Jan 01, 2011 12:47am GMT
Jono Bacon is well-known in free and open source software (FOSS) circles as the community manager for Canonical, the company behind the popular Ubuntu distribution. However, Bacon and his band mates in the metal band Severed Fifth are working hard to provide a working example of free culture. The band is now into its sixth week of a campaign to raise $5000 to cut a professional album, in an eff... more »
Wikileaks and the Choice Between Openness and SecrecyDec 21, 2010 9:04pm GMT
The headlines about Wikileaks and its founder Julian Assange are bringing countless issues to the attention of the general public. For instance, what privacy, if any, is possible with modern technology? How does technology change the relationship between those who govern and the governed? And -- on a more personal level -- does being at best a selfish lover and at worst a possible rapist invali... more »
Waiting for the raptureDec 14, 2010 10:32pm GMT
To my surprise, I have been involved with free and open source software (FOSS) for the better part of twelve years. For ten years of that time, I have made my living from FOSS, either as an employee or as a free-lance writer. But sometimes, I have to admit, I get tired of waiting for FOSS to fulfill its potential. While it has come a long way, FOSS still isn't as universal as I thought it would... more »
FocusWriter, Wannabes and Practicing WritersDec 09, 2010 11:06pm GMT
I generally write in Bluefish. It has just about everything I need -- a word count, a spell-checker, and shortcuts to produce clean HTML (if that's what the editor requires), and little of the overhead and distractions of a word processor. But I am always on the lookout for other tools, which is why FocusWriter interested me. Unfortunately, while it shows some promise, it turns out to be anothe... more »
Ryzom MMORPG releases native GNU/Linux clientNov 30, 2010 6:24pm GMT
When the Free Ryzom Campaign failed to purchase the online role-playing game Ryzom, organizers promised that their effort was just the beginning. Now, four years later, after a convoluted history, the dream of the campaign supporters is coming true: Winch Gate, the current owner of Ryzom, is releasing a native GNU/Linux client, and announcing a contest to celebrate the fact. It's news that you... more »
Documenting and challenging community misogynyNov 19, 2010 11:37pm GMT
So far, the main result of the OpenRespect project has been that Jono Bacon has handicapped himself in responding to detractors -- so much so that he has apologized at length about his own minor lapses of civility while others have launched ad hominem attacks on him without backing down in the slightest. But the culture of denial and blame-the-messenger that operates whenever the lack of civili... more »
OpenRespect and the Problems of Endorsing CivilityNov 12, 2010 10:35pm GMT
Two years ago, I suggested that the free and open source software community could use a code of conduct to make conversations more polite and more constructive. My views haven't changed any, so I am delighted at Canonical Community Manager Jono Bacon's launching of OpenRespect.org that attempts to codify respectful conduct. My only concern is that the effort is already receiving some of the abu... more »
