# articles

title: Friday Free Software Directory IRC meetup time: May 11th starting at 12:00 p.m. EDT/16:00 UTC
uri: Friday-Free-Software-Directory-IRC-meetup-time-May-11th-starting-at-1
feed_id:
http://www.fsf.org/blogs/directory/friday-free-software-directory-irc-meetup-time-may-11th-starting-at-12-00-p-m-edt-16-00-utc-1

url:
http://www.fsf.org/blogs/directory/friday-free-software-directory-irc-meetup-time-may-11th-starting-at-12-00-p-m-edt-16-00-utc-1

content:
<p>Help improve the <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/">Free Software Directory</a> by adding new
entries and updating existing ones. Every Friday we meet on IRC
in the <a href="irc://irc.gnu.org/fsf">#fsf channel on irc.freenode.org</a>.</p>
<p>Tens of thousands of people visit <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/">directory.fsf.org</a> each
month to discover free software. Each entry in the Directory
contains a wealth of useful information, from basic category and
descriptions, to providing detailed info about version control,
IRC channels, documentation, and licensing info that has been
carefully checked by FSF staff and trained volunteers.</p>
<p>When a user comes to the Directory, they know that everything in
it is free software, has only free dependencies, and runs on a
free OS. With over 16,000 entries, it is a massive repository of
information about free software.</p>
<p>While the Directory has been and continues to be a great resource
to the world for many years now, it has the potential to be a
resource of even greater value. But it needs your help! And since
it's a MediaWiki instance, it's easy for anyone to edit and
contribute to the Directory.</p>
<p>On May 11, 1981, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bob_Marley">Bob Marley</a> died from cancer. Whether you're a fan or not,
his cultural significance cannot be underplayed. For many, he is seen as a
iconic proponent of peace and love. This week, the directory will honor Bob Marley with a focus on freshening up the <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/wiki/Category/Audio">music software</a>.</p>
<p>If you are eager to help, and you can't wait or are simply unable to
make it onto IRC on Friday, our <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/wiki/FSD:Participate">participation guide</a> will provide
you with all the information you need to get started on helping the
Directory today! There are also weekly <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/wiki/Free_Software_Directory:Meetings">Directory Meeting pages</a>
that everyone is welcome to contribute to before, during, and after
each meeting. To see the meeting start time in your time zone, run
this in GNU bash: date --date='TZ="America/New_York" 12:00 this Fri'</p>


title: Friday Free Software Directory IRC meetup time: May 18th starting at 12:00 p.m. EDT/16:00 UTC
uri: Friday-Free-Software-Directory-IRC-meetup-time-May-18th-starting-at-1
feed_id:
http://www.fsf.org/blogs/directory/friday-free-software-directory-irc-meetup-time-may-18th-starting-at-12-00-p-m-edt-16-00-utc

url:
http://www.fsf.org/blogs/directory/friday-free-software-directory-irc-meetup-time-may-18th-starting-at-12-00-p-m-edt-16-00-utc

content:
<p>Help improve the <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/">Free Software Directory</a> by adding new
entries and updating existing ones. Every Friday we meet on IRC
in the <a href="irc://irc.gnu.org/fsf">#fsf channel on irc.freenode.org</a>.</p>
<p>Tens of thousands of people visit <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/">directory.fsf.org</a> each
month to discover free software. Each entry in the Directory
contains a wealth of useful information, from basic category and
descriptions, to providing detailed info about version control,
IRC channels, documentation, and licensing info that has been
carefully checked by FSF staff and trained volunteers.</p>
<p>When a user comes to the Directory, they know that everything in
it is free software, has only free dependencies, and runs on a
free OS. With over 16,000 entries, it is a massive repository of
information about free software.</p>
<p>While the Directory has been and continues to be a great resource
to the world for many years now, it has the potential to be a
resource of even greater value. But it needs your help! And since
it's a MediaWiki instance, it's easy for anyone to edit and
contribute to the Directory.</p>
<p>During this week in 1928, Mickey Mouse made his first appearance
in the cartoon <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plane_Crazy">Plane Crazy</a>. However, his first appearance before the public was officially in the short <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steamboat_Willie">Steamboat
Willie</a>, since it was released first. 70 years later, Mickey became infamous in a new way: as the derisive namesake of the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copyright_Term_Extension_Act">US Copyright
Term Extension Act (CTEA) of 1998</a>, which extended, and thereby
harmonized the US and EU length of copyright.</p>
<p>To honor this dubious milestone, the theme of the Directory meeting is <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/wiki/Category/Graphics">graphics and drawing software</a>.
One immediate item that needs a refresh is <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/wiki/Gimp">GIMP</a>. The
other big drawing projects could be helped by adding screenshots
and updating the entries.  Of course, if you know of any projects that aren't
listed, we hope you will take the time to add them to the Directory.</p>
<p>If you are eager to help, and you can't wait or are simply unable to
make it onto IRC on Friday, our <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/wiki/FSD:Participate">participation guide</a> will provide
you with all the information you need to get started on helping the
Directory today! There are also weekly <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/wiki/Free_Software_Directory:Meetings">Directory Meeting pages</a>
that everyone is welcome to contribute to before, during, and after
each meeting. To see the meeting start time in your time zone, run
this in GNU bash: date --date='TZ="America/New_York" 12:00 this Fri'</p>


title: Friday Free Software Directory IRC meetup time: May 25th starting at 12:00 p.m. EDT/16:00 UTC
uri: Friday-Free-Software-Directory-IRC-meetup-time-May-25th-starting-at-1
feed_id:
http://www.fsf.org/blogs/directory/friday-free-software-directory-irc-meetup-time-may-25th-starting-at-12-00-p-m-edt-16-00-utc

url:
http://www.fsf.org/blogs/directory/friday-free-software-directory-irc-meetup-time-may-25th-starting-at-12-00-p-m-edt-16-00-utc

content:
<p>Help improve the <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/">Free Software Directory</a> by adding new
entries and updating existing ones. Every Friday we meet on IRC
in the <a href="irc://irc.gnu.org/fsf">#fsf channel on irc.freenode.org</a>.</p>
<p>Tens of thousands of people visit <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/">directory.fsf.org</a> each
month to discover free software. Each entry in the Directory
contains a wealth of useful information, from basic category and
descriptions, to providing detailed info about version control,
IRC channels, documentation, and licensing info that has been
carefully checked by FSF staff and trained volunteers.</p>
<p>When a user comes to the Directory, they know that everything in
it is free software, has only free dependencies, and runs on a
free OS. With over 16,000 entries, it is a massive repository of
information about free software.</p>
<p>While the Directory has been and continues to be a great resource
to the world for many years now, it has the potential to be a
resource of even greater value. But it needs your help! And since
it's a MediaWiki instance, it's easy for anyone to edit and
contribute to the Directory.</p>
<p>40 years ago, American management consultant <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glass_ceiling">Marilyn Loden</a> first
coined the term "glass ceiling" to describe invisible career barriers
for women at a panel discussion. Despite the passing of two
generations, <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-42026266">Loden notes</a> that the matter is still very alive,
which readily displays how insidious a problem we have. To honor Loden's contribution, this week's theme for the Directory meetup is business software.</p>
<p>If you are eager to help, and you can't wait or are simply unable to
make it onto IRC on Friday, our <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/wiki/FSD:Participate">participation guide</a> will provide
you with all the information you need to get started on helping the
Directory today! There are also weekly <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/wiki/Free_Software_Directory:Meetings">Directory Meeting pages</a>
that everyone is welcome to contribute to before, during, and after
each meeting. To see the meeting start time in your time zone, run
this in GNU bash: date --date='TZ="America/New_York" 12:00 this Fri'</p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/gnu-spotlight-with-mike-gerwitz-18-new-gnu-releases
title: GNU Spotlight with Mike Gerwitz: 18 new GNU releases!
uri: GNU-Spotlight-with-Mike-Gerwitz-18-new-GNU-releases
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/gnu-spotlight-with-mike-gerwitz-18-new-gnu-releases
content:
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/artanis/">artanis-1.2.5</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/emms/">emms-5.0</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/fontopia/">fontopia-1.8.4</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/freeipmi/">freeipmi-1.6.2</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/gama/">gama-2.00</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/gcc/">gcc-8.1.0</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/gnudos/">gnudos-1.11.4</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/gnupg/">gnupg-2.2.7</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/gnurl/">gnurl-7.60.0</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/guile-cv/">guile-cv-0.1.9</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/libidn2/">libidn2-2.0.5</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/librejs/">librejs-7.14.1</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/linux-libre/">linux-libre-4.16.11-gnu</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/mcsim/">mcsim-6.0.1</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/nano/">nano-2.9.7</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/octave/">octave-4.4.0</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/parallel/">parallel-20180522</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/wget/">wget-1.19.5</a></li>
</ul>
<p>For announcements of most new GNU releases, subscribe to the info-gnu
mailing list: <a href="https://lists.gnu.org/mailman/listinfo/info-gnu">https://lists.gnu.org/mailman/listinfo/info-gnu</a>.</p>
<p>To download: nearly all GNU software is available from
<a href="https://ftp.gnu.org/gnu/">https://ftp.gnu.org/gnu/</a>, or preferably one of its mirrors from
<a href="https://www.gnu.org/prep/ftp.html">https://www.gnu.org/prep/ftp.html</a>. You can use the URL
<a href="https://ftpmirror.gnu.org/">https://ftpmirror.gnu.org/</a> to be automatically redirected to a
(hopefully) nearby and up-to-date mirror.</p>
<p>A number of GNU packages, as well as the GNU operating system as a
whole, are looking for maintainers and other assistance: please see
<a href="https://www.gnu.org/server/takeaction.html#unmaint">https://www.gnu.org/server/takeaction.html#unmaint</a> if you'd like to
help. The general page on how to help GNU is at
<a href="https://www.gnu.org/help/help.html">https://www.gnu.org/help/help.html</a>.</p>
<p>If you have a working or partly working program that you'd like
to offer to the GNU project as a GNU package, see
<a href="https://www.gnu.org/help/evaluation.html">https://www.gnu.org/help/evaluation.html</a>.</p>
<p>As always, please feel free to write to us at <a href="mailto:maintainers@gnu.org">&#109;&#97;&#105;&#110;&#116;&#97;&#105;&#110;&#101;&#114;&#115;&#64;&#103;&#110;&#117;&#46;&#111;&#114;&#103;</a>
with any GNUish questions or suggestions for future installments.</p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/success-for-net-neutrality-success-for-free-software
title: Success for net neutrality, success for free software
uri: Success-for-net-neutrality-success-for-free-software
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/success-for-net-neutrality-success-for-free-software
content:
<p>We've had great success with the United States Senate <a href="https://www.theverge.com/2018/5/16/17357592/net-neutrality-senate-vote-cra-reinstate-fcc-rules">voting in
support of net neutrality</a>! Congratulations and thank you to
everyone in the US for contacting your congresspeople, and all of you
who helped spread the word.</p>
<p>However, it's not over yet. Here are more actions you can take if
you're in the United States.</p>
<p>Now that the (CRA) has passed the Senate, it moves to the House of Representatives.  Just as we asked you to call your senators, now it's time to call your House representatives. <a href="https://www.house.gov/representatives/find-your-representative">Find their contact info here</a> and use the script below to ask them to support the reinstatement of net neutrality protections.</p>
<p>The timing hasn't been set for future votes and hearings yet, but
that's no reason to wait: make sure your representatives know how you
feel.</p>
<p>Looking for a sample script?</p>
<p><em>Hello,</em></p>
<p><em>I live in CITY/STATE. I am calling to urge you to support net
neutrality.</em></p>
<p><em>I hope REPRESENTATIVE will do the right thing and vote for the CRA to
overturn the FCC's repeal of net neutrality protections.</em></p>
<p><em>Thank you for your time.</em></p>
<p><strong>Want some bonus points?</strong></p>
<p>If your senator voted in support of the CRA, call and thank them for
their work. (See a list of senators and their votes <a href="https://www.cnet.com/news/senate-votes-to-restore-net-neutrality-heres-how-every-senator-voted/">here</a>.)</p>
<ul>
<li>
<p>Call your senator directly. <a href="https://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm">Find their number here</a>.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Or, dial the Senate at <strong>(202) 224-3121</strong> and they will connect you.</p>
</li>
</ul>
<p>We'll be updating you as things develop.</p>
<p><strong>Share on social media!</strong></p>
<p>Tell your friends by sharing on social media! Use the hashtags
<em>netneutrality</em> and <em>freesoftware</em>.</p>
<h3>Net neutrality in the US is a global issue</h3>
<p>Even if you don't live in the US, what happens with net neutrality
here still matters to you.</p>
<p>When companies -- and free software projects -- within the US are
burdened by extra fees being charged by Internet Service Providers
(ISPs), everyone in the world loses access to these pages and
services. For example, <a href="http://www.siliconcaribe.com/2014/07/07/defending-an-open-caribbean-internet/">blocking VoIP services</a> in one country
affects communication at a global scale. Access to the tools we use to
build, download, and share free software are at risk when net
neutrality is no longer there to protect them -- and users -- from
ISPs controlling access to those sites.</p>
<h3>Read these posts by the Free Software Foundation (FSF)</h3>
<p>Want to know even more? Check out these posts from the FSF.</p>
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/its-not-over-take-action-for-net-neutrality-today">It's not over! Take action for net neutrality today!</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/onemorevote-is-needed-to-save-net-neutrality">OneMoreVote is needed to save net neutrality</a> <a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/free-software-needs-net-neutrality-this-is-our-last-chance-to-save-it">Free software 
needs net neutrality! This is our LAST CHANCE to save it</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/take-action-for-net-neutrality">Protect software freedom: Support net neutrality</a></li>
</ul>
<p><em>Looking for more ways to support digital rights? Consider becoming an
 [FSF member][12] today!</em></p>


