Discussion June 2017

discussion@lists.fsfe.org

30 participants
16 discussions

Is it acceptable to use proprietary software (platforms) to promote software freedom?
by Erik Albers 02 Oct '17

02 Oct '17

Hi all, Maybe you noted in the Newsletter May [1] a pro and contra between our Executive Director and our Fellowship representative: On the FSFE's Planet, we had an interesting dialogue popping up between our executive director Jonas Öberg who argues that sometimes you can use proprietary software to further free and open source software [2] although you should be aware about the risk of backfiring. And Daniel Pocock, our new Fellowship representative, answered with "the risk of proprietary software" [3] and that "no deal might be better than a bad deal", meaning that if you cannot achieve something with Free Software you should consider just doing without it. In our European core team we are having a lively discussion now about the pros and cons of using proprietary software platforms like Facebook, Meetup, Twitter and alike to send out our message of software freedom. You may have noticed that the FSFE for example runs a Twitter-account. We do this under some rules but in particular under the rule that these "services are an addition to the FSFE's communication channels and not a replacement. The teams have to make sure to always provide the information accessible by using Free Software without pushing people to create accounts on proprietary platform." Means that every information on a proprietary platform is only a mulitiplication of information that is given somewhere else, accessible and created with Free Software. Now I would be interested what you think? Do you think that - although the use of proprietary platforms is ethically not supportable - the chances of convincing new people to use and further Free Software are worth the punishment? Or do you think that our message should not occur on platforms like Facebook or Twitter at all, because it contradicts our efforts in getting people to use decentralized services, run with Free Software and therefore potentially harm us in the long run? Thank you for sharing your opinions on this, Erik [1] https://fsfe.org/news/nl/nl-201705 [2] http://blog.jonasoberg.net/using-proprietary-software-for-freedom/ [3] https://danielpocock.com/risks-of-using-proprietary-software -- No one shall ever be forced to use non-free software Erik Albers | Communication & Community Coordinator | FSFE OpenPGP Key-ID: 0x8639DC81 on keys.gnupg.net

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Help for requesting to liberate a software
by Kaartic Sivaraam 30 Jul '17

30 Jul '17

Hello all, I came across an offline dictionary application for Android that uses Wiktionary as it's source. The name of the application is "English Dictionary - Offline". The developer provides dictionaries in other languages too. Unfortunately it is not a free software as the source of the application is not available and it's not licensed under a free software license. I thought it would be nice to try to liberate the application as it would be easy to port it to other languages and further it would give it's users, freedom! As I'm not experienced with this, I would like to hear suggestion about how to contact the developer about liberating the application. A rough draft of the mail I could think of (with the help of template to convince your friend) for liberating the application could be found below, ====== Dear developer, The "English Dictionary - Offline" is a great application and is doing a great job in helping users to search meanings of words easily. It's good to see the application available in multiple languages. It would have been better if it were "Free software" [1]. That would help others to easily port the application to other languages and might also help in increasing your dictionary's popularity. As you may already be aware, releasing your program as Free Software doesn't mean you won't make money on it. You are free to charge whatever you want for Free Software as long as you provide users with access to the application's source code so that they may improve and share "English Dictionary - Offline" with their friends. Thank you for your time and effort. I look forward to hearing back from you :) and to see "English Dictionary - Offline" and it's counterparts in other languages in F-droid [2] soon. Links ===== [1] : https://www.fsf.org/about/what-is-free-software [2] : https://f-droid.org/ Sincerely, Kaartic Sivaraam ====== Please send in your valuable thoughts and suggestions about liberating the application. Thanks in advance. -- Regards, Kaartic

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[Until 30 June] Participate in survey to improve the ICT patent framework for responsible innovation
by Matthias Kirschner 11 Jul '17

