Fsf-friends March 2005

fsf-friends@gnu.org.in

51 participants
107 discussions

[Fsf-friends] Patents (Amendments) Bill, 2005, passed in the Parliament
by Ramanraj K 28 Mar '05

28 Mar '05

The Patents (Amendments) Bill was passed in the Parliament, after dropping clauses 3(k) and 3(ka) relating to computer programs, restoring the status quo. Computer programs are outside the purview of patentability. http://pib.nic.in/release/release.asp?relid=8096 <quote> It is proposed to omit the clarification relating to patenting of software related inventions introduced by the Ordinance as Section 3(k) and 3 (ka). The clarification was objected to on the ground that this may give rise to monopoly of multinationals. </quote> FSF India lead an active campaign against the Patents (Amendments) Ordinance that introduced patentability for embedded software, under the leadership of Richard Stallman, Nagarjuna, Arun and others here. Holger Blasum, Christian Beauprez, and others at ffii.org made a big difference in strengthening the campaign. It was finally the Left that saved the day! Our thanks are due the Members of Parliament for restoring the status quo in respect of computer programs.

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e-voting: secret ballot vs. open ballot
by Ramanraj K 28 Mar '05

28 Mar '05

There may be a need to keep a careful watch over the activities of the Election Commission that is planning to bring in e-voting. Already, the electronic voting machines have "security" through "obscurity". Those who developed the EVMs claim that the device is very secure, but we have to take their word for granted, and there has been no public disclosure about the technical aspects of its security. Internet based e-voting is more dangerous given the element of secrecy ingrained in the political process. The paper ballot is the only secure, workable and verifiable solution for a secret ballot. If people seriously desire to use Internet or other electronic devices for counting votes, then they should reform the electoral process so that the element of "secrecy" in voting is taken away, introducing the open ballot system. There is nothing wrong in voting openly. What does the voting electorate have to fear: that goons will wait over their shoulders and victimise if they don't vote in their favour? That cannot be a reason because political parties, and their agents openly declare their idealogies, and seem to be doing well in our country, and don't seem to be suffering any such dangers. Getting open about our voting preferences is needed to enable voting accountable though electronic means that work better with openness. The minute the voter declares his vote openly at the booth, the agents can count, and supervise the electronic registers. It will also do away with "invalid votes". Open ballot alone can bring in accountability for electronic voting methods - evm's, internet or anything else that cannot possibly leave a "secure" trail behind. If bringing in openness in voting is not liked, then there is point in using evms or internet to count votes. BTW, "e-vot-ing" in Tamil, means chasing away e's (flies :) in jobless idling, and e-voting is sure to be a pointless idle exercise in frustration, with none knowing how it helps. e-voting sometimes has a close connection with "e-mailing" also :)

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WinXp Vs Linux
by Raj Shaz 27 Mar '05

27 Mar '05

Im submiting papers to my admin authority for usage of FLOSS.To start the battle , i want to convince them to use GNU/Linux instead of WinXP. Can someone through light on cost estimate for single machine using WinXP + Office and another using GNU/Linux WinXP cost somewhere around Rs 6000 single machine licensing ( im not sure ) .Can someone point to some relevant data. Google dint helped me much... any other points for paper is most welcomed Raj

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Re: [Fsf-friends] WinXp Vs Linux
by Kanti Jadia 27 Mar '05

27 Mar '05

Hi Raj, Price is not what you look for.You look for freedom. You may get RHEL for use as well or some other distro. You could use debian ( the distribution which went on a space ship ). And remember with all Free Software you get the freedom to use software the way you need.Get changes done ( or if you are skilled , do them yourself ).a lot lot more. Definiton of Free Software http://www.gnu.org/philosophy/free-sw.html Regards Kanti On Sat, 26 Mar 2005 Raj Shaz wrote : >Im submiting papers to my admin authority for usage of FLOSS.To start >the battle , i want to convince them to use GNU/Linux instead of >WinXP. Can someone through light on cost estimate for single machine >using >WinXP + Office >and another using >GNU/Linux > >WinXP cost somewhere around Rs 6000 single machine licensing ( im not sure >) .Can someone point to some relevant data. >Google dint helped me much... > > >any other points for paper is most welcomed > >Raj > >_______________________________________________ >Fsf-friends mailing list >Fsf-friends(a)mm.gnu.org.in >http://mm.gnu.org.in/mailman/listinfo/fsf-friends ----------------------------------------- Enjoy your Freedom,use GNU/Linux. http://www.gnu.org/gnu/why-gnu-linux.html -----------------------------------------

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A Dismal Report in the Hindu
by Ramanraj K 27 Mar '05

