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City wants software freedom for all
Devidas Deshpande
Posted On Friday, September 18, 2009 at 11:47:30 PM
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There are three types of software, you can buy and use it, you can download and use for free and the third is where you could dowload it, modify the code and upload it for others to use. Microsoft products fall in the first category, Google Chrome and Firefox are the second type and plug-ins for both these browsers fall in the third category. All are legal methods. In a monopolised market, a leading software company is sometimes forced upon a consumer and then options left are, to buy or use a pirated version. Members of Lokayat want to do away with this system. They think when the open source movement (offering open accesibility to the code of the sofware) is gaining ground, organisations which till now fought against industries and trade have come up against the proprietary softwares. Announcing programs for SFD, Lokayat on Friday issued a roadmap for countering monopoly of big companies. They will mark this day by not using softwares like Windows, Adobe Photoshop etc. Rishikesh Yewalekar, Neeraj Jain and Vaibhav Gupta of the organisation said, “SFD is a worldwide celebration of Free and Open Source Software (FOSS). The goal is to educate the public about ethical reasons and benefits of using high quality FOSS. Rishikesh told Mirror, “Copyright and patent laws kill creativity and development. Innovation takes place when more people have knowledge and share. Earlier, more than 30,000 varieties of rice grew in India. But after the green revolution agricultural research takes place in a few labs. Now, less than 100 varieties are researched upon and cultivated. The idea of patent in case of software is absurd. Most software programs or their parts are common sense solutions. You never know when you accidentally use a patented idea, and end up in jail.” On Saturday, the organisation has organised a workshop at Lokayat Hall near Nal Stop. A presentation on open source softwares like Firefox will be made, besides screening of a documentary. The organisers say, “We are working to promote GNU Linux and other “Free” software in colleges. We have conducted seminars and are planning to build network of technocrats to support the adaption of GNU (General Public License) Linux by various sections of society.” |
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