title: Friday Free Software Directory IRC meetup time: June 1st starting at 12:00 p.m. EDT/16:00 UTC
uri: Friday-Free-Software-Directory-IRC-meetup-time-June-1st-starting-at-1
feed_id:
http://www.fsf.org/blogs/directory/friday-free-software-directory-irc-meetup-time-june-1st-starting-at-12-00-p-m-edt-16-00-utc

url:
http://www.fsf.org/blogs/directory/friday-free-software-directory-irc-meetup-time-june-1st-starting-at-12-00-p-m-edt-16-00-utc

content:
<p>Help improve the <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/">Free Software Directory</a> by adding new
entries and updating existing ones. Every Friday we meet on IRC
in the <a href="irc://irc.gnu.org/fsf">#fsf channel on irc.freenode.org</a>.</p>
<p>Tens of thousands of people visit <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/">directory.fsf.org</a> each
month to discover free software. Each entry in the Directory
contains a wealth of useful information, from basic category and
descriptions, to providing detailed info about version control,
IRC channels, documentation, and licensing info that has been
carefully checked by FSF staff and trained volunteers.</p>
<p>When a user comes to the Directory, they know that everything in
it is free software, has only free dependencies, and runs on a
free OS. With over 16,000 entries, it is a massive repository of
information about free software.</p>
<p>While the Directory has been and continues to be a great resource
to the world for many years now, it has the potential to be a
resource of even greater value. But it needs your help! And since
it's a MediaWiki instance, it's easy for anyone to edit and
contribute to the Directory.</p>
<p><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_Heimlich">Henry Heimlich</a> published the Heimlich Maneuver in the journal
<em>Emergency Medicine</em> this week in 1974.  This innovation in medical care
proved <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_Heimlich#cite_ref-16">life-saving</a> shortly after the procedure was
published. While innovation in software doesn't actually involve treating patients, being able to store, retrieve, and transfer patient information can prove to be just as crucial in a medical crisis, so this week, we're honoring Heimlich by working on <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/wiki/Category/Biology/health-and-medicine">health and medical
software</a>.<br />
</p>
<p>One dynamic and multifaceted project in this area is
<a href="http://health.gnu.org/">GNU Health</a>.  This project is a Free/Libre project for health
practitioners, health institutions, and governments. It provides
Electronic Medical Record (EMR) functionality, a Hospital Management
(HMIS) module, and a Health Information System (HIS).  The Directory
<a href="https://directory.fsf.org/wiki/Health">entry</a> contains the panoply of information you expect. This is
just one example though: this section in the Directory is large, which
means an opportunity to update entries, and naturally, if one is
missing, its addition would be quite the feather in our cap.</p>
<p>If you are eager to help, and you can't wait or are simply unable to
make it onto IRC on Friday, our <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/wiki/FSD:Participate">participation guide</a> will provide
you with all the information you need to get started on helping the
Directory today! There are also weekly <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/wiki/Free_Software_Directory:Meetings">Directory Meeting pages</a>
that everyone is welcome to contribute to before, during, and after
each meeting. To see the meeting start time in your time zone, run
this in GNU bash: date --date='TZ="America/New_York" 12:00 this Fri'</p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/directory/free-software-directory-meeting-recap-may-2018-1
title: Free Software Directory meeting recap, May 2018
uri: Free-Software-Directory-meeting-recap-May-2018
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/directory/free-software-directory-meeting-recap-may-2018-1
content:
<p>Every week, free software activists from around the world come together
in <a href="irc://irc.gnu.org/fsf">#fsf on irc.freenode.org</a> to help improve the
<a href="https://directory.fsf.org/">Free Software Directory</a>. We had an exciting month working on the
Directory with our wonderful stable of volunteers. These folks show
up week in and week out to improve the Directory. It's also important
to note the valiant efforts of those volunteers who can't make an
appearance at the meeting proper, but still plug away at Directory
entries during the week. </p>
<p>This month saw our backlog of entries reduced by 75%, but the big news is
that the Directory welcomes, and is lucky to have <em><a href="https://directory.fsf.org/wiki/User:David_Hedlund">David_Hedlund</a></em> as a Directory intern this summer.<br />
</p>
<p>One area
that will see improvement is the introduction of a dedicated and
tailored IRC bot addressing the specific needs of the Directory.  This
will better highlight the Directory meetings both before and
during. Work is also going to be done this summer on the entry import
scripts, which among other things allow for the importing of full
repositories into the Directory.</p>
<p>If you would like to help update the Directory, meet with us every
Friday in <a href="irc://irc.gnu.org/fsf">#fsf on irc.freenode.org</a> from 12 p.m. to 3 p.m. EST
(16:00 to 19:00 UTC).</p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/rms/photo-blog-2018-april-montreal-ottawa
uri: April-and-May-2018-Photos-from-Ottawa-during-the-discussion-Two-les
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/rms/photo-blog-2018-april-montreal-ottawa
title:
April and May 2018: Photos from Ottawa, during the discussion "Two lessons from the Phoenix payroll puzzle," and from Montreal, at the Adte's annual colloquium

content:
<!-- Start of image + caption block -->
<div style="border-style:solid; border-width:2px;text-align:left; margin: 4px 50px 4px 50px; padding-top:4px; padding-left:5px; padding-right:5px">

<p>Free Software Foundation president Richard Stallman (RMS) was in
Canada in April and in May 2018 to participate in a couple of
events.</p>

<p>On April 30<sup style="font-size:8px">th</sup>, he was in
<strong>Ottawa,</strong> to support an initiative to create a free
software solution to the Canadian government's employee payroll
debacle.  He and Joseph Potvin, executive director of Xalgorithms
Foundation<sup style="font-size:8px"><a href="#fn1" id="ref1">1</a></sup>, led a breakfast discussion titled "Two lessons
from the Phoenix payroll puzzle: Software freedom & algorithm
accessibility."<sup style="font-size:8px"><a href="#fn2" id="ref1">1</a></sup></p>

<p>Phoenix is the Canadian government's new payroll system, which was
supposed to provide "an employee self-service vehicle to decentralize
data entry and increase access to information"; since its rollout in
2016, however, it has been plagued with malfunctions, which have led
to under-, non-, and over-payments to over 200,000 federal
employees.</p>

<p>The resulting stress and hardship for all affected has been
considerable and, more than two years later, in spite of national
outrage and ballooning costs ($1.2 billion and counting), the system
is still not fixed.</p>

<p>As RMS points out, "Phoenix shows that state use of nonfree
software can create a continuing disaster from which the only escape
is a free replacement."</p>

<p>On May 29<sup style="font-size:8px">th</sup>, 2018, Canada's
auditor general <a href="http://www.oag-bvg.gc.ca/internet/English/parl_oag_201805_01_e_43033.html#p45">reported
on the enormity of the failure</a>.  In the search for the causes of
the problem, few have considered a practical software solution; in
their event on 30<sup style="font-size:8px">th</sup> April, however,
Potvin and RMS did just that: they proposed that (a) nonfree software
being used by a government and (b) inaccessible rules are the two root
causes behind the fiasco.</p>

<p>The auditor general "concluded that the Phoenix project was an
incomprehensible failure of project management and oversight";
however, Potvin, who for six years lead IT expenditure analysis and
reporting for the Chief Information Officer Branch of the Treasury
Board of Canada Secretariat, says, "It's only incomprehensible if the
essential questions are not asked."</p>

