Fsf-friends July 2007

fsf-friends@gnu.org.in

32 participants
56 discussions

Smolt
by Debarshi 'Rishi' Ray 18 Jul '07

18 Jul '07

http://rahulsundaram.livejournal.com/11995.html "Smolt is the opt-in hardware profiler for Fedora and while the initial focus was on Fedora, Smolt is derived from RHN client tools and is based on HAL and has always been portable to other Linux distributions and possibly other operating systems which HAL has been ported to like FreeBSD or Solaris. The idea as Max Spevack has hinted before is to have a neutral central website to gather metrics on Linux usage. There are many other advantages. We could understand some patterns and gain insight into how Linux systems are being used and prioritize testing and focus development. We could talk to hardware vendors and gain more support. A shared and coordinated effort between Linux distributions and other operating systems would have enormous benefits for both developers and end users." Cheers, Debarshi -- GPG key ID: 63D4A5A7 Key server: pgp.mit.edu

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No Plans for MS University
by Pramode C.E. 18 Jul '07

18 Jul '07

Check out: http://www.abhishekkant.net/2007/07/microsoft-computer-varsity-at-bangalore… Pramode ------------ Unlimited freedom, unlimited storage. Get it now, on http://help.yahoo.com/l/in/yahoo/mail/yahoomail/tools/tools-08.html/

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Fwd: The Inquirer: Microsoft twists and turns over ODF
by Nagarjuna G. 18 Jul '07

18 Jul '07

---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Nagarjuna G. <nagarjun(a)gnowledge.org> Date: Jul 17, 2007 9:46 PM Subject: Fwd: The Inquirer: Microsoft twists and turns over ODF To: Jaijit Bhattacharya <Jaijit.Bhattacharya(a)sun.com>, Venkatesh Hariharan <venky(a)redhat.com>, Ashish Gautam <agautam(a)in.ibm.com> ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Georg C. F. Greve <greve(a)fsfeurope.org> Date: Jul 17, 2007 12:27 PM Subject: The Inquirer: Microsoft twists and turns over ODF To: greve(a)fsfeurope.org FYI. The Inquirer picked up on the Conversion Hoax. My reaction to this is online at http://www.fsfe.org/fellows/greve/freedom_bits/the_inquirer_on_ms_ooxml_and… [ http://www.theinquirer.net/default.aspx?article=41055 ] Microsoft twists and turns over ODF Comment Claims ODF is a monopoly By Nick Farrell: Tuesday 17 July 2007, 15:49 VOLE WATCHERS might be curious about the clever backflips the creature has been performing over the last few weeks over the OpenDocument Format. In its latest manoeuvre, it has offered the claw of friendship saying that it would back ratification of its own Open XML format along with (ODF) as ISO standards. However, the policy document penned by Volish general managers Tom Robertson and Jean Paoli said Microsoft will only give its blessing if ODF promotes choice among the world's consumers. Yep, Vole is claiming it is a poor struggling company being stomped on by these nasty open saucers who hold a monopoly and are trying to squeeze it out of the market. Microsoft knows a lot about playing monopoly and realises it is more than just getting a hotel on Park Lane that wins you the game. But you need to have some serious psychological projection problems to think that the ODF could kill off Vole's lucrative Office product. By casting itself as 'open' and the 'opensource ODF format' turns the tables on its own image. The question is that it has about as much chance of pulling of a stunt like that as Boris "computer games rot your brains" Johnson has of getting through the London Mayoral elections without putting his foot in his mouth at least twice. Robertson and Paoli say that ODF's design is attractive to those users that are interested in a "particular level" of functionality. However the Volish "Open XML may be more attractive to those who want richer functionality, the ability to integrate business data into their documents by defining their own document schema, or a format that was designed to be backwards compatible with existing documents." Although this sounds like our Voles are claiming that Open XML is better but you need a bid of trash out there to show how good it is, they deny this. They say it just that the two products meet different needs. Just in case you were confused, they tell us it is how some people wanting to travel will drive and others will fly. It does not say which they think is the format which is crawling in traffic and which does the soaring, but we think we can guess. This month Microsoft has been trying to show how friendly it is to the ODF by instructing its new Linux chums Novell, Xandros, Linspire and Turbolinuxto come up with some conversion software between OpenXML and the ODF. The problem is that if Robertson and Paoli's early claim is correct would be theoretically impossible to convert a plane into a car? If Open XML is so complex it would be a bugger to convert into something as simple as ODF. Unless they have got it all wrong of course. More here. http://fsfeurope.org/documents/msooxml-questions -- Georg C. F. Greve <greve(a)fsfeurope.org> Free Software Foundation Europe (http://fsfeurope.org) Join the Fellowship and protect your freedom! (http://www.fsfe.org) What everyone should know about DRM (http://DRM.info) -- Nagarjuna G. http://www.gnowledge.org/ http://www.hbcse.tifr.res.in/Data/Objects/n/nagarjun/viewObject -- Nagarjuna G. http://www.gnowledge.org/ http://www.hbcse.tifr.res.in/Data/Objects/n/nagarjun/viewObject