11 Jul '17

Hello everybody, as you know the FSFE, as well as many of you, has been involved in the software patent topic for many years. Now there is another way to get active in this area. Until 30 June you can participate in a survey for "CIFRA: Challenging the ICT Patent Framework for Responsible Innovation", a project within Horizon 2020 of the European Commission. The study is performed by Knut Blind, who already previously did work on standardisation and patents in Europe. The FSFE was already involved in expert interviews for that project and because we believe it is important to provide a diverse set of rationales and arguments in this context, your participation will be highly appreciated. *Direct link* to the survey to be completed by 30 June 2017 (the results will be made available at first to the respondents of the survey, and then presented at a workshop on 30 October in Madrid): https://inno.limequery.com/228186 The outline of the project: > The importance of patents for the promotion of responsible innovation > in ICT is in general acknowledged. This survey is conducted within the > framework of CIFRA: Challenging the ICT Patent Framework for > Responsible Innovation, a project within Horizon 2020 of the European > Commission. > > We are aware of the various business models of the stakeholders > involved in the development and commercialisation of ICT-related > technologies and the different role ICT patents and other intellectual > property rights play. Consequently, there is no single first best > solution available. It is further acknowledged that the patent system > is an integral legal framework which is respectful of IPR meeting the > requirements of both 'innovative step' and 'novelty' – regardless of > the technology, industry or sector. > > The objective of this study is to review the issues and possible > improvements related to current framework for ICT patents to promote > responsible innovation. This questionnaire is based on the review of > the literature and interviews with stakeholders from various > backgrounds. It aims to collect the opinions and attitudes of > stakeholders involved in or with the ICT sector towards the current > patent regime framework relevant for responsible innovation. Your > answers to the questions of the survey, which we interpret as your > personal opinion and not necessarily your organis ation’s official > position, will be treated with absolute confidentiality. We will only > analyse data on an aggregated level and include them in the final > report of this project to be published on the project webpage > http://cifra-h2020.eu/. > > We know about your time constraints, but would deeply appreciate your > co-operation and your opinions in order to support the further > development of an innovation-friendly patent regime for ICT in the > European Union. Please fill out the survey under <https://inno.limequery.com/228186> and feel free to spread this e-mail with others interested in that topic. Best Regards, Matthias -- Matthias Kirschner - President - Free Software Foundation Europe Schönhauser Allee 6/7, 10119 Berlin, Germany | t +49-30-27595290 Registered at Amtsgericht Hamburg, VR 17030 | (fsfe.org/join) Contact (fsfe.org/about/kirschner) - Weblog (k7r.eu/blog.html)

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Fwd: [libreplanet-discuss] cataloguing free software events globally and locally
by Daniel Pocock 28 Jun '17

28 Jun '17

I recently posted this on LibrePlanet and in response people shared various resources[10] tracking events. Are there any more examples people could share? People can reply here or if you want to reply on that thread and you subscribe there this link should work: mailto:libreplanet-discuss@libreplanet.org?In-Reply-To=70dd5890-9cb3-d683-fa95-793e990b2069%40pocock.pro&Subject=%5Blibreplanet-discuss%5D%20cataloguing%20free%20software%20events%20globally%20and%20locally Regards, Daniel 10. https://lists.gnu.org/archive/html/libreplanet-discuss/2017-06/msg00051.html -------- Forwarded Message -------- Subject: [libreplanet-discuss] cataloguing free software events globally and locally Date: Tue, 27 Jun 2017 22:19:50 +0200 From: Daniel Pocock <daniel(a)pocock.pro> To: LibrePlanet Discuss <libreplanet-discuss(a)libreplanet.org> One of the biggest concerns people have about leaving platforms like Facebook and Meetup is that they fear they will miss out on events. I just put up another blog[1] about this topic in fact. What tools do we have for sharing data about events in other ways? For example, are there any free software tools that make it easy to send birthday invitations using iCalendar (.ics) email attachments and is this an option for mainstream use? For larger or more public events, what could be done to gather and distribute data effectively in iCalendar HTTP feeds, similar to the way that Planet software aggregates and distributes RSS? If we could use such techniques effectively for events in the free software world (and the IT industry in general), it would provide a useful model for other communities. I recently used search engines to try and find out about events and dragged up a bunch of sites, some local, some international: http://freie-termine.ch/ https://www.ch-open.ch/events/aktuelle-events/ http://www.ossroadmap.ch/ https://fsfe.org/events/events.en.html https://opensource.com/resources/conferences-and-events-monthly?month=2017-… https://lists.debian.org/debian-events-eu https://lists.debian.org/debian-events-na https://lists.debian.org/debian-events-apac https://fedoraproject.org/wiki/Events?rd=FedoraEvents but clearly there are far more events out there, just in the free software world, that don't appear in any of these sites. Regards, Daniel 1. https://danielpocock.com/how-did-the-world-ever-work-without-facebook _______________________________________________ libreplanet-discuss mailing list libreplanet-discuss(a)libreplanet.org https://lists.libreplanet.org/mailman/listinfo/libreplanet-discuss

