on the occasion of Trans Day of Visibility, here is an excerpt from The Joy of Linux: A Gourmet Guide to Open Source (Michael Hall & Brian Proffitt, 2001) in which a couple of cisgender authors respectfully (with the language of 2001, mind you!) give the reader a two-paragraph primer on gender transition concepts... in order to use it as a metaphor for why you might take steps to treat your OS dysphoria by installing Cygwin, Xming, GnuWin32, et al in a professional world of compulsory-Win32ness that discriminates against Linux.

Cis people: Learning about trans people's experiences (from trans people!) can often have the surprise benefit of helping you better understand yourself and how to navigate the dynamics in your life in ways you don't yet even realize or have words for.

But always remember, trans people are more than a metaphor, and more than a political wedge issue, and more than an opportunity to be charitable. Trans people have always been here. Trans people invented loads of the load-bearing parts of the computer you're using, and made tons of the video games you grew up playing, influenced so much the music you love, and are full human beings deserving of full human rights, self-determination, and recognition.

And none of us are free-as-in-software unless all of us are free-as-in-software.