<p>Because the Phoenix pay system relies on nonfree software, according to Potvin, the first root cause is that
"the Canadian government does not have the source code for it and, due
to restrictive licensing, can't change suppliers. Nobody beyond the
original contractors are allowed to run a copy of the system
independently, to study how it all works, to run tests on it, or to
adapt it with improvements."</p>

<p>RMS added,</p>

<div align="justify">
<div style="margin-left:30px">
<div style="margin-right:30px">
<blockquote>
Government exists for the people, and does its computing&mdash;all of
it&mdash;for the people. So every public agency's responsibility to
the people includes maintaining control of that computing. Any time
government uses a non-free computer program, then logically, its owner
controls that part of government's computing. We the people must
insist that our government maintain full control of its computing,
and must not let any other party take control of it.
</blockquote>
</div>
</div>
</div>

<p> 
Potvin went on to explain how the second root cause was inaccessible
payroll rules: Not only are they idiosyncratic, poorly documented and
convoluted, but in the Phoenix system each rule is a hard-coded
procedural step instead of being dynamic and declarative. He said,
"They famously claim there are around 80,000 rules. But we say: How
many rule patterns are there?  Less than a hundred?  Maybe two dozen?"
</p>

<p>RMS added that, when it comes to data-driven decision algorithms
that a government uses, there is no accountability unless the
algorithms are published.</p>

<p>Going well past merely analyzing the problem, Xalgorithms
Foundation plans to <i>fix</i> the Phoenix problem with an initiative,
called MyPayChecker (CheckerMaPaye, in French), that "can provide
those employees and payroll officers the most consistently accurate
and transparently documented pay information, while also respecting
their privacy."

<p>According to Potvin,</p>

<div align="justify">
<div style="margin-left:30px">
<div style="margin-right:30px">
<blockquote>
The MyPayChecker Working Group will enable the world’s first
digitally automated collective labor agreement. This means every
clause, deduction and entitlement, and every priority notification,
would be expressed in a transparent computable form in a free/libre
schedule (i.e. annex) to the agreement, in addition to its
conventional expression in natural language text. And each computable
clause would be automatically and accurately discoverable on the
Internet, to be efficiently retrieved without restriction for use in
applicable transactions by at least three independent payroll
platforms.
</blockquote>
</div>
</div>
</div>

<p>Again, Potvin:</p>

<div align="justify">
<div style="margin-left:30px">
<div style="margin-right:30px">
<blockquote>
We're going to throw down the gauntlet and issue a clear challenge to
the companies behind the Phoenix project. We claim that a free
software community can independently finance, create and operate
within a year, a more respectful, more accurate, and more economical
self-service portal for pay validation to support employees and
payroll officers, than those companies can provide within a year.
</blockquote>
</div>
</div>
</div>

<p>According to Xalgorithms Foundation, the "Paycheck Target
Challenge" (« Défi des salaires ciblés »), which Potvin announced
during the breakfast discussion, will begin officially on June 1<sup style="font-size:8px">st</sup>, 2018:</p>

<div align="justify">
<div style="margin-left:30px">
<div style="margin-right:30px">
<blockquote>
Some lead time is required for the rules of this unusual competition
to be discussed and finalized with stakeholders, and to invite other
investors, companies, and technically inclined individuals, including
Canadian Government employees, to collaborate with Xalgorithms Foundation in
making MyPayChecker the service to beat. [...] And if the free
software community wins this bet, the companies behind Phoenix can
adopt it, since MyPayChecker will 100% shared.
</blockquote>
</div>
</div>
</div>

<p>Which Potvin jokingly referred to as being something akin to
"wearing the other team's hockey jersey" and, more seriously, as a
huge incentive.<sup style="font-size:8px"><a href="#fn3" id="ref3">3</a></sup> As the <a href="https://ipolitics.ca/2018/05/29/phoenix-an-incomprehensible-failure-of-project-management-ferguson/&gt;reporting&lt;/a&gt;
&lt;a href=">reporting</a>
<a href="https://www.computerdealernews.com/news/auditor-general-calls-phoenix-pay-system-rollout-an-incomprehensible-failure/59985">this</a>
<a href="http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/union-public-inquiry-phoenix-debacle-1.4682193&gt;past week&lt;/a&gt; has shown, the Phoenix failure is currently a huge issue in Canada, and Xalgorithms Foundation's
challenge could not be coming at a more opportune time.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;Some photos from the breakfast discussion&amp;#8230;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;!-- Image(s) start below --&gt;
&lt;!-- Adjust the width=">past week</a> has shown, the Phoenix failure is currently a huge issue in Canada, and Xalgorithms Foundation's
challenge could not be coming at a more opportune time.</p>

<p>Some photos from the breakfast discussion&#8230;</p>

<!-- Image(s) start below -->
<!-- Adjust the width="150" part to change how wide the image appears on the page  -->

<p style="text-align:center;">
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180430-ottawa/20180430-ottawa-01-thumb.jpg " alt="" width="265" style="margin-top:4px;" />
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180430-ottawa/20180430-ottawa-03-thumb.jpg " alt="" width="265" style="margin-top:4px;" />
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180430-ottawa/20180430-ottawa-02-thumb.jpg " alt="" width="265" style="margin-top:4px;" />
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180430-ottawa/20180430-ottawa-08-thumb.jpg " alt="" width="265" style="margin-top:4px;" />
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180430-ottawa/20180430-ottawa-22-thumb.jpg " alt="" width="540" style="margin-top:4px;" />
</p>

<!-- Photo credits start below --> <p style="padding: 0px 20px 0px 20px; margin-top:1px; text-align:center;"> 
<em>(Copyright &copy; 2018 Mike Gifford (mgifford). Photos licensed under <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY 4.0</a>.)</em>

<br style="margin-bottom:15px;" />

<p>&#8230;and, clockwise from top right, RMS checking e-mail above the Ottawa
river after the event, RMS and Joseph Potvin, and David Graham, a
member of the Canadian Parliament for the riding of
Laurentides-Labelle and an outspoken supporter of free software, who had
attended the breakfast discussion. Three weeks after the event, on May
22<sup style="font-size:8px">th</sup>, 2018, in an appeal in favor of
Net Neutrality, in the House of Commons he <a href="https://openparliament.ca/debates/2018/5/22/david-graham-1/">commented</a>,
"In the words of Richard Stallman, the father of the free software
movement, either the user controls the program or the program controls
the user."</p>

<!-- Image(s) start below -->
<!-- Adjust the width="150" part to change how wide the image appears on the page  -->

<p style="text-align:center;">
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180430-ottawa/20180430-ottawa-24-thumb-cropped.jpg " alt="" width="255" style="margin-top:4px;" />
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180430-ottawa/20180430-ottawa-25-thumb.jpg " alt="" width="275" style="margin-top:4px;" />
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180430-ottawa/20180430-ottawa-26-thumb.jpg " alt="" width="540" style="margin-top:4px;" />
</p>

<!-- Photo credits start below --> <p style="padding: 0px 20px 0px 20px; margin-top:1px; text-align:center;"> 
<em>(Copyright &copy; 2018 Joseph Potvin. Photos licensed under <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY 4.0</a>.)</em>

<br style="margin-bottom:15px;" />

<p>After Ottawa, RMS then headed to <strong>Montreal,</strong> for the
<a href="http://adte.ca/actes-colloque-2018/">5<sup style="font-size:8px">th</sup> free colloquium of the Adte<a></a> (an
association for free software, free science, free educational
resources and free data for colleges and universities).  This was
RMS's second appearance at the event, and he gave his speech "Logiciel
libre et éducation" ("Education and freedom"<sup style="font-size:8px"><a href="#fn4" id="ref1">1</a></sup>).</p>

<!-- Image(s) start below -->
<!-- Adjust the width="150" part to change how wide the image appears on the page  -->

<p style="text-align:center;">
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180502-montreal/20180502-montreal-01.jpg " alt="" width="265" style="margin-top:4px;" />
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180502-montreal/20180502-montreal-02.jpg " alt="" width="265" style="margin-top:4px;" />
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180502-montreal/20180502-montreal-03.jpg " alt="" width="265" style="margin-top:4px;" />
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180502-montreal/20180502-montreal-07.jpg " alt="" width="265" style="margin-top:4px;" />
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180502-montreal/20180502-montreal-10.jpg " alt="" width="265" style="margin-top:4px;" />
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180502-montreal/20180502-montreal-11.jpg " alt="" width="265" style="margin-top:4px;" />
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180502-montreal/20180502-montreal-14.jpg " alt="" width="540" style="margin-top:4px;" />
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180502-montreal/20180502-montreal-13.jpg " alt="" width="265" style="margin-top:4px;" />
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180502-montreal/20180502-montreal-17.jpg " alt="" width="265" style="margin-top:4px;" />
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180502-montreal/20180502-montreal-18.jpg " alt="" width="265" style="margin-top:4px;" />
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180502-montreal/20180502-montreal-19.jpg " alt="" width="265" style="margin-top:4px;" />
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180502-montreal/20180502-montreal-20.jpg " alt="" width="265" style="margin-top:4px;" />
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180502-montreal/20180502-montreal-22.jpg " alt="" width="265" style="margin-top:4px;" />
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180502-montreal/20180502-montreal-23.jpg " alt="" width="540" style="margin-top:4px;" />
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180502-montreal/20180502-montreal-24.jpg " alt="" width="265" style="margin-top:4px;" />
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180502-montreal/20180502-montreal-27.jpg " alt="" width="265" style="margin-top:4px;" />
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180502-montreal/20180502-montreal-26.jpg " alt="" width="540" style="margin-top:4px;" />
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180502-montreal/20180502-montreal-28.jpg " alt="" width="540" style="margin-top:4px;" />
</p>

<!-- Photo credits start below --> <p style="padding: 0px 20px 0px 20px; margin-top:1px; text-align:center;"> 
<em>(Copyright &copy; 2018 Adte.ca. Photos licensed under <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA 4.0</a>.</em>

<p>For all the photos from the event, along with comments, see <a href="https://adte.ca/photos-colloque-2018/">here</a>.</p>

<br style="margin-bottom:15px;" />

<p style="text-align:center;"><strong>Thank you to everyone who made all these trips possible!</strong></p>

<!-- End of image+caption block -->

<p style="text-align:center;">Please fill out our contact form, so
that we can inform you about future events in and around <a href="https://my.fsf.org/civicrm/profile/create?gid=535&amp;reset=1">Ottawa</a>
and <a href="https://my.fsf.org/civicrm/profile/create?gid=316&amp;reset=1">Montreal</a>.</p>

