Re: sarge and software patents
Guillaume TESSIER wrote:
Marty wrote:
Therefore the obvious answer I think, is to
set up servers in locations that are free of such laws. And even in
the unlikely event that all countries outlaw some kinds of software
(e.g. via treaties) there have been proposals for dealing with that
as well. I have read articles about locating certain types of
services on the high seas although I don't know if any of those exist
now.
That could be a good idea if you only practise in your room. I don't
think the police gonna hit your door and swat run into you house to get
you computer.
But many opensource software will leave the enterprise field.
In 25 countries with declining growth, yes. Hundreds of other countries
may realize that they gain a competetive advantage by not cutting their
own throats with software patents (and other "IP" laws). They might even
have a means to exploit that advantage if distros like debian set up their
development to circumvent such local "censorship." Who knows? You might
end up working in one of those countries when your job is outsourced. ;-)
My skills onto opensource POSIX systems is what i sell to companies and
what allow me to have a decent life.
If tomorrow my job is to migrate Linux plateforms onto windows, then
i'll feel like shit and will soon be unemployed. And my CV will be so
great : "specialized in illegal system". Nice.
People in the USA have lived with patent for a really long time. I guess
most of the debian users of this list has always lived under the patent
regn.
The US also lived with the encription export restrictions, and we saw those
eventually fall due to market pressure from countries that didn't have
those restrictions. The role played by free software was crucial.
But, in Europe, we had the luck to avoid this so far.
You can imagin how many european developers and users may feel by now.
But it's not over. There is still some luck to avoid this. The vote
hasn't be done yet.
If you plan for the worst, you are less likely to be disappointed and
more likely to be ready for the worst, and perhaps more likely to survive
and turn the tide after the worst has happened.
Like people of this list, Linux users are perfectionnists. We like to
use the best software. And it's even best when opensource and when you
make a living out of it.
That's what i like in IT : it's a passion and you make a living out of it.
But my whole employment sector could fall down.
Sorry, i just feel sick.
I'm trying to be pragmatic, not just offer consolation or false hope.
Assume things will get worse before they get better, and unfortunately
you probably won't be wrong or disappointed, but instead of fretting
about it you ("you" being Debian users and developers) could channel that
concern into action that mitigates the worst case scenario, and it seems
to me that means "hardening" Debian's development process against all
forms of local control and censorship. How to do this may be an enormously
complex problem. For Debian developers this may be the best way to channel
their concerns, instead of fretting or depending on activism alone, which
may just detract from the energy required to solve the problem.
G
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