27 Mar '05

The Hindu dated March 26, 2005, Chennai edition, has published an article titled "Patents Bill: a setback to innovative software developers" written by Shanthi Kannan. The report has totally missed the fact that under Article 10(1) of the TRIPS Treaty, "Computer programs, whether in source or object code, shall be protected as literary works under the Berne Convention (1971)", which India has complied with even by 2000, by bringing in amendments to the Copyright Act, 1957. The mis-application of patent law to cover computer programs would have been a serious violation of our international obligations and India could have been arraigned before the WTO for breach. The illegitimate practice of granting patents for computer programs is notably present in US, Japan and a few European countries. India should complain to the WTO and obtain a ruling asking these countries to comply with the TRIPS treaty and update their laws. The only good about the report is that it carries the opinions of the "Chennai based cyber expert and trademark attorney A. Mohan", who has largely spoken on the lines of the representations made by FSF India against the introduction of patentability for embedded software. Nasscom is reported to be saying that embeded software needs "protection" as though it would have helped innovative small and medium companies in the IT sector. Nothing could be further from the truth: it is the mega transanational corporations that have abused patent law in countries like the US and obtained a large number of "software patents" to extract "royalties" from small and medium sized companies, and indulge in all kinds of "cross licensing" that neither promote innovation, nor help the software field apart from being a drain on revenue. The Hindu, has revealed a shameful fact about India's software industry: "India has a very few software products - the industry supplies "bodies" (body shopping) to develop software for global giants". It is clear that those thirsting for "innovation" would hardly be engaged in such a trade, that is as despicable as slavery, and its practitioners could possibly have no interest other than making profits. The Free Software Foundation of India campaigned strongly against the change, and not surprisingly, the most innovative contributions are made by free software developers. The article completely glosses over the fact that GNU/Linux is extensively used to write "embedded software", and there is no cause to imagine that the dropping of the amendment is a "setback to innovative software developers". The most innovative developers, including the FSF, OSI, Oracle corporation, and many others have publicly condemned the practice of "software patents". The truth is that the timely intervention of the Left Parties has saved and protected the software industry from falling into a disastrous pit of doubt, darkness and doom. I have sent my comments to the Editor, Hindu, at letters(a)thehindu.co.in Please share your opinion too :)

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Navy R&D project looks to open-source use
by Raj Shaz 26 Mar '05

26 Mar '05

Navy R&D project looks to open-source use The three-year program involves Red Hat and other vendors The three-year program, which will explore the use of open-source software within the Naval Oceanographic Office's Web services, scientific computing and enterprise architecture systems, was unveiled late last month. Full story :http://www.computerworld.com/governmenttopics/government/itgovernment/story/0,10801,100648,00.html?from=story%5Fkc http://oss-institute.org ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Stop the earth , I wanna get down ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Raj Shastrakar

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Re: Dismal Record
by Ramanraj K 26 Mar '05

26 Mar '05

PILCH Hartmut wrote: >>largely spoken on the lines of the representations made by FSF India >>against the introduction of patentability for embedded software. >> >> > >This talk of "patentability for embedded software" is propaganda from >patent camp. There is no distinction between embedded and other >software in the proposed law or in the recent INPTO practise. > Initially the patents ordinance used the expression "a computer programme per se other than its technical application to industry or a combination with hardware" and its literal interpretation only produced the absurd meaning that "all computer programs" are patentable, that plainly goes the former part of the clause, which could never be deemed to be the intention. In such an event, it is legitimate to look into the objects and reasons for the amendment, and the Minister's Statement at http://pib.nic.in/release/release.asp?relid=6074 was the only one available then and it clarified that it was introduced for patentability for embedded software. Thanks to the Left and the campaign against it, all that nonsense is now past us. BTW, the Hindu report is available online at: http://www.hindu.com/2005/03/26/stories/2005032605431600.htm More seriously, we should reject the illegitimate expression "software patents" as a propaganda term from the patent camp. The expression is devoid of any legal content under TRIPS Treaty, and in many countries like India. Please avoid using the expression "software patents" that give needless credibility to the illegal practice in a few countries. Please talk about "Computer Programs", "Software", "Copyrights", "Mis-application of patent law to cover Computer Programs", and please use any other suitable expressions that are consistent with the TRIPS Treaty. We could infact make a list of countries where computer programs are protected by copyrights as required by the TRIPS Treaty, and encourage the others to follow suit to avoid issues in this regard.