<p style="text-align:center;">Please see <a href="http://www.fsf.org/events">www.fsf.org/events</a> for a full
list of all of RMS's confirmed engagements, <br /> and contact <a href="mailto:rms-assist@gnu.org">rms-assist@gnu.org</a> if you'd like
him to come speak.</p>

<hr /></hr>

<sup id="fn1">1. <a href="https://xalgorithms.org/">Xalgorithms
Foundation</a> convenes the primary Internet of Rules Working Group to
design, produce, test, maintain and document Xalgo, XalgoAuthor,
Lichen, and Interlibr, and to ensure that they operate well as a
loosely-coupled system to express, publish and fetch computational
algorithms on the Internet. As of May 2018 six Working Group charters
are being drafted and discussed with sector stakeholders:</sup>
<ul>
  <sup style="font-size:11px"><li> Xalgo4Trade (for automated inter-jurisdictional trade agreements),</sup>
  <sup style="font-size:11px"><li> MyPayChecker/CheckerMaPaye (automated labour agreements),</sup>
  <sup style="font-size:11px"><li> Benchmarks (for dynamic pricing linked to verifiable reference data),</sup>
  <sup style="font-size:11px"><li> Reciprocal Data (for data empowerment of individuals, and "mutual loyalty"),</sup>
  <sup style="font-size:11px"><li> Industrial Control Systems (for dynamic manufacturing process control),</sup>
  <sup style="font-size:11px"><li> AlgoRisks (for management of algorithm errors and omissions liability risk).</sup>
</ul>
<sup style="font-size:11px">You can see its <a href="https://github.com/Xalgorithms">source code</a>, <a href="https://github.com/Xalgorithms/general-documentation/blob/master/docs/arch-2.0.md">architectural
documentation</a>, and <a href="https://xalgorithms.org/organizational-structure/">organizational
structure</a> ↩</sup><br />

<sup id="fn2">2. See <a href="media/8f5234b6.Xalgorithms_FSF_MyPayChecker-CheckerMaPaye_2018-04-30PDF.pdf" data-original-source="https://xalgorithms.org/wp-content/uploads/Xalgorithms_FSF_MyPayChecker-CheckerMaPaye_2018-04-30PDF.pdf">here</a>
for the event's presentation file.<a href="#ref1" title="Jump back to footnote 1 in the text.">↩</a></sup><br />

<sup id="fn3">3. For more on this, see Xalgorithms's <a href="media/6beb80d8.MEDIA_ADVISORY_PhoenixPayrollPuzzle_2018-04-25PDF.pdf" data-original-source="https://xalgorithms.org/wp-content/uploads/MEDIA_ADVISORY_PhoenixPayrollPuzzle_2018-04-25PDF.pdf">media
advisory</a>.<a href="#ref1" title="Jump back to footnote 1 in the text.">↩</a></sup><br />

<sup id="fn4">4. Slides available <a href="media/a4c659d1.rms-adte-2018.pdf" data-original-source="http://adte.ca/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/rms-adte-2018.pdf">here</a>.<a href="#ref1" title="Jump back to footnote 1 in the
text.">↩</a></sup><br />


title: Friday Free Software Directory IRC meetup time: June 8th starting at 12:00 p.m. EDT/16:00 UTC
uri: Friday-Free-Software-Directory-IRC-meetup-time-June-8th-starting-at-1
feed_id:
http://www.fsf.org/blogs/directory/friday-free-software-directory-irc-meetup-time-june-8th-starting-at-12-00-p-m-edt-16-00-utc

url:
http://www.fsf.org/blogs/directory/friday-free-software-directory-irc-meetup-time-june-8th-starting-at-12-00-p-m-edt-16-00-utc

content:
<p>Help improve the <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/">Free Software Directory</a> by adding new
entries and updating existing ones. Every Friday we meet on IRC
in the <a href="irc://irc.gnu.org/fsf">#fsf channel on irc.freenode.org</a>.</p>
<p>Tens of thousands of people visit <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/">directory.fsf.org</a> each month to
discover free software. Each entry in the Directory contains a wealth
of useful information, from basic category and descriptions, to
providing detailed info about version control, IRC channels,
documentation, and licensing info that has been carefully checked by
FSF staff and trained volunteers.</p>
<p>When a user comes to the Directory, they know that everything in it is
free software, has only free dependencies, and runs on a free OS. With
over 16,000 entries, it is a massive repository of information about
free software.</p>
<p>While the Directory has been and continues to be a great resource to
the world for many years now, it has the potential to be a resource of
even greater value. But it needs your help! And since it's a MediaWiki
instance, it's easy for anyone to edit and contribute to the
Directory.</p>
<p>June 8th 1978, Intel introduced the first 16-bit <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intel_8086">8086 processor</a>
with a maximum speed of 10 MHz. The 8086 is the compatibility in the
"IBM Compatible" PC x86 family. The '86 proved so compatible, in fact,
that some design elements continue in Intel's processors today. This was done
using little to no CAD tools, making the two-year turnaround from inception to production seem especially fast. Noting this, the Directory meeting will focus on the plethora of <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/wiki/Category/Business/cad">CAD entries</a>, many of which need updating.</p>
<p>If you are eager to help, and you can't wait or are simply unable to
make it onto IRC on Friday, our <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/wiki/FSD:Participate">participation guide</a> will provide
you with all the information you need to get started on helping the
Directory today! There are also weekly <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/wiki/Free_Software_Directory:Meetings">Directory Meeting pages</a>
that everyone is welcome to contribute to before, during, and after
each meeting. To see the meeting start time in your time zone, run
this in GNU bash: date --date='TZ="America/New_York" 12:00 this Fri'</p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/how-to-defend-your-encrypted-emails-against-prying-eyes
title: How to defend your encrypted emails against prying eyes
uri: How-to-defend-your-encrypted-emails-against-prying-eyes
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/how-to-defend-your-encrypted-emails-against-prying-eyes
content:
<p>In May, a draft technical paper published at <a href="https://www.efail.de">efail.de</a> recommended
that people stop using GPG plugins to encrypt their email.  At the
same time, the <a href="https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2018/05/attention-pgp-users-new-vulnerabilities-require-you-take-action-now">Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF)</a> <a href="https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2018/05/not-so-pretty-what-you-need-know-about-e-fail-and-pgp-flaw-0">raised the
alarm about</a> seemingly new vulnerabilities in <a href="https://www.gnupg.org/faq/gnupg-faq.html#whats_gnupg">GPG (GNU Privacy
Guard)</a>, echoing the paper's cautionary recommendations. Others
further reduced this recommendation to a simple shorthand: stop
encrypting your email, because it isn't safe. (EFF has since <a href="https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2018/05/how-turn-pgp-back-safely-possible">modified
its recommendations</a>, depending on the mail client and GPG plugin
you use, and with caveats that match some of the suggestions we'll
make here.)</p>
<p>Much of this information isn't new. The issue isn't a flaw in GPG, and
<strong>there is no need to panic or discontinue using GPG</strong>, including for
signing emails or for encrypting and decrypting files outside of your
email client. Here are the facts:</p>
<p>The EFAIL paper describes several methods of attack: "EFAIL abuses
active content of HTML emails, for example externally loaded images or
styles, to exfiltrate plaintext through requested URLs." The attacker
accesses the encrypted emails, "by eavesdropping on network traffic,
compromising email accounts, email servers, backup systems or client
computers. The emails could even have been collected years ago." The
attacker changes the encrypted email, sends it to the recipient, and
if the recipient's mail client decrypts that message and
<strong>automatically</strong> loads any external content, or users <strong>click on HTML
links</strong>, the plaintext of the email is visible to the attacker.</p>
<p>Werner Koch, principal author of GPG, describes the situation
<a href="https://lists.gnupg.org/pipermail/gnupg-users/2018-May/060315.html">here</a>. Calling the warnings to discontinue using GPG "overblown,"
Koch points out that the real issue is that HTML in emails can be
exploited. This is <em>not</em> a bug in GPG.</p>
<h2>Let's work together to make email safer!</h2>
<p>This information has been available for a long time, but bears
repeating: if your mail client renders HTML or automatically loads
images and other remote media, you are more vulnerable. Not only do
the EFAIL exploits take advantage of HTML in email, HTML in your mail
client can allow others to track you. Exploitation of this flaw could
be as simple as seeing whether you have read a particular email, or as
damaging as defrauding you, perhaps by pretending to be your bank or
another merchant you do business with, leading you to provide personal
information or payment to an attacker.</p>
<p><strong>You are better protected if your mail client does not render HTML or
auto-load images and other remote media.</strong> Additionally, do not click
links in HTML emails directly -- copy and paste them so that you can
see what they are first, and if they are obfuscated or shortened
links, don't visit them unless you are very confident in the
source. It is important to encourage your peers to follow these
practices, too, because EFAIL attacks can affect you in spite of the
precautions you've taken, if somebody who is CCed on the email hasn't
taken the proper precautions.</p>
<p><strong>Also, be sure your mail client, or any encryption plugin you use, is
resistant to this exploit.</strong> For example, Enigmail, a GPG plugin that
works with Thunderbird, <a href="https://www.enigmail.net/index.php/en/home/news/66-2018-05-16-efail-vulnerability-affects-encrypted-mails">was updated</a> shortly after the EFAIL
report became public, and an explanation of changes made can be found
<a href="https://sourceforge.net/p/enigmail/bugs/search/?q=status%3Afixed+%26%26+_fixed%3A2.0.4">here</a> -- <strong>note that Enigmail recommends disabling HTML rendering,
too.</strong> Seek out information on how your mail client or encryption
plugin is addressing this situation, and email us at
<a href="mailto:campaigns@fsf.org">&#99;&#97;&#109;&#112;&#97;&#105;&#103;&#110;&#115;&#64;&#102;&#115;&#102;&#46;&#111;&#114;&#103;</a> to share what you find. We may link that
information here.</p>
<p>For now, rather than giving up on encryption, take the time to check
in with people you want to exchange emails with. Start by sending the
person you want to email a cleartext message saying:</p>
<blockquote>

I'd like to send you a message using GPG, but first I want to make
sure that you've updated your version of Enigmail, due to the
potential for exploitation of flawed encryption clients described
here: https://www.efail.de/. Can you confirm that?

Also, disabling HTML and remote loading of media in your email helps
avoid email exploitation: https://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/how-to-defend-your-encrypted-emails-against-prying-eyes.

If everybody takes these steps to make their own email safer, we'll
all benefit from safer communications. Thanks for helping ensure that
our emails stay private.