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The MS-OOXML converter hoax
by Anivar Aravind 17 Jul '07

17 Jul '07

The converter hoax Instead Microsoft focusses on MS-OOXML, which it promotes on the grounds of technical superiority and wider range of features. But if Microsoft's claims to technical superiority of MS-OOXML over ODF are true, how could one ever be converted perfectly into the other? Microsoft maintains that while it would have been easy to support the Open Document Format (ODF) natively, it had to move to MS-OOXML because this was the only way for them to offer the full features of its office suite. But if Microsoft itself is not able to represent its internal data structures in the Open Document Format (ODF) in its Microsoft Office suite, how could an external conversion program from MS-OOXML accomplish this task? The answer to both questions is that it is not possible because two things cannot be the same and different at the same time. Read More At http://www.heise.de/open/artikel/92735 -- Anivar Aravind moving Republic Peringavu.P.O Thrissur-18 Kerala http://anivar.movingrepublic.org/about

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Higher Education(was:Microsoft to set up university in (Bangalore)city)
by Vikram Vincent 17 Jul '07

17 Jul '07

Hello, I thought that I'd put forward some of the important points I've been going through on the issue. The Kothari commission of 1964 correctly elucidates the basic objectives and functions of universities and their role in national life: "A university stands for humanism, for tolerance, for reason, for the adventure of ideas and for the search of truth. It stands for the onward march of the human race towards even higher objectives. If the universities discharge their duties adequately, then it is well with the nation and the people... Their principal object is to deepen man's understanding of the universe and himself - in body mind and spirit, to disseminate this understanding throughout society and to apply it in the service of mankind... They are the dwelling places of ideas and idealism, and expect high standards of conduct and integrity from all the members.. Theirs is the pursuit of truth and excellence in all its diversity" ----- The Dr. S Radhakrishnan Commission suggested that the Govt. spending on education (Immediately after Independence) should be as follows: 6% of GDP, 10% of Central budget. Additional we need around 30% of State budget. ----- "The public spending - Central and State - on higher education has indeed been low, amounting to less than half a per cent of GDP over the last two decades, even though the Govt. itself targets a spending rate of 1.5% of GDP." "Normally, obtaining and adopting the nomenclature "university" in India has its regulatory implications. Section 2(f) of the UGC Act, 1956, defines a University to mean an institution established or incorporated by or under a Central Act, a Provincial Act or a State Act. Going by this section, for an institution to identify itself as a university in India, it would have to be set up by a Central or provincial legislative Act." "There is one other route to university status. based on the recommendations of the Radhakrishna Commission a provision was included under section 3 in the UGC Act that institutions which have a distinct character of their own could be deemed to be a university and enjoy the concomitant privileges without losing their distinctive character." ...... "While foreign providers can use these routes to obtain university status, there are two implications they would have to take into account. First, since a university has either to be established by an Act or be deemed to be an university by th University Grants Commission, they would be subject to the regulatory system for formal "universities" as it evolves through the interventions by the executive and the judiciary. There cannot be a framework that applies to foreign universities which is any less regulatory or more open than what applies to domestic private universities." "This environment may undermine the fundamental objective driving foreign entry... In their search for profit and repatriation, they are bound to make a case under the ongoing GATS negotiation... " --C.P . Chandrashekar,"A foreign hand" ----- Socio-cultural implications The report of the 'Policy Perspective Seminar On Internationalisation Of Higher Education And Operation Of Foreign Universities In India' states: "Though this idea sounds well and high, but in practice it might as well result in selected flow of information/knowledge and skills from one set of countries to another set of countries in one direction whether in single or multi-disciplines subjects. If this happens then it might as well result in draining of resources of receiving country as well as strong cultural and political influences by one set of countries on other set of countries." ----- There is a bit on conditions for entry and functioning but more on that later. Regards Vincent

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symposium on copyleft revolution in a conference on critical geography
by Nagarjuna G. 17 Jul '07