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What is MS' Plan?
by Laxminarayan Kamath 26 Mar '05

26 Mar '05

[ http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/articleshow/1059475.cms The article appeared in today's Times Of India , Page 4 ] BANGALORE: Microsoft Corporation India has opened a Microsoft Technology Centre at Visvesvaraya Technological University (VTU) in Karnataka. The centre has been launched as a part of the 'academic developer programme', introduced by the world's biggest software company in end 2002. The technology centre will function as a one-stop shop; a research lab for faculty and students, a training centre for faculty, and an e-learning resource centre. VTU is also introducing a 4-semester M. Tech. programme in Microsoft's .NET technologies — a set of Microsoft technologies for connecting information, people, systems and devices The programme will kick off in the next academic year, and will be available to students in 118 VTU-affiliated colleges across the state. The centre will include hardware and software support and will impart training to faculty and students on a range topics including .NET. Independents Software Vendors (ISVs) can also avail the facilities of the centre to test their applications. Commenting on the alliance, Mr T N Chaturvedi, governor of Karnataka and chancellor of Visvervaraya Technological University said, "In line with our mission to become an outstanding university by producing world-class engineers, we strive to offer our students and faculty with the cutting-edge technology. We realise that the next computing wave will be that of web services. This partnership will help students and aspiring developers leverage the immense opportunity in building web services-based applications." -- Laxminarayan Kamath Ammembal (+91) 9845 061385 kamathln(a)gmail.com www.geocities.com/kamathln

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[Fsf-friends] Workshop on "TRIPS Treaty and Computer Programs" at UoM
by Ramanraj K 25 Mar '05

25 Mar '05

Workshop on "TRIPS Treaty and Computer Programs"at UoM The Department of Legal Studies, University of Madras, is organising a workshop on "TRIPS Treaty and Computer Programs", that is tentatively scheduled for 8th April, 2005 (Friday). The one day workshop is intended as an "out-reach programme" for software professionals and students specialising in international law. The legal aspects of Computer Programs are governed by the TRIPS Treaty. Globalisation, governance, and almost every human activity hinges upon Computer Programs and its legal setting. The workshop will discuss the true nature of computer programs, and the character of rights surrounding them. The harm caused by mis-application of patent law to cover computer programs in some member states of the TRIPS Treaty, notably US and Japan, and the possible remedies against such practices, will also be analysed threadbare. If you would be interested in participating in the workshop, could make a sponsorship, or have suggestions to make, please write about it to ramanraj.k(a)gmail.com and ambrose(a)unom.ac.in

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[Fsf-friends] Fwd: [Indlinux-group] online meet on Monday, 28th - 3pm - 6pm] (fwd)
by Frederick Noronha (FN) 25 Mar '05

25 Mar '05

---------- Forwarded message ---------- -------- Original Message -------- Subject: [Indlinux-group] online meet on Monday, 28th - 3pm - 6pm Date: Thu, 24 Mar 2005 14:54:40 +0530 From: Guntupalli Karunakar <karunakar(a)indlinux.org> Reply-To: indlinux-group(a)lists.sourceforge.net Organization: IndLinux.org To: Indlinux group <indlinux-group(a)lists.sourceforge.net> Hi all, Online IRC Meet on Monday, 28th March - 3pm - 6pm Agenda - Translation review process & user demo workshops NB: BOTs will be kicked out Over the coming month we plan to do a exhaustive review of Hindi translations ( KDE , GNOME, XFCE ...etc ), part of the effort will be to make a community call for volunteers to participate in review process. Basically people can pick up an application , start it in Hindi and just go through the interface, make a log of the translation errors and send back the feedback. So in this meet would discuss how to define a review process & in what ways to collect & collate the feedback. At the end of this exercise a translation review workshop will be organized & hosted by Sarai, Delhi, where we would have the current translators, some volunteers who took part in review process , language experts & linguists. This maybe a 3day event or maybe stretch longer upto a week. Dates for this not discussed, but maybe towards April end or May 1st week. We can also discuss on how to go about doing small user workshops, oriented to fimilarising newbies to a Indic Linux. Typically will have to identify some local institution ( school/college or other) to host it & try get a sample user set to use it or it maybe a roadshow kind of thing. Also I would be making some field trips in April - one to Punjab (interacting with Punlinux team there), and MP (not planned but maybe trips to Bhopal, Indore ), idea is to do some user demo sessions, find out target organizations which maybe interested in using Hindi on Linux & find some local linux community who can support users there. Regards, Karunakar -- >From Untruth, lead me to the Truth, >From Darkness, Lead me towards the Light, >From Death, Lead me to Life Eternal. _______________________________________________ Flosstoday mailing list Flosstoday(a)sarai.net https://mail.sarai.net/mailman/listinfo/flosstoday

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Fsf-friends March 2005