unwanted but also anniying.
I’d say in general, suggestions only work, when the other party is receptive to it and may do the opposite if they are unwillingly shoved down the recipients brain.
That’s an entirely different interaction and is extremely more likely to give you traction, for sure.
That’s asking for trouble at work in most companies. I have an upper management position in a medium sized company. They are invested to the liver in Microsoft. I have chosen to never use Windows again if I can avoid it (I run Fedora on all my computers, except my servers), even in my work computer, so I’ve had 3 years of a windows 365 cloud instance provided by the company because the in-house platform is Windows only (weird, right? 🙄).
After 12 years of bullying my boss every time something breaks by just saying “enjoy your Winblows” we’re finally migrating to web-based for the company platform, and they made the mistake of asking me to architect the damned thing. It works flawlessly on Firefox browsers, all issues are usually on chromium based browsers (which makes me pretty happy). My excuse was that manifest v3 was coming and could potentially break our platform (total BS, as I have no idea how that shit works).
However, pushing others in a work environment, collaborators or clients, makes no different, is certainly to be frowned upon. I strongly suggest you drop that idea if you want to maintain a good standing at work, specially if you’re in the US where almost everyone is so fucking hypersensitive about ridiculous shit (I’ve had my share of trips to HR for something as simple as saying “that was silly”, fuck me!).
Let me emphasize, this is a suggestion, but you’re an adult and know better what the environment and atmosphere is like where you work.
At some point libre software is simpler and bullshit free. No upselling, no spyware, no constant changing the UI 20x in a year…
I dunno what’s most appropriate for email, but I often joke:
Isn’t open source kinda like a cult?
It’s a not a cult I swear! Just switch to free software, and free yourself!
I’ve also heard my friend say something along the lines of:
Free software, free culture, free people
Or maybe it was free world or free trade? I can’t remember.
Although, for slogans like this, I might go with something that has more of an immediate effect, like shilling an adblocker.
- Install uBlock Origin. Blocking ads is one of the easiest ways to increase your security.
- Install uBlock Origin. It blocks more than just ads, but also tracker scripts that follow you around the net and collect your data.
Or the ever so simple:
- Free software means free as in freedom — not as in beer.
Anyway, I partially agree with the other poster, but I think a one sentence quip at the end of an email is unobtrusive enough that it gets a pass. Of course, it depends on your specific workplace and how strict they are, but I would assume most workplaces have a little space for humanity.
