Lecture Summarised

Hi All,

Today's lecture was on the rather interesting topic of Free and Open Source software. For most people the who use programs on their computer do not even consider the legal ramifications of them using the software manufacturer's copywrite license. As a quick summary on software, programmers write a bit of software in human language, then they use another piece of software that converts the code into a language the computer can understand, called a compiler, which converts the code into an executable files with the extension of .exe. The original code written by the programmers is called the source code.

What you get when you buy a piece of proprietary software is the executable file and a license that explicitly forbids you from de-compiling the software back into the source code. This brings us back to today's topic of Free or Open Source software, which basically means that you not only can read the source code, the license with the software allows you to edit the source code to alter the software to your own needs.

Free and Open Source software differs from proprietary software in a number of different ways, first and most obvious the software is free for you to use and distribute, with one of the base concepts being the idea of Copyleft, (one of the founders, Richard Stallman, calls it 'copywrite flipped over'). Copyleft is the core concept behind putting stuff on to the internet for free. The way the free and open-source license works is that the creators gain a legally-binding contract that controls the use of the software called GPL (GNU General Public License) which protects the people who invest time and effort into making really good programs that are not for commercial purposes.

With the rise of the litigious industry bodies such as the RIAA and MPAA, the open-source or free software is starting to gain more of a foothold in the market place as people get fed up with the increasing restrictions placed proprietary software (sit down and read a EULA sometime and you'll see what I mean) and/or protesting in a way that they listen to by voting with their money and not buying products from companies who trade under the banners of the RIAA, MPAA, etc. This open-source software offers people completely free software that actually works and doesn't come with all the restrictions on how you might want to use it.

The lecture then went on to look at Creative Commons which appears to be an extending the idea of open-source code to other creative areas by providing the creators a legally-binding contract on the specific level of use afforded to that item, for instance you could state in the license that the item is free to use in a non-commercial setting, however if it is to be used in a commercial setting you require permission and/or payment. This has created vast cooperative communities who work together on projects for the love of the thing, not just to end up charging someone a billion dollars to use.

The lecture finished by looking at 'The Electronic Frontier Foundation', as quoted from their website here:

'From the Internet to the IPod, technologies are transforming our society and empowering us as speakers, citizens, creators and consumers. When our freedoms in the networked world come under attack, the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) is the first line of defense. The EFF broke new ground when it was founded in 1990, well before the internet was on most people's radar, and continues to confront cutting-edge issues defending free speech, privacy, innovation and consumer rights today. The EFF have championed the pubic interest in every critical battle affecting digital rights.'

A simple way to look at the two entities would be to say that the Creative Commons deal with changing laws to do with copywrite and intellectual property, and the EFF deals with the law and digital media across the whole spectrum. They're concerned with keeping the net an open medium, not controlled by any one country, government or corporate entity.

Well that pretty much sums up the day's activities, till next time.