Wild Webmink

• The Dropbox Blog – Changes to our policies (updated)
  Dropbox got lots of bad publicity when they first changed their terms of service and included a broad “all your work belongs to us” clause in it. But I’ve not seen any further coverage since they have clarified the ToS to say that they are only seeking sufficient rights to operate the service and do not seek any further rights. They actually responded rather quickly and deserve some congratulations.
• The rise, fall and reality of commercial open source
  I think I’d agree with Jay but phrase things differently. The benefits of open source are all the first derivatives of software freedom. As the market stabilises, we are seeing two effects.

  • The first is businesses valuing those first derivatives as a function of the freedoms that cause them.
  • The second is a shift in marketing to talk about those derived benefits, but usually somehow in the context of their cause.

  I believe we will actually see more, not less marketing of open source benefits; it’s just that it might not mention their origins so prominently. This, in fact, is the subject of my current conference keynote talk 🙂

Also:

• Did Colossal WWII Bombing Raids Alter Weather?
  If this is correct one might expect the weather around major hub airports to be measurably different from the weather beyond their impact radius.
• Aircraft punch holes in clouds, leave snow in their wake
  Actual snow being created seems quite surprising, although it seems more plausible in the light of the preceding article (and vice versa).

Filed under: Links | Comments Off on ☞ Terms, Use and Clouds

• Shouldn’t Free Mean The Same Thing Whether Followed By ‘Culture’ Or ‘Software’?
  An excellent point being made here; if it is morally wrong to prevent someone expressing new software based on a previous work, why is it morally OK to prevent someone expressing a new song, picture, book or other creative work based on a previous work?
• Register for the LibreOffice Conference
  Registration for the LibreOffice Conference in Paris (Oct 12-15) is now open. See you there?
• How Many People Are In Space Right Now?
  Hope this site has a REST API.

Filed under: Links | Comments Off on ☞ Free vs Culture?

• USTR New Exclusive Right for Copyright Holders: Importation Provision in the Trans Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPPA)
  USTR continues its covert mission to extend copyright and its control ever wider without any reference to the protection of culture or citizens. Giving corporations more unassailable rights is so obviously a problem that it’s no wonder they want this legislative gerrymandering kept secret.
• Data Protection Commissioner investigating Eircom’s “three strikes” system
  Will someone please show this to Ed Vaisey? If he asks any competent internet technologist he’ll hear that blocking systems and three-strikes rules, while sounding reasonable, are actually the path to the exploitation of citizens and the avoidance of due process by large publishing corporations of varying kinds. And we know how ethical they are.

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• News of the World axed by News International
  Most uncharacteristic behaviour by News International signals to the rest of their brands that they have to keep their immoral and unethical behaviour legal otherwise the people hired to replace them will get sacked.
• UK looks to US on piracy blocking
  Ed Vaizey’s views are outrageously uninformed if this report is correct.

Filed under: Links | Comments Off on ☞ Corporations and Power

• “We the corporations” – Move to Amend
  A very happy 4th to all my friends in the USA! A great way to celebrate is to go consider this timely Move To Amend campaign, aimed at creating a new Amendment to the US Constitution that clarifies that corporations are not people and thus are not entitled to engage in politics nor to assume the privileges of individuals. Both are happening today essentially without the consequences of the associated responsibilities that real people face in exercising those same privileges. Go take a look now, then celebrate your independence at that BBQ later and consider the issues as you do.
• Movement to Abolish Corporate Personhood Gaining Traction
  More discussion of the Move To Amend.
• “If Microsoft ever does apps for Linux then I’ve won”
  Seems Linus Torvalds’ vision is finally coming true. Now we need Microsoft to deliver on Bill Gates’ promise to make Office and other apps available…

Filed under: Links | 2 Comments »

• Google Takeout
  Google seems committed to what I’ve long called “the freedom to leave”, and that’s giving me a lot of confidence trying out Plus.
• Community Standards: A Comparison of Facebook vs. Google+
  Interesting discussion of the differences in the approaches Facebook and Google are taking to community self-management. Personally I find the Google approach much easier to explain to others already.
• LibreOffice 3.4.1 provides stable new features for every user
  The Document Foundation keeps up the momentum with a fresh release of LibreOffice. The graphic explaining their release philosophy is especially helpful as the scheme they are using is somewhat cryptic to most people.

Filed under: Links | Comments Off on ☞ Liberty Plus

• 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 »