MESSAGE
| DATE | 2003-02-07 |
| FROM | David Sugar
|
| SUBJECT | Re: [hangout] Communication is the way - not boycutting
|
That is in fact an incorrect statement. I know several individuals have
suggested that this event should be boycotted. I have also heard some very
valid concerns expressed by these people. I share these same concerns as
they were among the reasons I originally stated for personally choosing not
to attend this event. However, I am not aware of any actual call for
boycotting eGovOS as a point of policy or in any statement made by the FSF in
any capacity whether official or unofficial. In fact I very much doubt they
even have been given time to consider the issues in full or in part.
That being said, I personally think the idea of making Microsoft play fair in
this manner is a fools errend. When one deals with a bully, one does not do
so by expecting good behavior. I think the concern that this event is being
used or hijacked specifically to promote before governments the false
assumption that "Shared Source" is an ethically and socially valid form of
"Open Source", and by extension, as a form of "Free Software" is
fundimentally an effort to dilute our values and confuse. Certainly
boycotting may be a valid opinion to consider. However, there may be other
and perhaps more effective ways to deal with this problem, although I
personally have no immediate suggestions to offer.
On Friday 07 February 2003 02:20, Claus Sørensen wrote:
> On Thu, 6 Feb 2003, Ruben I Safir wrote:
> > This program is not being supported by the Free Software community and
> > is currenly being boycotted
>
> I am a part of the Free Software community - and I don't boycut the event.
>
> Maybe Free Software Foundation does - but boycutting is the most idiotic
> thing to do. Right now the Free Software and Open Source community have
> the ball - and we could make Microsoft play our way - on our terms.
>
> Microsoft biggest problem is their lockin file formats - and we should be
> there and address that problem again and again - XML is an open standard -
> but file formats based on XML is not necessarily an open standard.
>
> That is why I worked on getting the OpenOffice.org format out of the
> OpenOffice.org project - so everybody can see that the file format is
> being developed in an independent standardization group (OASIS) - and not
> a Sun format - like Microsoft Office formats are Microsoft's.
>
> We have to tell the press. We have to tell the public sector.
>
> In Denmark the minister of science saying that the infrastructure for
> Danish eGovernment will be based on open standard. And right now Denmark
> is a role model for the rest of EU when it comes to eGovernment.
>
> If we don't go to this conference and representives from governments all
> over the World is there - and Microsoft is the only one saying anything
> unquestioned. Then they will go home a think that Microsoft Office 11 file
> formats are open because it is based on XML - so we will base our
> country's eGovernment infrastructure on this format.
>
> We have to create a lot of brochures about the file format problem.
>
> And an open independent file format for office suites is exactly what the
> world needs - it's the only way to get free competition in the software
> marktet for eGovernment - which also makes it cheaper.
>
> And by boycutting we don't get the attention of government representives -
> they don't read Slashdot and other medias who will print or write about
> this boycut.
>
> Writing letters to the medias is what you should be doing instead - a try
> to get them into the medias which government representives read. Letters
> where you only use facts about license agreements, open standards, who can
> use and change what - and remember references. Try to use positive words
> more than negative words.
>
> "You don't win a battle by asking, `Will we win?'
> You win it by doing your best to win"
> - Richard M Stallman
>
> This conference is a battle we can win. But not by boycutting it.
>
> The most enjoyable greetings
____________________________
New Yorker Free Software Users Scene
Fair Use -
because it's either fair use or useless....
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