Wild Webmink

• Remember what the Fourth Amendment protects? No? Just as well.
  The chief judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit explains why you lose the right to privacy when you share data about yourself.
• Why Open StreetMap Dropped the Creative Commons License
  Interesting discussion of a controversial decision shows the open data debate has a good way to run.

Filed under: Links | Comments Off on ☞ Peril By Sharing

• The tough road to 501(c)(3) status for open-source
  I’m aware of a number of potential open source foundations in this position and it’s definitely a problem that needs dealing with generally with the IRS. One interesting question would be who has told them there is a problem about which they should be cautious.
• The decline of ‘open source’ as an identifying differentiator
  There’s more to this than meets the eye. I agree with Matthew that the industry’s pervasive embrace of open source has made the term less of a differentiator, but another factor is the realisation by some of these vendors that their product is not fundamentally about delivering software freedom.
• Google Swiffy
  Nibbling away at Adobe’s stranglehold on rich content on the web – extremely welcome.

Filed under: Links | Comments Off on ☞ Barriers

• The Failed Experiment of Software Patents
  One day one of these cases will have an outcome so outrageous that legislators will be forced to hold up a hand to the corporate hawks and ask them why they want even more regulation. It would have to be a case where a market was ruined and a major corporation bankrupted in a highly visible and global way, of course.
• I Spent A Coin (And I Liked It) — How I Bought Lunch in Manhattan with Bitcoins
  While I can’t see this becoming common using the setup tested here, it’s a proof-of-concept that puts BitCoin into perspective.
• On LulzSec, Censorship & CloudFlare
  Great attitude here. There’s no reason for them to act – in fact my take is that to do so would put them at greater risk – and anyway, the experience is simply training their software to resist exactly the sort of DDoS attacks being practised…

Filed under: Links | Comments Off on ☞ Proof Points

• JK Rowling reignites DRM debate
  Fascinating use of power here by Rowling that has the potential to really change the eBook and DRM markets if others with her power follow suit.
• Light Field camera
  If this is as good as it implies, it is a radical change for photography. Suddenly what matters is not the equipment you’re carrying but rather the power of the computing you have at your disposal. It also opens up a can of worms as the implementation space – presumably covered by a wealth of patents globally – moves from hardware to software.
• Amazon to launch tablet PCs in August-September, say Taiwan component makers
  The idea of a Linux-based tablet with access to all the content services Amazon is hosting is very exciting.
• Debian moves to LibreOffice
  A sensible move that will ensure Debian users have the most up-to-date version of the most complete office suite for Linux.

Filed under: Links | 2 Comments »

• GoogleSharing – A Special Kind Of Proxy
  This is the online equivalent of a group of people keeping a jar full of Tesco Clubcards by the door so they can get all the benefits without losing their privacy.
• Mumble and Murmur
  Interesting software for online discussions – might work well for voice conferences in communities.
• Village Telco
  Discussion venue for meshed telephony explorations.
• The Free Network Foundation
  The networking equivalent of the FSF.

Also:

• Karen Sandler Named New Executive Director of the GNOME Foundation
  Excellent choice by GNOME here – Karen is extremely capable and understands the nuances of FOSS politics acutely, which is sadly a skill that’s increasingly necessary. Having an experienced lawyer as ED will bring a new dimension to the dynamics of the project.

Filed under: Links | Comments Off on ☞ Free Communications

• Disastrous Implications of New Apple Patent for Blocking Cellphone Video
  What an amazingly dangerous world Apple are exploring here. The scope for abuse, together with the quantisation of analogue freedoms, makes this breathtakingly poor judgement.
• Closing keynote at Personal Democracy Forum
  Cory makes an excellent point in this talk about how all technical measures need to evaluated not only by their effectiveness for their stated purpose but also by their potential for abuse and unintended consequences.
• A movie lover’s plea: Let there be light
  Fascinating article that reveals how the movie industry’s control-freak paranoia that treats all third-parties as criminals has as a corollary the degradation of the movie experience for paying customers becuase projectionists turn out to be untrusted third-parties who have to be controlled with ridiculous degrees of technical measures. If it’s this hard to change lenses, imagine how hard it will be to preserve the movie in the future after the business model that’s driven the technical measures has died.
• Open Business Models
  Interesting thinking, although I’m not sure I completely agree with the diagram as open source is feasible as an ingredient at several points on the curve, and the software freedom dimension is missing.

Filed under: Links | Comments Off on ☞ Control Freaks