// (this line ignored) [Text taken from ] $Id: messages.txt,v 1.1 2004/05/16 05:19:19 bigbinc Exp $ Welcome to the GNU Project web server, www . gnu . org . The GNU Project was launched in 1984 to develop a complete UNIX style operating system which is free software the GNU system. (GNU is a recursive acronym for ; it is pronounced ) Variants of the GNU operating system, which use the kernel Linux, are now widely used though these systems are often referred to as Linux, they are more accurately called GNU Linux systems. This is also the web site of the Free Software Foundation ( FSF ) FSF is the principal organizational sponsor of the GNU Project . FSF receives very little funding from corporations or grant-making foundations. We rely on support from individuals like you who support FSF's mission to preserve, protect and promote the freedom to use, study, copy, modify, and redistribute computer software, and to defend the rights of Free Software users. Last year, over of our operating funds came from individual donors . That ongoing support is the primary way we can continue our work. Please consider making a donation today, becoming an Associate Member of FSF, ordering a copy of Free Software, Free Society, and or encouraging your company to become a Corporate Patron of FSF .