</blockquote>

<p>This kind of attack only works when the attacker is targeting you
individually <strong>or</strong> if you are writing to someone who is targeted and
is using an unpatched mail client. If you have reason to believe you,
as an individual, could be targeted, you may need to take additional
measures besides those described here. But for most people, it still
makes sense to use GPG encryption to dramatically reduce the
likelihood that any attacker can read your email, and to help boost
the overall amount of encrypted email traffic on the Internet -- a
tactic that helps protect whistleblowers, journalists, and others
whose email traffic is likely to be targeted for exploitation.</p>
<p><strong>Do you want to start encrypting your email, but aren't sure where to
  begin, or help friends get started for the first time?  We've
  created <a href="https://emailselfdefense.fsf.org/en/">Email Self Defense</a> to guide you as you get started with
  GPG encryption.</strong> The guide is kept up to date with responses to
  concerns like those raised in the EFAIL report, to ensure that you
  know exactly how best to keep your email communications safe.</p>
<p><em>Want to support free software? You can <a href="https://my.fsf.org/donate?pk_campaign=efail&amp;pk_kwd=d-web">make a donation</a> or <a href="https://my.fsf.org/join?pk_campaign=efail&amp;pk_kwd=j-web">join
 the Free Software Foundation as an associate member</a>.</em></p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/introducing-david-hedlund-outreachy-intern-with-the-fsf-tech-team
title: Introducing David Hedlund, intern with the FSF tech team
uri: Introducing-David-Hedlund-intern-with-the-FSF-tech-team
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/introducing-david-hedlund-outreachy-intern-with-the-fsf-tech-team
content:
<p>When I was 23 years young, I read the book <em>Free as in Freedom</em>, a
biography of Dr. Richard Stallman (RMS), who is also the founder of the
Free Software Foundation, the GNU Project, and the GNU General Public
License, which all had a great impact on me. I migrated 100% to GNU/Linux
after I read the book, and contacted RMS eagerly. Stallman gave a
positive response to my emails. A few years later, I decided that I
wanted to contribute to the GNU Project, so I wrote GNU Sovix, a Web site
revision system, which I've since retired as a project.</p>
<p>I started to work on the <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/wiki/Main_Page">Free Software Directory</a> in February 2015. I joined the FSF as an intern
starting May 14, 2018, and will work through August 14, 2018 to fix bugs and
work on a data import program that will import data from
addons.mozilla.org and Debian main. I will be blogging about every two weeks,
and I will go into more detail about my work in those posts.</p>


title: Introducing Sonali, Outreachy summer intern with Free Software Foundation
uri: Introducing-Sonali-Outreachy-summer-intern-with-Free-Software-Foundat
feed_id:
http://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/introducing-sonali-outreachy-summer-intern-with-free-software-foundation

url:
http://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/introducing-sonali-outreachy-summer-intern-with-free-software-foundation

content:
<p>I have been accepted as an intern with the Free Software Foundation for the
next three months. My internship is scheduled from May 28th to August 14th
2018. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.outreachy.org/">Outreachy</a> is a great initiative to promote women and other underrepresented
members to participate and contribute in free software. </p>
<p>I am a first year college student. This is my first experience with a free
software organization. I am glad that I got introduced to the FSF so early in
my career. I have worked on the <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/wiki/Main_Page">Free Software Directory</a> for about 2 months now,
which includes 11 contributions and over 700 major and minor edits. </p>
<p>The reason
I am interested in free software is more social than personal. I am a resident
of India, and I see people around me that are exceptionally talented and have
the caliber to progress exponentially. However, they do not have enough money
or resources to do that. I believe that free software, if developed and given
appropriate recognition, has the potential to help such people, not just in
India, but all around the world, to learn and develop, thereby contributing to
the growth of technology. So I believe that if I can contribute even a little
bit to the popularity of free software, then I would be helping millions of
people indirectly. Also, free software will help me to enhance my skills and to
learn, as I can study its source code and easily use or modify it the way I
want to. I think that experimenting is a great way to gain knowledge. </p>
<p>My experience at FSF has been fantastic. The internship here is not like
working <em>with</em> the community, but working <em>as a part of</em> the community. The FSF
staff is very kind and helpful. I am working under the guidance of <a href="https://www.fsf.org/about/staff-and-board/">Andrew
Engelbrecht and Ian Kelling</a>. They are very supportive and polite, and they reply to
my questions actively. It's because of them that I am constantly motivated to
work. I couldn't have found better mentors and a finer organization for my
first internship.<br />
</p>
<p>So far, I have learned how to use IRC and how to edit
MediaWiki. I am also learning to communicate in a free software community, and
to make independent decisions. I've discovered so many interesting programs
that are free software. I now understand the meaning of free software in a
greater depth, and there is an abundance of information here that I've been
able to share with my peers at college. </p>
<p>My first project for the summer will be to make the Free Software Directory
responsive for mobile devices, and to try other ways to improve the site's reach
and popularity among other people. This will involve adding extensions (or
skins), and formatting the entries so that they are mobile-optimized. This will
be a great opportunity for me to gain a lot of experience and develop skills. I
am very excited. Thanks to my mentors and the Outreachy organizers for making
this possible!</p>


title: The FSF tech team needs a Fall 2018 intern! Apply by July 22nd, 2018
uri: The-FSF-tech-team-needs-a-Fall-2018-intern-Apply-by-July-22nd-2018
feed_id:
http://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/the-fsf-tech-team-needs-a-fall-2018-intern-apply-by-july-22nd-2018

url:
http://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/the-fsf-tech-team-needs-a-fall-2018-intern-apply-by-july-22nd-2018

content:
<p>As a fall intern, you will work closely with the FSF tech team in your area of interest,
such as network administration, GNU Project support, or Web development.
We're looking for a responsible candidate who is interested in
learning about system administration, programming, security auditing,
software stack research, and other technical domains. Past interns
contributed to GNU Wget2, contributed to GIMP, created "HUBAngl" for easy video streaming, worked on
porting LibreJS to WebExtensions, improved the Free Software Directory, penetration tested our network, and
researched Ceph distributed object storage and the freedom status of single board computers. Interns may choose from our current list of
projects, or suggest one of their own. We prefer local interns who can work in our
downtown Boston office, but we have hosted some remote interns in the past as well.</p>
<p>You can read more about our requirements for interns
<a href="https://www.fsf.org/volunteer/internships">here</a>, and see past
intern projects <a href="https://www.fsf.org/about/interns/fsf-internships">here</a>.</p>
<h3>How to apply</h3>
<p>Send a letter of interest and resume with two references by email to
<a href="mailto:hiring@fsf.org">&#104;&#105;&#114;&#105;&#110;&#103;&#64;&#102;&#115;&#102;&#46;&#111;&#114;&#103;</a>. Make sure that your materials are in free software friendly
formats (PDF and plain text work well), and include "Internship" in your
subject line. If you can, please include links to sites you've made (personal
blogs are okay!), designs or code you've made, and relevant writing. Please
include these as URLs, though email attachments in free formats are acceptable
too.</p>
<p>Please direct any questions about the program to <a href="mailto:hiring@fsf.org">&#104;&#105;&#114;&#105;&#110;&#103;&#64;&#102;&#115;&#102;&#46;&#111;&#114;&#103;</a>.</p>


title: Take action on the International Day Against DRM this September 18th
uri: Take-action-on-the-International-Day-Against-DRM-this-September-18th
feed_id:
http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/take-action-on-the-international-day-against-drm-this-september-18th

url:
http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/take-action-on-the-international-day-against-drm-this-september-18th

content:
<p><strong>Join the Defective by Design crew and celebrate <a href="https://dayagainstdrm.org">International Day
  Against DRM (IDAD)</a> this September 18th!</strong></p>
<p><a href="https://defectivebydesign.org">Defective by Design</a> (DbD) is a participatory and grassroots
campaign run by the Free Software Foundation (FSF). DbD raises
awareness about devices and media encumbered by Digital Restrictions
Management (DRM), showing what they really are: Defective by
Design. DRM is the practice of placing technological restrictions on
digital media, and we're working together to eliminate it as a threat
to freedom for computer users, as well as a threat to privacy for
readers, viewers, and those making art, media, and more.</p>
<h2>Imagine a world without DRM</h2>
<img src="media/0827e6d3.DRM-free20label20dropshadow20125.en.png" data-original-source="https://static.fsf.org/dbd/label/DRM-free%20label%20dropshadow%20125.en.png" />

<p>DRM is an epidemic spreading across the Web, infiltrating our homes,
classrooms, workplaces, and just about everywhere else we go. Tools,
technologies, books, games, movies, and music are coming to us locked
down with DRM -- whether they are streaming or claim to be locally
hosted.</p>
<p>For 12 years, we've celebrated IDAD -- making, organizing, protesting,
and taking action to support the demolition of DRM -- and 2018 is no
different! This year we will continue the fight against DRM and
celebrate the work of activists, artists, and technologists who create
DRM-free media and technology. You can <a href="https://www.defectivebydesign.org/dayagainstdrm/2017">read more</a> about <a href="https://www.defectivebydesign.org/dayagainstdrm/2016">past
IDADs</a> <a href="https://www.fsf.org/news/community-is-the-focus-of-2015s-international-day-against-drm">online</a>.</p>
<p>For IDAD 2018, we want to demonstrate how great life without DRM can
be -- and how pervasive DRM is. Join the <a href="https://defectivebydesign.org">Defective by Design</a>
coalition this <strong>Tuesday, September 18th</strong> as we go a day without
using DRM.</p>
<p><strong>Join us and challenge yourself and those around you to a Day Without
  DRM.</strong></p>
<h2>How to participate</h2>
<p>IDAD 2018 is your opportunity to tell others why you resist DRM, and
convince them to join you.</p>
<img src="media/ae635c98.dbd-boston-demonstrator.jpg" data-original-source="http://static.fsf.org/nosvn/dbd/dbd-boston-demonstrator.jpg" />