17 Jul '07

Dear friends, I proposed a symposium on copyleft revolution to this conference to be held in Mumbai at TISS from 3rd till 7th of Dec 2007. http://www.5thiccg.org/ Those of you want to speak in the symposium, please submit your proposals before the end of 20th August 2007. The shape of the session will be confirmed by 3rd of September 2007. The symposium will accommodate about five speakers on the panel, and the total duration including at least half-an-hour discussion will be about 2 hours. Copyleft Revolution In the last thirty years the role and significance of Information and Communication Technology have grown significantly, reconfiguring the spatial logic of modern society. However, it has not remained an equally accessed base and gone under the control of a few global corporations that are investing billions of dollars for its modernisation, impacting the process of knowledge construction and dissemination for a small section of the society and thereby transforming other fields of human creativity. As a response to the above hegemonistic framework, a parallel cultural and political movement is under way that is growing at an unprecedented pace and influencing the way how science, software and other kinds of symbolic forms are created, published and distributed. Popularly known as the Copyleft culture, it is essentially a Free Software Movement that took off by an innovative use of the existing copyright and by publishing software under a copyleft license. This license is meant to give four fundamental rights to the user of the software published under the copyleft license: to use it for any purpose, to understand how it works, to make modifications, and to distribute the modifications. One of the major outcomes of this revolution is the GNU/Linux operating system (popularly known by its misnomer, Linux). The copyleft movement is currently transforming other fields of human creativity as well---science, poetry, music, cinema and other symbolic forms. Of these, the most popular success story is Wikipedia.org, the largest multilingual encyclopedia of the world. There are other, not yet fully fructified, movements such as public library of science, open access, creative commons, open music, etc. The proposed session aims at generating awareness about the Copyleft movement in general, and discussing its relation to science and education in particular. While challenging the patent and other similar systems, it also intends to deliberate on a new model of development of ICT, centered around collaboration and sharing among different communities. Contact address : Nagarjuna G, Homi Bhabha Centre for Science Education Mumbai, India, nagarjun(a)gnowledge.org -- Nagarjuna G.

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Microsoft to set up university in (Bangalore)city
by Vikram Vincent 17 Jul '07

17 Jul '07

Hello, Is this a sign that the Free Software Movement is growing in Bangalore??? I think that we need to seriously reassess our Movement and work to build it further and faster. Bangalore has a *huge* potential to build the Movement and it only needs us to put in our 2 drops of sweat. "BANGALORE: Microsoft Corporation has chosen Bangalore for its first-ever exclusive and independent educational venture in the world. The company will set up a university in the city to impart high-end computer education. The university may well be India's first run by a multinational company." http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/2196363.cms Continuing I have some observations on the issue. With education becoming a multi-billion dollar industry and India occupying a huge part of that pie the proposed entry of a "University of Microsoft" assumes a huge significance particularly since the effects of rampant commercialisation of education is becoming more and more obvious. So how is this argument significant on a Free Software list? Well, while the Supreme Court declared that the 112 private universities set up under the Chattisgarh Private Universities Act were illegal, this was only on technical grounds. It was on the grounds that the UGC was not consulted, nor were the guidelines to set up a Pvt University followed. However, we are witnessing efforts by the Govt. to remove these hurdles and allow FDI(foreign direct investment) in education. Now personally I have experienced the effects of commercialisation of education with my college where I started my Engineering studies being forced to close shop due to the lack of basic facilities. While a "University of Microsoft" may provide ideal conditions for "education" it will set a precedent for other fly-by-night operators to come here and set shop. The Kothari commission of 1964 correctly elucidates the basic objectives and functions of universities and their role in national life: "A university stands for humanism, for tolerance, for reason, for the adventure of ideas and for the search of truth. It stands for the onward march of the human race towards even higher objectives. If the universities discharge their duties adequately, then it is well with the nation and the people... Their principal object is to deepen man's understanding of the universe and himself - in body mind and spirit, to disseminate this understanding throughout society and to apply it in the service of mankind... They are the dwelling places of ideas and idealism, and expect high standards of conduct and integrity from all the members.. Theirs is the pursuit of truth and excellence in all its diversity" Now IMHO this captures the essence of the "University of Free Software". The FSF needs to act immediately and come out a detailed stand on the issue. Perhaps the FSF-I leadership could throw more light on the issue. -- Regards Vikram Vincent +919448810822 Project Engineer, NRCFOSS, AU-KBC http://groups.google.com/group/bangalore_alive/ http://fci.wikia.com/wiki/Campaign_to_promote_free_software_in_karnataka

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OOXML Fails to Gain Approval in US
by Santhosh Thottingal 16 Jul '07

16 Jul '07

Read http://www.robweir.com/blog/2007/07/ooxml-fails-to-gain-approval-in-us.html -Santhosh

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FOSSAG
by Mani A 15 Jul '07

15 Jul '07

FYI FOSS4G http://www.foss4g2007.org/ The annual Free and Open Source Software for Geospatial (FOSS4G) conference brings together the people who create, use, and support open spatial software. No other event brings together members of the open source development, open data creation, and open standards promotion communities like FOSS4G. Find out more <http://www.foss4g2007.org/about_foss4g/> about FOSS4G. Best A. Mani -- A. Mani Member, Cal. Math. Soc

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Touchpad response very slow
by ashish ranjan 15 Jul '07

15 Jul '07

I installed Debian version: 4.0 Etch on a Dell inspiron 6000 laptop. The touch pad response is very slow and it is almost impossible to work with the touch pad. USB mouse works fine. Can someone help? thanks, ashish -- Last ball. 3 runs to win. What a shot! They are running... One...four! India!! oneforindia.org

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Fsf-friends July 2007