Aufruf zur Auswertung: Kleine Anfrage zum Auswärtigen Amt

Die Grünen im Bundestag haben kleine Anfrage zu Thema "Freie Software im Auswärtigen Amt" (pdf) gestellt. Die Bundesregierung hat diese Anfrage nun beantwortet.

Die FSFE hat die Rückmigration des Auswärtigen Amtes zu unfreier Software seit langem kritisch begleitet. Wir rufen nun alle Interessierten dazu auf, die Antwort der Bundesregierung gemeinsam mit uns öffentlich auszuwerten.

"Die angeblichen Vorteile unfreier Software, mit denen die Bundesregierung die Abkehr vom Freie-Software-Kurs im Auswärtigen Amt begründete, sind offenbar nicht eingetroffen", sagt Karsten Gerloff, Präsident der Free Software Foundation Europe. "Eine schlüssige Begründung für die Rückkehr zu einem proprietären Betriebssystem im AA bleibt uns die Bundesregierung weiter schuldig."

Mehr Hintergrund zu der Anfrage gibt es in einem Artikel des Bundestagsabgeordneten Konstantin von Notz.

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A cautious welcome to the EC's new Free Software strategy

The European Commission has published a new version of its strategy for the internal use of Free Software. The strategy now covers the 2014-2017 timeframe. FSFE has provided extensive input to the Commission during the update process.

While the strategy is broadly similar to the previous version, there are a number of marked improvements:

A more determined attitude to Free Software. This is a minimum requirement for the strategy to have at least some impact in an environment where proprietary software is deeply entrenched. The new strategy talks about creating "a level playing field" for Free Software, and giving it "active and fair consideration".

An approach to Open Standards that goes beyond the watered-down revision of the European Interoperability Framework: "the Commission shall promote the use of products that support recognised, well-documented and preferably open technical specifications that can be freely adopted, implemented and extended".

A commitment to make it easier for Commission developers to participate in external Free Software communities.

"This document is essentially a statement of intent by the Commission," says FSFE's president Karsten Gerloff. "There are many actions the Commission could take to make use of the advantages offered by Free Software and Open Standards - procurement practices come to mind. That said, the new strategy represents a change for the better, and we are happy to see the Commission moving in the right direction."

Crucially, the strategy is accompanied by an action plan aimed at putting it into practice, unlike previous versions. However, the action plan is not public, so it is not possible to assess the Commission's progress towards its own goals. FSFE hopes that the Commission will eventually publish the action plan.

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FSFE supports Hellwig's GPL compliance lawsuit

FSFE welcomes the action which Christoph Hellwig and the Software Freedom Conservancy are taking to bring VMware into compliance with the GNU General Public License.

FSFE's president Karsten Gerloff comments: "Free Software is a public resource, and it is governed by legal rules and social norms. Anyone who draws on this resource without respecting those rules and norms does damage to the community at large. The great majority of such problems are successfully resolved through dialogue and goodwill. It is only when dialogue fails that legal steps become necessary in order to protect this resource which we all share.

While FSFE regrets that this lawsuit has arisen, we believe that safeguarding Free Software against those who try to appropriate for themselves what belongs to us all is of the utmost importance.

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Joint statement : Maximising inclusiveness and engagement through the use of Open Standards in the European Commission

Today is Document Freedom Day, the international day to celebrate and raise awareness of Open Standards. On this occasion, we would like to reflect on the importance for public institutions in general, and for the European Commission in particular, considering its leadership role, of using Open Standards in all their digital communication and services.

Open Standards are formats and protocols which everybody can use free of charge and restriction and for which no specific software from a particular vendor is required. They are essential for interoperability and freedom of choice based on the merits of different software applications. For a public institution such as the European Commission, this is especially important because every EU citizen and company should have the right to communicate and interact with its administration using Open Standards exclusively, and not be forced to install and use software from any specific vendor. That is why we take this opportunity of Document Freedom Day, to voice our concerns on the improper use of standards in the context of applying for EU programmes.

Nowadays, when applying for most EU programmes, applicants are typically required to fill in PDF forms that use elements only implemented in proprietary software from a particular vendor (Adobe), software that is currently not available on all platforms. This is a problem for many applicants who end up bereft of choice or excluded from the process altogether. It does not have to be this way, when a number of efficient alternatives exist that are entirely based on Open Standards. Generally, we would advise against the use of PDF for online forms, and would instead recommend solutions based Open Web Standards like HTML5 and XForms. With this joint statement, we call on the European Commission to address this situation and ensure that all interactions with the public can be performed entirely using Open Standards, thereby ensuring maximum inclusiveness and freedom of choice for all European citizens.

Signatories :

Jean-Christophe Becquet, President, April

Karsten Gerloff, President, Free Software Foundation Europe (FSFE)

Andreas Krisch, President, European Digital Rights (EDRi)

Graham Taylor, CEO, OpenForum Europe (OFE)

Peter Ganten, Chairman of the board, Open Source Business Alliance (OSBA)

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Worldwide more than 50 events about Open Standards

On March 25 is this years Document Freedom Day and, depending on your time zone, it has already started. Document Freedom Day is the global campaign for document liberation by local groups throughout the world. So far more than 50 groups registered their events in over 25 countries ranging from Asia, Europa, Africa, to South and North America.

Open Standards are crucial to ensure that different computer systems can work together, and that users can access documents regardless of the computing platform or device they use. They are the foundation of the Internet and the World Wide Web as well as all kinds of technical communication.

Every year, on the last Wednesday of March and the days around, people highlight these important aspects of our digital sovereignity by celebrating Document Freedom Day. In 2015, Document Freedom Day is happening around the world beginning on Tuesday 24, 12 UTC until Thursday, 12UTC. Following the path of the sun, the first events are happening in Japan, Taiwan and India, followed by more than 20 events in Europe, 1 in Africa, and more than 20 in North- and South America. Taken together, all these events make DFD the biggest campaign to promote Open Standards on a local level.

And Document Freedom Day is growing even beyond: In the past years, Document Freedom Day achieved to establish a view on technological boundaries and freedoms under social aspects. More and more, Document Freedom Day is becoming a day to raise political attention also on a national level or global. In 2015, different organisations will use Document Freedom Day to publish and spread political statements. If you are not close to any event or you miss the time to pass by, watch out #DFD2015 in the news, blogs and media, participate and help to get the world interconnected in freedom.

You can still participate: use this day to invite your friends or work mates for a drink or a coffee break and tell them about the international day of Open Standards and why Open Standards are important to you - and for everyone.

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