<p>Whether you're an expert at being DRM-free or you've never considered
what a day without DRM could look like, we want you to participate
this IDAD. By joining with others on the same day, we send a powerful
message: DRM's days are numbered.</p>
<p>Before September 18th, we'll be publishing a guide to help you plan
your Day Without DRM. It will help you identify some less (and more)
well-known places you may encounter DRM, better choices you can make
throughout the day, and options for games, music, and other media to
enjoy.</p>
<p>There are lots of other ways to participate -- as individuals or
groups, online or in-person. Details, ideas, and information will be
coming in the next few weeks.</p>
<p>We'll be using the hashtag #IDAD.</p>
<p>Keep up with IDAD! All future updates will go to our DRM Elimination
Crew mailing list. <a href="https://defectivebydesign.org">Sign up for the mailing list</a> on
DefectiveByDesign.org to receive important IDAD news.</p>
<p><strong>Are you an organization or project interested in supporting IDAD?</strong></p>
<p>We're looking for vendors of DRM-free media, organizations that
support the building of a DRM-free world, and those who believe in the
mission of DbD to participate by offering sales, writing blog posts,
organizing events, and sharing with your members about IDAD. Please
contact us at <a href="mailto:info@defectivebydesign.org">&#105;&#110;&#102;&#111;&#64;&#100;&#101;&#102;&#101;&#99;&#116;&#105;&#118;&#101;&#98;&#121;&#100;&#101;&#115;&#105;&#103;&#110;&#46;&#111;&#114;&#103;</a> for more information.</p>
<p>Together we can build a future without DRM.</p>
<p><em>Want to support Defective by Design? You can <a href="https://my.fsf.org/civicrm/contribute/transact?reset=1&amp;id=40">make a donation</a> or
 join the <a href="https://fsf.org/join">Free Software Foundation</a> as an <a href="https://fsf.org/associate">associate member</a>.</em></p>
<p><em>Photo of protester by Karen Rustad Tölva CC-BY 2.0</em> </p>


title: Friday Free Software Directory IRC meetup time: June 15th starting at 12:00 p.m. EDT/16:00 UTC
uri: Friday-Free-Software-Directory-IRC-meetup-time-June-15th-starting-at
feed_id:
http://www.fsf.org/blogs/directory/friday-free-software-directory-irc-meetup-time-june-15th-starting-at-12-00-p-m-edt-16-00-utc

url:
http://www.fsf.org/blogs/directory/friday-free-software-directory-irc-meetup-time-june-15th-starting-at-12-00-p-m-edt-16-00-utc

content:
<p>Help improve the <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/">Free Software Directory</a> by adding new
entries and updating existing ones. Every Friday we meet on IRC
in the <a href="irc://irc.gnu.org/fsf">#fsf channel on irc.freenode.org</a>.</p>
<p>Tens of thousands of people visit <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/">directory.fsf.org</a> each
month to discover free software. Each entry in the Directory
contains a wealth of useful information, from basic category and
descriptions, to providing detailed info about version control,
IRC channels, documentation, and licensing info that has been
carefully checked by FSF staff and trained volunteers.</p>
<p>When a user comes to the Directory, they know that everything in
it is free software, has only free dependencies, and runs on a
free OS. With over 16,000 entries, it is a massive repository of
information about free software.</p>
<p>While the Directory has been and continues to be a great resource
to the world for many years now, it has the potential to be a
resource of even greater value. But it needs your help! And since
it's a MediaWiki instance, it's easy for anyone to edit and
contribute to the Directory.</p>
<p>On this week in 1940, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_de_Gaulle">General Charles de Gaulle</a> told the
French on BBC to defy Nazi occupiers. It is regarded as one of the most important speeches in French history. Resistance isn't easy, though, and this is especially
so if the resistance cannot communicate securely. With this in mind, the
Directory meetup this week turns to <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/wiki/Category/Security/">security software</a>.</p>
<p>If you are eager to help, and you can't wait or are simply unable to
make it onto IRC on Friday, our <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/wiki/FSD:Participate">participation guide</a> will provide
you with all the information you need to get started on helping the
Directory today! There are also weekly <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/wiki/Free_Software_Directory:Meetings">Directory Meeting pages</a>
that everyone is welcome to contribute to before, during, and after
each meeting. To see the meeting start time in your time zone, run
this in GNU bash: date --date='TZ="America/New_York" 12:00 this Fri'</p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/free-software-is-at-risk-in-the-eu-take-action-now
title: Free software is at risk in the EU -- take action now
uri: Free-software-is-at-risk-in-the-EU-take-action-now
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/free-software-is-at-risk-in-the-eu-take-action-now
content:
<p>Members of the European Parliament want to turn upload platforms like GitLab into "<a href="https://juliareda.eu/eu-copyright-reform/censorship-machines/">censorship machines</a>" that require user-uploaded materials to be monitored and automatically filtered, a process which would prevent modified and reused code from being uploaded. This provision is covered under Article 13 of the Copyright Directive.</p>
<p>If Article 13, embedded within the proposal, becomes official policy, it will be impossible for developers to build off of one another's code -- which is not only a blow to the collaborative development of free software, but a push against the basic <a href="https://www.gnu.org/philosophy/free-sw.html">freedoms of free software</a>. Software isn't free unless it can be modified and shared. Article 13 will affect all users of free software -- as development of free software suffers, the quality and availability of updates, new features, and new programs will also suffer.</p>
<p><strong>What you can do</strong></p>
<p>You can help turn the tide against Article 13. <strong>Contact your member of European Parliament (MEP) before June 20th.</strong></p>
<p>Not sure what to say? You can try this sample email.</p>
<p><em>Dear MEP,</em></p>
<p><em>I am an EU citizen and I oppose Article 13 of the proposed Copyright Directive. Article 13 is harmful to the free, global development of software, including that which provides necessary infrastructure on an international scale. Please vote against the Copyright Directive.</em></p>
<p><em>Sincerely,</em><br />
<em>NAME</em></p>
<p><strong>Need help finding your MEPs?</strong></p>
<p><a href="http://www.europarl.europa.eu/meps/en/full-list.html">A complete list</a> of MEPs is available online.</p>
<p><strong>What to do next</strong></p>
<p>After you contact your MEP, there is still more to do! </p>
<p>To learn more, you can check out the links below:</p>
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.april.org/en/themes/copyright">Various articles by April</a> concerning the development and actions you can take.</li>
<li><a href="https://www.communia-association.org/2018/05/22/council-parliament-edge-towards-finalizing-positions-article-13-remains-mess/">A detailed analysis</a> (with flow charts!) from Communia.</li>
<li><a href="https://juliareda.eu/2018/04/free-software-censorship-machines/">Writing by Julia Reda</a>, MEP from Germany.</li>
</ul>
<p>You can also support the work of the <a href="https://fsf.org">Free Software Foundation</a> by become an <a href="https://my.fsf.org/join">Associate Member</a> or <a href="https://my.fsf.org/donate">making a donation</a> today.</p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/get-the-latest-in-libre-from-the-fsf-bulletin
title: Get the latest in libre from the FSF Bulletin
uri: Get-the-latest-in-libre-from-the-FSF-Bulletin
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/get-the-latest-in-libre-from-the-fsf-bulletin
content:
<p>The biannual Free Software Foundation (FSF) <em>Bulletin</em> is now
<a href="http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/0">available online</a>. We hope you find it enlightening and
entertaining!</p>
<p>Your activism drives the free software movement. Together, we have
been proactively building a future where computer users are in
control, while also reacting to immediate threats to our digital
freedoms. Our associate membership program provides crucial, ongoing
support that ensures the FSF's financial stability, making our work
possible. Will you take the next step and <a href="https://my.fsf.org/join?pk_campaign=spring18&amp;pk_kwd=fsem">join us as an associate
member</a> or
<a href="https://my.fsf.org/donate?pk_campaign=spring18&amp;pk_kwd=fsem">make a one-time
donation</a>
today?</p>
<p>Free software activists count on the FSF to play a role no other
organization can: we refuse to compromise our values, we directly
support free software development via the GNU Project, and we defend
copyleft in the form of the GNU General Public License (GPL). We, in
turn, count on you to provide the energy and resources that drive us.</p>
<p>So far this year, your financial support:</p>
<ul>
<li>
<p>amplified the voice of free software in public conversations about net neutrality, Facebook privacy abuses, and high profile security compromises;</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>fought Digital Restrictions Management (DRM) by storming the US Digital Millennium Copyright Act exemptions process to not only support every exemption but be the sole organization arguing for abolition of the whole charade;</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>made major improvements to the infrastructure powering hundreds of GNU and other free software projects;</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>funded important technical work to help free JavaScript on the Web;</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>enabled certification of two more products according to the standards of our Respects Your Freedom program, put dozens more in the pipeline, and advanced a plan to scale the program to its full potential; and</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>helped policymakers and companies embrace the GPL -- the state of California and the US Department of Defense have both made strong moves in this area, and we expect more to follow suit.</p>
</li>
</ul>
<p>Our Associate Member program launched in 2002, as a way to provide
long-term stability for the FSF's work, and to recognize and thank
those who choose to give consistently. Today there are over 4600
Associate Members residing in 82 countries, with dues comprising
nearly half of the FSF's funding. This funding allows us to stay
independent, serving the free software community, not corporations or
governments. Thank you for your continued support.</p>


title: Friday Free Software Directory IRC meetup time: June 22nd starting at 12:00 p.m. EDT/16:00 UTC
uri: Friday-Free-Software-Directory-IRC-meetup-time-June-22nd-starting-at
feed_id:
http://www.fsf.org/blogs/directory/friday-free-software-directory-irc-meetup-time-june-22nd-starting-at-12-00-p-m-edt-16-00-utc-1

url:
http://www.fsf.org/blogs/directory/friday-free-software-directory-irc-meetup-time-june-22nd-starting-at-12-00-p-m-edt-16-00-utc-1

