Why should they have to switch in the first place? All Gnutella clients, regardless of which company developed it, needs to have complete and total access. I didn't want to bring up the KaZaA/Morpheus dispute, but there are certain similarities with these two debates.
You think it's bad to do what to users; serve them advertising or block their clients?
Oh, now this is interesting. Please don't tell me that the existence of the OpenSource p2p Net is the direct result of politics at play. Because Gnutella and politics should not mix. It's neither any of my business or interest to know what political agenda you subscribe to, but I don't think that it needs to play a role in the future of Gnutella. Gnutella is above all that; Gnutella is a statement of freedom. Let's keep it that way.
We need choice. Whether it be commercial or free, it's my view that the more clients we have, the better.
If more people would be using/supporting free clients, why are LimeWire and BearShare so popular? Correct me if I'm wrong, but LimeWire and BearShare, to my the best of my knowledge, have not been advertised extensively. LimeWire is a multi-platform client, which has led to it's popularity. BearShare locates more nodes faster, which has led to it's popularity. It's the program features, not just the marketing, that has led to each respective program success.
I also found it interesting that you mentioned free clients are being disadvantaged. As they are free, they are not in direct competition with anyone. They exist primarily to enrich file-sharing, and offer choice.
I disagree. The term OpenSource carries huge weight with it. It also carries responsibility.
You have termed the Network, not just the Client, as OpenSource. The Network is NOT Open. It is a private, members-only, exclusive network. Thus, this is a misuse of the term.
Yes, GPL is about the licensing of the program. But I didn't mention the term GPL. I'm talking about OpenSource. OpenSource reflects an image of freedom and equality. It's more than a license agreement, it's a manner in which we choose to conduct ourselves.
That doesn't mean you can use an OpenSource kiddy-hack script to shut down a store or businesses e-commerce server if you don't like what that business does. The argument you have just used entitles you to use your OpenSource word processor to create some Anti-Profit websites.
I don't buy it. It's called the OpenSource P2P Network. It's misleading.
Gnucleus offers a LAN edition. Check it out at http://www.gnucleus.net/general/download.html.