First of all, I just stumbled on this project, and I think that what you've done is great.  It's been too long for something like this to happen.

I also noticed that even though you put a lot of work into this project, you still don't recommend using Ventrilo (and for good reason, I have to agree).  You recommend Mumble as an alternate product, but I think that you can do even better.

VoiceChatter (http://voicechatter.net) is another great alternative.  It's also completely open source and free to use, but is also simpler and easier to use and set up than Mumble, without sacrificing core functionality.  For example, user management is done using users/groups instead of cumbersome ACLs.  Users inherit all privileges granted to all groups that the user is in.  So instead of having to set every privilege for every new user, you can simply add your new user to a (or a few) predefined group(s) – job done.

I hope that you'll give VoiceChatter a try and perhaps recommend it instead of or in addition to Mumble.

Full disclosure: I am the VoiceChatter project founder/developer, but I truly believe that VoiceChatter is the superior application.  If you disagree or have anything to say, please post on the VoiceChatter forums.

Then why not spread the love then?

I don't want to sound high and mighty or pushy, but I'm genuinely curious.  Do you genuinely like Mumble more or is it simply the first thing you came across?

Why not?  In essence, for anyone that isn't a hosting company making a profit off of my work, it's GPL.  So, only bosses of hosting companies would ever be effected, and even then it's actually much less restrictive/expensive than the TS/Vent licenses.  What's not to like?

(Again, I'm genuinely curious, and there's nothing that you can say that can hurt my pride, so let loose)

You're actually the first person that's ever said anything along those lines, and I never really thought about it that way.  That said, you have a point.  I can't deny that.

However, I'd like to point out that it's not *me* that is charging money – it's *my company*.  The difference being that contributors can potentially be hired or compensated by the company for the work that they do, and I have every intention to do just that.  Perhaps I could do a better job of making that clear.  Though I still can't deny that I (or rather my company) am not obligated to compensate contributors.

In other words, you definitely won't be compensated for contributions to Mumble, but you *may* be compensated for contributions to VoiceChatter.  Either way, you're still contributing to a free, open source project.

Do you take any issue with that?

Eh, if you stick strictly and entirely with the ideals of free software, then I suppose you're right.

However, that *only* applies to the server.  The client is GPL no matter what, and the server is only NOT GPL for hosting companies (other commercial uses are still GPL).  Event then, the hosting companies are free to modify the software.  In fact, your project is very similar – your client is a free and open source project, as is my client (granted, you actually recommend not using your project in lieu of an alternative application).

Also, the VoiceChatter server does not contain any phone home "features" or any of the evils that TS/Vent have – even if it did, it's open source, so you could just disable them.

I guess what it comes down to is this:  Creating software takes time and resources.  How you obtain your resources varies from project to project – donations (from yourself or others), ads, or sales.  Donations are not reliable, don't happen enough without enough exposure/market share, and are taxed a fair bit.  Ads are…well…everyone hates ads.

I chose a very specific type of sales for a very specific and tiny market (in terms of number of people compared to total users).  Other than that, it *IS* free as in beer and speech.  In case you're thinking "but you're still inherently the one in control", well no – the company is.  I can always relinquish that, or more people can always be brought in.  I don't think that aspect is any different than any other open source project except the organization is a bit more official in the eyes of the government.

Additionally, this means that there is a monetary incentive to keep working on the project and implementing things suggested by the community.  A project that is supported only by its members has no such incentive.

I guess that we simply disagree on which evils are lesser.  I think that calling VoiceChatter non-free is more of a technicality – it might be true, but only just.

That's fine.  I just wanted to know your reasoning for including one application to the exclusion of the other, when both are valid choices.  I didn't mean to turn this into advertising, but I wanted to make sure you were not making any invalid assumptions that might influence your view.

Good luck with your project, and thanks for taking the time to share your thoughts.