It seems we mostly hear the term "Open Source" bandied about in the press. Save for the occasional references to the Free Software Foundation and FSF Europe, one might get the impression that the Free Software movement is floundering along, all but forgotten in the annals of history. In reality, though, the Free Software movement is very much alive and kicking.

Occasionally, people in various forums make comments to the effect that the Free Software viewpoint is advocated mostly by the vocal few. These people further suggest that this vocal few are attempting to force their viewpoint on the silent majority, even lamenting the fact that the latter fail to speak up. I think people need to wake up and smell the coffee. The Free Software movement is not necessarily a small but vocal minority. I think it is much bigger than people realize.

Did you know that there are at least 32 organizations in 3 continents and 10 countries? Did you know there are a number of GNU/Linux User Groups - as opposed to Linux User Groups? Whether it is hardware, GIS or music, there are a variety of organizations closely aligned with the Free Software Foundation/GNU Project in purpose and spirit. I did not compare this to the number of organizations that might fall into the "Open Source" camp, since my purpose here is mainly to show that the Free Software movement is healthier than some seem to give it credit for.

Various branches of the GNU Project and the FSF exist in several countries and at the continental level. Aside from these, there are a number of groups involved in various arenas, such as education, science, music, and even free protocols. Brazil and Venezuela have fairly well-known Free Software initiatives sponsored or at least encouraged by the Government. FSF Europe's President, Georg C. F. Greve, is frequently cited in various news media on issues related to Free Software or patents in Europe.

And whoever said there are no Free Software businesses? The GNU Project lists 7 businesses (and you have to count Blue GNU) that deal exclusively with Free Software. Then there is the Free Software Business mailing list archives. You can subscribe right from the archives page. When I previously did some research on FOSS businesses, I ran across a few small businesses focused exclusively on Free Software.

None of this accounts for more general projects such as Software Freedom International (the organization behind Software Freedom Day), Digital Freedom and other groups. The fact is, the Free Software movement is much bigger than one might realize. You can check out the GNU Project's list of related sites to see for yourself just how widespread the Free Software movement really is, But beware, these are only the organizations we know about - there may be others that have not been listed.