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John Whitehead: The Age of No Privacy
by willi uebelherr 27 Jun '17

27 Jun '17

for your information -------- Weitergeleitete Nachricht -------- Betreff: John Whitehead: The Age of No Privacy Datum: Mon, 26 Jun 2017 19:13:02 -0400 Von: willi uebelherr <willi.uebelherr(a)riseup.net> An: ISOC Internet Policy <internetpolicy(a)elists.isoc.org> Kopie (CC): IGF gov <governance(a)lists.igcaucus.org> The Age of No Privacy: The Surveillance State Shifts Into High Gear https://www.rutherford.org/publications_resources/john_whiteheads_commentar… NSA's use of 'traffic shaping' allows unrestrained spying on Americans http://www.zdnet.com/article/legal-loopholes-unrestrained-nsa-surveillance-… Surveillance without Borders: The “Traffic Shaping” Loophole and Why It Matters https://tcf.org/content/report/surveillance-without-borders-the-traffic-sha… Dear friends, the reality of the surveillance of the data traffic. Based on the text from John Whitehead with his links i used this short cascade. From John Whitehead to Sharon Goldberg and Edward Snowden. many greetings, willi Asuncion, Paraguay

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Estimating true costs of proprietary software
by Thomas Etter 26 Jun '17

26 Jun '17

Hi all Recently I found myself in a discussion with someone in charge of purchasing decisions in an IT department. Obviously I argued that the true cost of proprietary software is much higher than just e.g. licensing costs per year. Therefore free software solutions should be preferred even if their support contracts were to cost several times as much as proprietary competitors charge for the same time frame due to the inherent risk of using proprietary software. Do we have any models on how to compute the real costs, including the cost of lock-in? In our section on public procurement [1], we do not really propose a way to do that. Do you have good models for this (can be from personal, corporate or public procurement)? I believe that if we can put some cost to the risk, we can argue much more successfully for free solutions. Thanks Thomas [1] https://fsfe.org/activities/procurement/procurement.en.html

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Re: Is it acceptable to use proprietary software (platforms) to promote software freedom?
by Paul Sutton 23 Jun '17

23 Jun '17

Sorry my reply to this went to Theo rather than the list so resending, Paul On 23/06/17 09:10, Theo Schmidt wrote: > Am 21.06.2017 um 12:22 schrieb Erik Albers: > ... >> Now I would be interested what you think? Do you think that - although the use >> of proprietary platforms is ethically not supportable - the chances of >> convincing new people to use and further Free Software are worth the punishment? >> Or do you think that our message should not occur on platforms like Facebook >> or Twitter at all, because it contradicts our efforts in getting people to use >> decentralized services, run with Free Software and therefore potentially harm >> us in the long run? > Thanks for the discussion. My vote is to not use proprietary platforms > like Facebook or Twitter at all. > > Theo Schmidt > > _______________________________________________ > Discussion mailing list > Discussion(a)lists.fsfe.org > https://lists.fsfe.org/mailman/listinfo/discussion What information packs are available to help promote decentralized social networks. Here in Torbay there is a drive to tackle social isolation, and well-being one way to do this is to de mystify the Internet to older people. Now mostly this is going to involve people being told about facebook / twitter, this is inevitable but I have a chance here to promote alternatives such as diaspora / gnusocial. The problem is the same arrangement people sign up to fb because their family are on it, The FSFE do several flyers on gpg and free software so some to explain decentralization generally would be good plus a getting started guide for each, however we cannot expect people to set up their own servers, We still need to address the situation where people don't know anyone on these networks, but in a class of 5-10 people it is possible to say well sign up and add each other. >From what I understand one big issue with decentralization is explaining how to sign up, to sign up to fb you go to www.facebook.con, to sign up to decentralized networks you go to one of any number of places, and sign up, this in the case of joindiaspora.com has put huge pressure on the server. Back to the original question, there is a difference, between using and having a presence on facebook, a simple fb page, with an explanation as to who we are l and a link to the website may be all that is needed. Same for twitter, perhaps the occasional posting keeps the page active. Paul