content:
<p>Help improve the <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/">Free Software Directory</a> by adding new
entries and updating existing ones. Every Friday we meet on IRC
in the <a href="irc://irc.gnu.org/fsf">#fsf channel on irc.freenode.org</a>.</p>
<p>Tens of thousands of people visit <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/">directory.fsf.org</a> each
month to discover free software. Each entry in the Directory
contains a wealth of useful information, from basic category and
descriptions, to providing detailed info about version control,
IRC channels, documentation, and licensing info that has been
carefully checked by FSF staff and trained volunteers.</p>
<p>When a user comes to the Directory, they know that everything in
it is free software, has only free dependencies, and runs on a
free OS. With over 16,000 entries, it is a massive repository of
information about free software.</p>
<p>While the Directory has been and continues to be a great resource
to the world for many years now, it has the potential to be a
resource of even greater value. But it needs your help! And since
it's a MediaWiki instance, it's easy for anyone to edit and
contribute to the Directory.</p>
<p>A few weeks back we launched a new <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/wiki/Free_Software_Directory:Participate/Project_Team#Free_Software_Directory_Logo">Project Team</a> to create a logo that packages can use to show off that they are included in the Directory. But at this time, we still haven't found a team captain for the project. This project could really help promote the Directory, as well as helping packages to demonstrate that they care about software freedom. This week, we'll be working to recruit a team captain, as well as trying to get the project off the ground.</p>
<p>If you are eager to help, and you can't wait or are simply unable to
make it onto IRC on Friday, our <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/wiki/FSD:Participate">participation guide</a> will provide
you with all the information you need to get started on helping the
Directory today! There are also weekly <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/wiki/Free_Software_Directory:Meetings">Directory Meeting pages</a>
that everyone is welcome to contribute to before, during, and after
each meeting. To see the meeting start time in your time zone, run
this in GNU bash: date --date='TZ="America/New_York" 12:00 this Fri'</p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/licensing/about-blags-removal-from-our-list-of-endorsed-distributions
title: About BLAG's removal from our list of endorsed distributions
uri: About-BLAG-s-removal-from-our-list-of-endorsed-distributions
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/licensing/about-blags-removal-from-our-list-of-endorsed-distributions
content:
<p>We recently updated our <a href="https://www.gnu.org/distros/free-distros.en.html">list of free GNU/Linux distributions</a> to add a "Historical" section. BLAG Linux and GNU, based on Fedora, joined the list many years ago. But the maintainers no longer believe they can keep things running at this time. As such, they requested that they be removed from our list. The list helps users to find operating systems that come with only free software and documentation, and that do not promote any nonfree software. Being added to the list means that a distribution has gone through a rigorous screening process, and is dedicated to diligently fixing any freedom issues that may arise.<br />
</p>
<p>Maintaining a distribution isn't an easy task, and making sure that no nonfree software makes its way onto the operating system takes real effort. The maintainers of these distributions take on a difficult but important task of creating and maintaining a system that users can trust. For many, that effort is taken on as a volunteer, and one for which we should all be grateful.</p>
<p>While it is always sad to see a free distribution close up shop, we can all still be thankful for the maintainers' work over the years, and that there are still many free distributions available. Users of BLAG should consider switching to another distro on our list to ensure that the security of their system is up to date.</p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/licensing/european-union-public-license-v-1-2-added-to-license-list
title: European Union Public License v. 1.2 added to license list
uri: European-Union-Public-License-v-1-2-added-to-license-list
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/licensing/european-union-public-license-v-1-2-added-to-license-list
content:
<p>We recently added the EUPL-1.2 to our list of <a href="https://www.gnu.org/licenses/license-list.en.html#EUPL-1.2">Various Licenses and Comments About Them</a>. This list helps users to understand whether a particular license is a free software license, and whether it is compatible with the GNU General Public License (GNU GPL). Like the previous version of the EUPL (<a href="https://www.gnu.org/licenses/license-list.en.html#EUPL-1.1">EUPL-1.1</a>), the EUPL-1.2 is included in the section for free licenses that are GNU GPL-incompatible, but with an important caveat. While the EUPL-1.2's copyleft by itself is incompatible with the GNU GPL, the license provides a few mechanisms for re-licensing which enable combination with GNU GPL-licensed works. We explain the situation more fully in the entry itself:</p>
<pre><code>This is a free software license. By itself, it has a copyleft comparable
to the GPL's, and incompatible with it. However, it gives recipients
ways to relicense the work under the terms of other selected licenses,
and some of those—the Eclipse Public License in particular—only provide
a weaker copyleft. Thus, developers can't rely on this license to
provide a strong copyleft.

The EUPL allows relicensing to GPLv2 only and GPLv3 only, because those
licenses are listed as two of the alternative licenses that users may
convert to. It also, indirectly, allows relicensing to GPL version 3 or
any later version, because there is a way to relicense to the CeCILL v2,
and the CeCILL v2 gives a way to relicense to any version of the GNU GPL.

To do this two-step relicensing, you need to first write a piece of code
which you can license under the CeCILL v2, or find a suitable module
already available that way, and add it to the program. Adding that code
to the EUPL-covered program provides grounds to relicense it to the
CeCILL v2. Then you need to write a piece of code which you can license
under the GPLv3+, or find a suitable module already available that way,
and add it to the program. Adding that code to the CeCILL-covered
program provides grounds to relicense it to GPLv3+.
</code></pre>
<p>These comments are very similar to the ones we made for the EUPL-1.1, as the EUPL-1.2 is an update that is very much in line with its predecessor. The biggest change was adding the GNU GPLv3 only as an alternative license, simplifying the process of incorporating EUPL-1.2 code into a GNU GPLv3 only project. Note, however, that the two-step re-licensing process previously described is still needed in order to incorporate EUPL-1.2 code into a GNU GPLv3+ project. </p>
<p>With all that said, the EUPL-1.2 is the newest addition to our list of free licenses, but more will be added in the future. To keep up to date, here's what you can do:</p>
<ul>
<li>To keep informed about changes to our license list and other licensing-related news and announcements, subscribe to our <a href="https://my.fsf.org/civicrm/mailing/subscribe?reset=1&amp;gid=1524">Licensing Updates Mailing List</a></li>
<li>Help us make a <a href="https://rt.gnu.org/Ticket/Display.html?id=1302101">stand for software freedom</a> by becoming an <a href="https://www.fsf.org/join">FSF Associate Member</a> or consider making a <a href="https://www.fsf.org/donate">donation</a></li>
</ul>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/take-action-tell-us-congress-not-to-pass-the-classics-act
title: Take action! Tell US Congress not to pass the CLASSICS Act
uri: Take-action-Tell-US-Congress-not-to-pass-the-CLASSICS-Act
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/take-action-tell-us-congress-not-to-pass-the-classics-act
content:
<p>The 1990s have come back to haunt us as the US Congress attempts to
extend the scope of copyright law <em>again</em>, just two decades after the
<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copyright_Term_Extension_Act">last extension</a> (which added twenty years to the terms of existing
copyrights at the time), and this time their sights are set on the
Internet.</p>
<p><strong>Read on to learn more, including how to take action before Congress
  takes its next step with the bill, on Thursday, June 28.</strong></p>
<p>Creative Commons founder and former Free Software Foundation (FSF)
board member Lawrence Lessig <a href="https://www.wired.com/story/congress-latest-move-to-extend-copyright-protection-is-misguided/">recently explained</a> the ugly
consequences of the Compensating Legacy Artists for their Songs,
Service, and Important Contributions to Society (CLASSICS) Act, which
was passed by the US House earlier this year and is now before the
Senate Judiciary Committee as part of the omnibus Music Modernization
Act. Lessig has a long history in the realm of copyright law -- he was
the lead counsel on an unsuccessful challenge to the previous
extension of US copyright law, the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copyright_Term_Extension_Act">Sonny Bono Copyright Term
Extension Act</a>.</p>
<p>The CLASSICS Act aims to fence in another arena in which users enjoy
published works, Lessig writes, creating "a new digital performance
right -- basically the right to control copies of recordings on any
digital platform (ever hear of the Internet?) -- for musical recordings
made before 1972" (hence the "cute" acronym, CLASSICS). The bill would
grant such recordings a new "protection" through 2067, which actually
means being copyright restricted for up to 144 years, compared to 95
years for print works from the same period.</p>
<p>Once again, this expansion of the scope of US copyright law flies in
the face of the intention of the US Constitution, because its
beneficiaries are not the public, nor artists, but corporate
interests. Under the US Constitution, <a href="https://www.gnu.org/philosophy/misinterpreting-copyright.en.html">"copyright exists to benefit
users...not for the sake of publishers or authors,"</a> and the
Supreme Court has affirmed that intention -- the readers, music
listeners, and audiences that experience copyrighted material are
supposed to come first. In reality, US copyright law has acted as if
the benefits to the public and to publishers are of equal importance,
and as if its goal is to maximize the number of published works,
thereby necessitating granting publishers maximum power. As a result,
copyright law continues to grant publishers broader powers for
increasing periods of time. (See <a href="https://www.gnu.org/philosophy/misinterpreting-copyright.en.html">"Misinterpreting Copyright"</a> for
an extensive examination of this problem.)</p>
<p>The consequences for music fans could be devastating, at a time when
people increasingly use the Internet to listen to music, via digital
music services and Web radio stations, according to reports from
<a href="https://techcrunch.com/2018/01/04/on-demand-streaming-now-accounts-for-the-majority-of-audio-consumption-says-nielsen/">Nielsen</a> and the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/business/2018/jan/03/digital-streaming-behind-biggest-rise-in-uk-music-sales-for-two-decades"><em>Guardian</em></a>. This bill will <em>decrease</em> access
to recordings of music made between 1923 and 1972, because those who
make such recordings available on the Internet will face serious legal
consequences if they do so without a license.</p>
<p>The bill will inevitably further consolidate access to music
recordings online, because those who cannot afford to pay licensing
fees will risk fines if they defy the law. Big companies that already
use <a href="https://www.defectivebydesign.org/what_is_drm_digital_restrictions_management">Digital Restrictions Management (DRM)</a> to stream music on the
Web, from Sirius XM to Spotify, will have the advantage. As <a href="https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2018/03/music-modernization-act-good-solution-songwriters-dont-combine-it-bad-copyright">EFF
reports</a>, some already pay royalties for some of these recordings
via private agreements with record labels -- smaller Web streamers are
likely to be unable to manage the additional expense, or they could be
shut out by exclusive licenses granted to bigger services.</p>
<p>Of greatest concern to the FSF is the effect this bill could have on
free software for digital music, and the way it could allow DRM to
grow on the Internet. Publishers often add DRM to their works under
the guise of protection against copyright infringement, but in
reality, DRM is a publisher's means of controlling <em>every aspect</em> of a
piece of digital media -- and taking away user freedom. DRM is
incompatible with free software, and its proliferation actively
undermines widespread use of free software for digital media.</p>
<p>The CLASSICS Act was combined into an omnibus bill with the Musical
Works Modernization Act and the Allocation for Music Producers (AMP)
Act, and the Judiciary Committee heard testimony on the proposal on
May 15, 2018 -- transcripts can be reviewed <a href="https://www.judiciary.senate.gov/meetings/protecting-and-promoting-music-creation-for-the-21st-century">here</a> (there is also
video, but it requires nonfree JavaScript to view). The conversation
largely omits a broader concern that ties together the effect of
copyright overreach on arts and culture with its effect on free
software: <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/the-war-on-sharing-why-the-fsf-cares-about-riaa-lawsuits-090513/">increased copyright restriction encourages lawsuits against
people who share music</a>. People become afraid to share digital
media, believing sharing is theft.</p>
<h3>Take action!</h3>
<p><em>If you're not in the US, let us know your country by <a href="https://my.fsf.org/civicrm/profile/create?gid=34&amp;reset=1">updating your
 profile</a> so we can send you more relevant info. In the meantime,
 please also help us spread the word to your contacts in the US.</em></p>
<p><strong>By Wednesday, June 27th, call a member of the Senate Judiciary
  Committee (especially if you live in their home state) and urge them
  to strike the CLASSICS copyright expansion from the Music
  Modernization Act.</strong></p>
<p>Committee members include Republicans Chuck Grassley* (Chair, IA),
Orrin Hatch* (UT), John Cornyn (TX), Ted Cruz (TX), Jeff Flake (AZ),
Thom Tillis* (NC), Lindsey Graham (SC), Michael Lee (UT), Ben Sasse
(NE), Mike Crapo* (ID), John Kennedy* (LA); and Democrats Dianne
Feinstein* (Ranking Member, CA), Patrick Leahy* (VT), Sheldon
Whitehouse* (RI), Christopher Coons* (DE), Mazie Hirono* (HI),
Kamala Harris* (CA), Dick Durbin* (IL), Amy Klobuchar* (MN),
Richard Blumenthal* (CT), and Cory Booker* (NJ). Those members with
asterisks following their names were cosponsors of the CLASSICS Act
before it was merged with the Music Modernization Act <em>or</em> are
cosponsors of the Music Modernization Act -- yes, nearly all members
of the Judiciary Committee cosponsored at least one of the bills.</p>
<p>Not sure what to say? Try using the following script:</p>
<blockquote>

