Begin forwarded message: Date: Tue, 14 Mar 2006 16:21:44 -0500 From: GPLv3 Information <[email protected]> To: [email protected] Subject: [Info-gplv3] GPLv3 Update #5 Welcome to the GPLv3 Update, #5. - What is "TiVo-ization"? - Other recent FSF writing about DRM and GPLv3 - GPLv3 commenting system debuts new features - Calendar reminders - Your support is needed! * What is "TiVo-ization"? GPLv3 is designed to resist "TiVo-ization". But what does "TiVo-ization" really mean? Jonathan Zuck is the president of the Association for Competitive Technology, a Microsoft front group. In a recent C-Net editorial, he wrote that "TiVo-ization" means "the merging of free and proprietary software into a single system." It does not. TiVo was far from the first company to do this, as Zuck points out. Red Hat, IBM, and many other companies do this. FSF's problem with TiVo is not that TiVo makes proprietary software, or that that proprietary software runs on a free software operating system. Of course, FSF opposes all proprietary software, whether or not it's mingled with free software -- but TiVo is far from unique in that respect. What TiVo has done differently is make it intentionally difficult for users to improve the free software portions of their system. They use encryption and digital signatures to prevent changes to any portion of the systems -- <b>even the GPL portions</b>. Of course, many talented hackers have worked around these systems. But it is not an easy task, and must be done every time TiVo upgrades their system. TiVo users want access to the free software components for all sorts of reasons. They want to install bigger hard drives. They want to access their shows via other devices (for instance, copy small versions to portable video devices to take them on the road). And they want to build their own Personal Video Recorder software. All of these can be done without affecting TiVo's proprietary software at all. "TiVo-ization" means building systems on top of free software that restrict users's freedoms to modify that software itself. Without the ability to upgrade, the freedom to make modifications is useless. And that's one of the freedoms the GPL was always intended to protect. ** For other recent FSF writing about DRM and GPLv3, see: - Reaction to the DRM clause in GPLv3 by David Turner "One common view among programmers is that the GPL should say nothing at all about DRM, because DRM is a technical problem, and can be solved by technical means...But even if it were acceptable to have DRM from which programmers could free themselves, that's not the DRM we have in 2006." <http://www.fsf.org/blogs/licensing/gplv3-drm> - Free software without the freedom? by John Sullivan "John Carroll is correct in his article...that the GNU GPL is designed to uphold ideals. He is wrong about what those ideals are, and about what their relationship is to free software development models." <http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/drm-carroll> * GPLv3 commenting system debuts new features In the new version of the GPLv3 commenting system made live today, the discussion around DRM has people "seeing red". Not because they are angry, but because the new system color-codes words in the draft text based on how many comments each area of the text has received. (The phrase "technological protection" in Section 3 is the current leader.) You can now see at a glance where the most active discussions are occurring. We've also implemented one of the most requested features --- you can now click on text in the draft and see all of the comments that have been made in reference to that text. Further improvements have also been made in compatibility with the multitude of browsers in use. We hope these changes will make it easier for you to participate, to help draft the best license possible. Please leave your comments at <http://gplv3.fsf.org/comment>. For those who prefer the "classic" view without the highlighting, you can still <http://gplv3.fsf.org/comments/classic.html> instead. * Calendar reminders - 2006 March 16: FOSS Means Business. Belfast, Northern Ireland. Richard Stallman will be speaking on GPLv3 as part of the event. See <http://foss-means-business.org>. - 2006 March 18: Torino, Italy. Richard Stallman will be speaking about GPLv3 at a conference organized by FSF Europe. See <http://www.italy.fsfeurope.org/projects/gplv3/gplv3-torino.en.html>. - 2006 April 1: Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA. Richard Stallman, Eben Moglen and the FSF staff and board members will be speaking at the FSF Associate Member Meeting on GPLv3. See <http://www.fsf.org/associate/meetings/2006>. - 2006 April 21 & 22: Porto Alegre, Brazil. The second international GPLv3 conference, during the 7th International Free Software Forum (which goes April 19th to 22nd). See <http://gplv3.fsf.org/wiki/index.php/International_conferences>. * Your support is needed Please support the continuation of this process by making a donation at <https://www.fsf.org/donate>, or by becoming an FSF associate member at <http://member.fsf.org>. There are also still t-shirts and hoodies with the GPLv3 logo available at <http://www.gnu.org/gear/gplv3-tshirt.html>. Thanks! Do you have suggestions for topics you'd like to see covered here? Please send your questions or ideas to <[email protected]>. -- John Sullivan, FSF Program Administrator _______________________________________________ Info-gplv3 mailing list [email protected] http://gplv3.fsf.org -- Daniel Olivera (Mate.Cosido) - UTUTO "No todo se vende, no todo se compra..." Tanguito ICQ: 8368437 - Jabber: [email protected] IPv4/IPv6 site: www.ututo.org Blog: daniel.ututo.org UTUTO XS 2006 GNU System - 100% software libre