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Re: Is it acceptable to use proprietary software (platforms) to promote software freedom?
by Katja Gucek 22 Jun '17

22 Jun '17

Hi, On Wed, Jun 21, 2017 at 5:04 PM, Evaggelos Balaskas <ebal(a)fsfe.org> wrote: > > For me one important thing is this: > If you want to invite people to opensource then you need somehow to > reach them! > I very much agree with Evaggelos, even though sometimes I am an idealist. If we only use free software services, there is a big chance we will promote them only to people who already use floss and know much about it. Katja

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Brazilians Rebel Against Data Caps
by willi uebelherr 22 Jun '17

22 Jun '17

Brazilians Rebel Against Data Caps. The Rest of the World Should, Too. Agustin Rossi and Rafael Zanatta, June 21, 2017 https://morningconsult.com/opinions/brazilians-rebel-data-caps-rest-world/ Dear friends, this email i received in the BestBit email list. A very good proposal. many greetings, willi -------- Weitergeleitete Nachricht -------- Betreff: [bestbits] Op-Ed Against Data Caps in Brazil Datum: Wed, 21 Jun 2017 10:24:34 -0400 Von: Gus Rossi <gus(a)publicknowledge.org> An: bestbits(a)lists.bestbits.net, Rafael Zanatta <rafael.zanatta(a)idec.org.br> Hi all! Rafa Zanatta (CC) and I just published an op-ed celebrating Brazilians standing against data caps, and signaling the importance of that for the whole world. Let us know what you think: https://morningconsult.com/opinions/brazilians-rebel-data-caps-rest-world/ Gus Rossi Global Policy Director (202) 861-0020 (x123) | (202) 651 1337 <(202)%651-1337> (mobile) @agustinrs <https://twitter.com/agustinrs> @publicknowledge <https://twitter.com/publicknowledge> www.publicknowledge.org 1818 N St. NW, Suite 410 | Washington, DC 20036 | CFC 12259

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RFC: Terms of use for a new Git hosting platform for educational projects
by Dominik George 19 Jun '17

19 Jun '17

Hi everybody, we, Teckids e.V. [0], a German youth organisation around free software, are in the process of making some of our internal systems and services public for use by everyone contributing to or running educational projects, or using free software in education. The two major services will be Edugit, a code hosting platform running GitLab, and a remote desktop system that can be used to use and develop free software for education (RDP and browser-based access to a full Debian desktop). Edugit is, in our view, very necessary because all code hosting platforms, like GitHub and GitLab.com, have terms of use that not only may be bad for privacy or freedom [1], but above all lock out an important group of contributors. Mainly because they are hosted in the US where COPPA applies, all individuals underthe age of 13 are denied access. However, we believe that people of all ages should be able to contribute in education. Therefore, we have started Edugit for our projects, and are now one footstep away from making it public. Please try to *not* discuss the usefulness or what you belive in this thread - please contact us directly if you have concerns. Today, we want to ask for your comments on our drafts for Terms of Use. We tried to keep them as short and easy to understand as possible, while imposing limitations only on the range of use of the platforms. Please also do not provide legal advice - the terms will be reviewed by a lawyer in addition to this RFC ☺. Here are the drafts in German and English: https://www.teckids.org/cgit/verein.git/plain/intern/tou_de.txt https://www.teckids.org/cgit/verein.git/plain/intern/tou_en.txt The drafts were created by people who are concerned by it most - a group of contributors from 10 to 27 years of age (children are involved in everything we do, fwiw). We ask for all feedback, ranging from "cool, ack, go on" to all your concerns (content-wise) and ideas. But please think before you post - please do not flood your community's mailing list with "+1", only post there if you want your post discussed. But please always keep me <dominik.george(a)teckids.org> in the recipients, as I am not subscribed to all lists this is posted to. Looking forward to your feedback, Nik P.S.: If you can - and want to - support the projects financially, please see https://www.teckids.org/spenden.htm (German) or just ask. We always need it ☺! [0]: https://www.teckids.org/ [1]: https://www.gnu.org/software/repo-criteria-evaluation.html -- Dominik George (1. Vorstandsvorsitzender, pädagogischer Leiter) Teckids e.V. - Erkunden, Entdecken, Erfinden. https://www.teckids.org/

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Discussion June 2017