[oclug] Computer Programmers Rally for Bill

[Tom Trottier]

On Saturday, August 17, 2002 at 0:12, Brenda J. Butler 
<oclug at lists.oclug.on.ca>
wrote re "Re: [oclug] Computer Programmers Rally for Bill" saying:

> On Fri, Aug 16, 2002 at 08:34:08PM -0400, tOM Trottier wrote:
> > http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/technology/AP-Linux-Rally.html
> 
> For those of us who don't want to sign up to the nytimes
> "registration", could you summarise please?

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -- Comparing their cause to America's fight for 
independence from England, computer programmers rallied Thursday to 
support a proposal that would require the state of California to 
purchase more open-source software.  

Michael Tiemann, chief technology officer for Raleigh, N.C.-based 
software company Red Hat, led about 30 protesters from the Linux World 
Conference & Expo to a podium outside City Hall. He urged politicians 
to adopt the Digital Software Security Act, a month-old proposal 
gaining support among hackers, civil libertarians and people opposed to 
Microsoft's dominance of the global software industry.  

``Government and monopolists want to take away our right to write 
software and use computers as we want to use them,'' Tiemann said to 
marchers, mainly shaggy-haired men in T-shirts and jeans. ``Open source 
is the true spirit of democracy, and we must preserve it.''  

The proposal would require California state agencies to use open-source 
software such as the Linux operating system as an alternative to 
proprietary software such as Microsoft Windows. Tiemann and several 
other open-source enthusiasts wrote the proposal and published it 
online, but they're asking programmers around the world to suggest 
changes.  

Open-source programs can be downloaded from the Internet for free, and 
they don't require users to pay licensing fees. Installing Linux on 
servers has saved Amazon.com, 7-Eleven, Deutsche Telekom, the Chinese 
government and other groups millions of dollars.  

Mainly because of the reduced cost, government agencies and 
corporations around the world are switching to open-source software to 
run databases and manage e-mail. According to research firm A.D.H. 
Brown Associates, about 20 million people are using the Linux operating 
system, the most popular example of open-source software.  

But the Computing Technology Industry Association blasted the notion 
that California adopt an open-source approach. The Washington-based 
trade group said the proposal would stifle innovation in corporate 
America and cause ``unintended repercussions for California, its 
(information technology) industry and its citizens.''  

A Microsoft spokesman refused to comment on the bill but said the 
world's largest software company supported the CTIA's position.  

Microsoft's snubbing didn't surprise protesters. Many worried that 
Microsoft could extend its dominance in operating systems and Internet 
browsers to gain access to personal data stored on computers, including 
passwords or financial information. They feared digital privacy bills 
introduced earlier this year, including one to put government-mandated 
anti-copying mechanisms in consumer electronic devices.  

``They're all in cahoots -- Microsoft, the government, corporate 
America,'' said protester Mike Collins, 48, a computer consultant in 
Austin, Texas, who sported a tattoo of the Linux penguin logo on his 
calf. ``We are at a pivotal point. We need open source now more than 
ever.''  

But the rally's sparse attendance may underscore challenges facing the 
proposal. Only about 30 of the 15,000 Linux World attendants marched to 
City Hall. Open-source enthusiasts are known for their libertarianism 
and disdain for politics.  

``Programmers are more comfortable in front of a keyboard, not at a 
podium,'' said Raj Nagra, 33, a network specialist who supports the 
proposal because he's seen significant cost savings after installing 
Linux-based systems for the city of Fresno. ``They'll submit code and 
maybe they'll send a check to support their cause, but they probably 
won't take their cause to the streets.''  


BTW, online sub to NYTimes is free & uses a cookie.

tOM
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Laws are the spider's webs which, 
if anything small falls into them they ensnare it, 
but large things break through and escape.
	--Solon, statesman (c.638-c558 BCE)