Dr. Richard. M. Stallman, founder of the Free Software Foundation, addressed a mammoth gathering at IIT-Madras on Monday, February 6, 2012. Speaking on the topic 'Free Software, Freedom and Education' in front of an audience of at least 3,000 students, teachers and activists, Dr. Stallman elaborated on a variety of topics including the history of the free software movement, the difference between free software and open source software and the dangers of proprietary software. Dr. Stallman was also very firm on the negative impact of social networking and the retrogressive role of mega corporations in stalling open access to knowledge. The previous night, during an interaction with FSFTN volunteers, he was very critical of the Tamil Nadu government 's scheme to distribute Windows Starter Edition to college students, an issue on which FSFTN has conducted a campaign with students and teachers. Students from nearly 25 colleges attended the function, in many cases coming from considerable distances in buses. About 30 students from different colleges formed part of the volunteer committee that worked closely to facilitate the smooth arrival and departure of the participants. There was also a considerable interest from participants in Community Computing Centre project.
