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73416ba
(Get the code!)
I can't even *find* the advertising in rrdtool.
rrdtool is not installed by default (in Intrepid), so I installed it. I then went through the tutorial to create a database and a few charts... nowhere do I see any ads for anything remotely resembling commercial services, nor links to anyone, unless you consider displaying the product name and it's author's name in the generated charts to be "advertising"? I did not read every page of rrdtool documentation, but if there are any ads in there, that's hardly obtrusive -- you have to actively read the documentation to discover them.
The contrast with the landscape-client /etc/motd ad is, I think, clear:
(a) Is the package installed by default? rrdtool: No; landscape-client: Yes
(b) Is the ad repeatedly presented to all system users, as opposed to only those who are actively choosing to use the package? rrdtool: No; landscape-client: Yes
Like ScottK, I think landscape-client sets a most unfortunate precedent, and that this should be reconsidered.
If even twenty packages (never mind two hundred packages) all added just one line of ad text each to /etc/motd , any real message of the day would be lost in the sea of ads. If this *is* permitted, the next level is to target desktop machines that use GUI logins, so presumably we will see graphical ads appearing because packages install their ad-display code into /etc/gdm/PostLogin/ ? I *really* do not think we want to go there. Applying the Golden Rule in this situation should therefore result in *no* packages placing ads in /etc/motd , or in any other way that displays ads to all users by default at login.
Perhaps the title of this bug report should be edited to something like "Packages should not display ads to all users by default" ?
IMO it would be perfectly fine for Kees' suggested configuration of landscape-client to be the default one. That looks to me like a good solution to this. Sysadmins who wish all their users to see the ad can then adjust their landscape-client configurations accordingly ;)