[WSIS CS-Plenary] General Applicability of Open Source Methods

[Taran Rampersad]

As someone involved with the Wikipedia, and as someone who deals with
Free content, Open Content, Free Software, Open Source and so forth,
your other comments concern me and I would like to better understand
what you are talking about.


MJ Ray wrote:

>WJM forwarded:
>  
>
>>This open and collaborative approach to creating knowledge has produced
>>remarkable results, such as the Linux operating system and the web-based
>>encyclopaedia Wikipedia. In defiance of the conventional wisdom of
>>modern business, open source methods have led the main underlying
>>innovations around the Internet.
>>    
>>
>
>Lest anyone forget, neither Wikipedia nor the IETF RFCs are open
>source in the full sense yet.
>
The Wikipedia is, actually, Open Source as MediaWiki is Open Source:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia#Software_and_hardware
The Wikipedia content is Free Content:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia
The definition of Free Content, while presently under dispute at the
Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Free_content ), is definitively
different from 'Open Source' or 'Free Software' in that Free Software
is... software.

The IETF (Internet Engineering Task Force) RFCs may not be all *Open
Standards*, but there are implementations within Software Libre and Open
Source.

While some may hold their heads and talk about semantics at this point,
it is important to note that the words 'Open' and 'Free' are only
descriptors. They mean nothing by themselves, and are subjective in
their use - in any language. And this is important because, apparently,
people get confused and expect things to work within the confines of a
different subject ('Source' or 'Software') when dealing with some things
that are different ('Standards' and 'Content').

A green plant would be considered normal. A green person would not. :-)

> Wikipedia has restrictions on
>what devices you can distribute it to (amongst other things)
>  
>
Please point me at where the Wikipedia license takes this stance.

>and the IETF standards (which drive the Internet) are mostly not
>modifiable for purposes outside the IETF processes. I remain
>hopeful that both will be repaired before it's a problem.
>  
>
I hope you bring this up with the IETF, because I don't know any
specific examples of which you could be speaking. Could you expand on this?

-- 
Taran Rampersad
Presently in: Panama City, Panama
cnd at knowprose.com

http://www.knowprose.com
http://www.easylum.net
http://www.digitaldivide.net/profile/Taran

"Criticize by creating." — Michelangelo