*Hello,

I live in CITY/STATE. I am calling to urge you to stop the overzealous
expansion of copyright in the Music Modernization Act. The text in the
CLASSICS Act portion of the bill would expand copyright for recordings
made before 1972, creating a barrier for music listeners by expanding
the use of Digital Restrictions Management, which is incompatible with
the free software I use to listen to digital music. This is not what
the US Constitution intended copyright to be.

I hope SENATOR will do the right thing and strike the CLASSICS Act
portion of the Music Modernization Act.

Thank you for your time.*

</blockquote>

<p><strong>But how do I call the Senators?</strong></p>
<ul>
<li>
<p><a href="https://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm">Find their numbers here</a>.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Dial the Senate at <strong>(202) 224-3121</strong> and they will connect you.</p>
</li>
</ul>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/gnu-spotlight-with-mike-gerwitz-18-new-gnu-releases-1
title: GNU Spotlight with Mike Gerwitz: 18 new GNU releases!
uri: 2018-06-27-GNU-Spotlight-with-Mike-Gerwitz-18-new-GNU-releases
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/gnu-spotlight-with-mike-gerwitz-18-new-gnu-releases-1
content:
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/bison/">bison-3.0.5</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/freedink/">dfarc-3.14</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/dr-geo/">dr-geo-18.06</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/emacs/">emacs-26.1</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/foliot/">foliot-0.9.8</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/freedink/">freedink-3.14</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/gdbm/">gdbm-1.15</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/gnuastro/">gnuastro-0.6</a></li>
<li><a href="http://health.gnu.org/">gnuhealth-3.2.10</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/gnupg/">gnupg-2.2.8</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/gnu-pw-mgr/">gnu-pw-mgr-2.3.1</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/gsl/">gsl-2.5</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/libgcrypt/">libgcrypt-1.8.3</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/linux-libre/">linux-libre-4.17.2-gnu</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/nano/">nano-2.9.8</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/parallel/">parallel-20180622</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/unifont/">unifont-11.0.01</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/units/">units-2.17</a></li>
</ul>
<p>For announcements of most new GNU releases, subscribe to the info-gnu
mailing list: <a href="https://lists.gnu.org/mailman/listinfo/info-gnu">https://lists.gnu.org/mailman/listinfo/info-gnu</a>.</p>
<p>To download: nearly all GNU software is available from
<a href="https://ftp.gnu.org/gnu/">https://ftp.gnu.org/gnu/</a>, or preferably one of its mirrors from
<a href="https://www.gnu.org/prep/ftp.html">https://www.gnu.org/prep/ftp.html</a>. You can use the url
<a href="https://ftpmirror.gnu.org/">https://ftpmirror.gnu.org/</a> to be automatically redirected to a
(hopefully) nearby and up-to-date mirror.</p>
<p>A number of GNU packages, as well as the GNU operating system as a
whole, are looking for maintainers and other assistance: please see
<a href="https://www.gnu.org/server/takeaction.html#unmaint">https://www.gnu.org/server/takeaction.html#unmaint</a> if you'd like to
help. The general page on how to help GNU is at
<a href="https://www.gnu.org/help/help.html">https://www.gnu.org/help/help.html</a>.</p>
<p>If you have a working or partly working program that you'd like
to offer to the GNU project as a GNU package, see
<a href="https://www.gnu.org/help/evaluation.html">https://www.gnu.org/help/evaluation.html</a>.</p>
<p>As always, please feel free to write to us at <a href="mailto:maintainers@gnu.org">&#109;&#97;&#105;&#110;&#116;&#97;&#105;&#110;&#101;&#114;&#115;&#64;&#103;&#110;&#117;&#46;&#111;&#114;&#103;</a>
with any GNUish questions or suggestions for future installments.</p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/rms/may-2018-photos-from-brazil-and-argentina
title: May 2018: Photos from Brazil and Argentina
uri: May-2018-Photos-from-Brazil-and-Argentina
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/rms/may-2018-photos-from-brazil-and-argentina
content:
<!-- Start of image + caption block -->
<div style="border-style:solid; border-width:2px;text-align:left; margin: 4px 50px 4px 50px; padding-top:4px; padding-left:5px; padding-right:5px">

<p>Free Software Foundation president Richard Stallman (RMS) went on a
12-city visit to Brazil and Argentina this past May and June.  The
trip took him&#8230;</p></p>

<p>&#8230;to the Federal Institute of São Paulo, in
<strong>Araraquara,</strong> São Paulo, Brazil, where, on May 14<sup style="font-size:8px">th</sup>, he gave his speech "A Free Digital
Society."<sup style="font-size:8px"><a href="#fn1" id="ref1">1</a></sup> The event was well attended, with universities
and schools from neighboring cities having organized to shuttle their
students to it by bus.</p>

<p>IFSP Professor José Rodolfo Beluzo, who had organized the visit,
said the talk was "highly praised and helped people to reflect on the
freedom of information." "It also helped us begin to reflect on the
freedom of information in our school," he added.</p>

<!-- Image(s) start below -->
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<p style="text-align:center;">
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180514-araraquara/20180514-araraquara-01-c-2018-marta-kawamura-goncalves-ccby-4-0.jpg " alt="" width="265" style="margin-top:4px;" />
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180514-araraquara/20180514-araraquara-03-c-2018-marta-kawamura-goncalves-ccby-4-0.jpg " alt="" width="265" style="margin-top:4px;" />
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180514-araraquara/20180514-araraquara-06-c-2018-marta-kawamura-goncalves-ccby-4-0.jpg " alt="" width="540" style="margin-top:4px;" />        
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180514-araraquara/20180514-araraquara-07-c-2018-marta-kawamura-goncalves-ccby-4-0.jpg " alt="" width="265" style="margin-top:4px;" />        
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180514-araraquara/20180514-araraquara-09-c-2018-marta-kawamura-goncalves-ccby-4-0.jpg " alt="" width="265" style="margin-top:4px;" />        
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180514-araraquara/20180514-araraquara-11-c-2018-marta-kawamura-goncalves-ccby-4-0.jpg " alt="" width="540" style="margin-top:4px;" />        
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180514-araraquara/20180514-araraquara-13-c-2018-marta-kawamura-goncalves-ccby-4-0.jpg " alt="" width="540" style="margin-top:4px;" />        
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180514-araraquara/20180514-araraquara-15-c-2018-marta-kawamura-goncalves-ccby-4-0-thumb.JPG " alt="" width="540" style="margin-top:4px;" />        
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180514-araraquara/20180514-araraquara-16-c-2018-marta-kawamura-goncalves-ccby-4-0-thumb.JPG " alt="" width="178" style="margin-top:4px;" />  
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180514-araraquara/20180514-araraquara-22-c-2018-marta-kawamura-goncalves-ccby-4-0-thumb.JPG " alt="" width="180" style="margin-top:4px;" />  
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180514-araraquara/20180514-araraquara-23-c-2018-marta-kawamura-goncalves-ccby-4-0-thumb.JPG " alt="" width="178" style="margin-top:4px;" />  
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180514-araraquara/20180514-araraquara-30-c-2018-marta-kawamura-goncalves-ccby-4-0-thumb.JPG " alt="" width="540" style="margin-top:4px;" />  
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180514-araraquara/20180514-araraquara-32-c-2018-marta-kawamura-goncalves-ccby-4-0-thumb.JPG " alt="" width="540" style="margin-top:4px;" />  
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180514-araraquara/20180514-araraquara-34-c-2018-marta-kawamura-goncalves-ccby-4-0-thumb.JPG " alt="" width="133" style="margin-top:4px;" />  
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180514-araraquara/20180514-araraquara-35-c-2018-marta-kawamura-goncalves-ccby-4-0-thumb.JPG " alt="" width="133" style="margin-top:4px;" />
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180514-araraquara/20180514-araraquara-36-c-2018-marta-kawamura-goncalves-ccby-4-0-thumb.JPG " alt="" width="133" style="margin-top:4px;" />
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180514-araraquara/20180514-araraquara-37-c-2018-marta-kawamura-goncalves-ccby-4-0-thumb.JPG " alt="" width="133" style="margin-top:4px;" />
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180514-araraquara/20180514-araraquara-41-c-2018-marta-kawamura-goncalves-ccby-4-0-thumb.JPG " alt="" width="540" style="margin-top:4px;" />
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180514-araraquara/20180514-araraquara-42-c-2018-marta-kawamura-goncalves-ccby-4-0-thumb.JPG " alt="" width="178" style="margin-top:4px;" />   
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180514-araraquara/20180514-araraquara-43-c-2018-marta-kawamura-goncalves-ccby-4-0-thumb.JPG " alt="" width="180" style="margin-top:4px;" />
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180514-araraquara/20180514-araraquara-44-c-2018-marta-kawamura-goncalves-ccby-4-0-thumb.JPG " alt="" width="178" style="margin-top:4px;" />
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180514-araraquara/20180514-araraquara-45-c-2018-marta-kawamura-goncalves-ccby-4-0-thumb.JPG " alt="" width="265" style="margin-top:4px;" />
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180514-araraquara/20180514-araraquara-47-c-2018-marta-kawamura-goncalves-ccby-4-0-thumb.JPG " alt="" width="265" style="margin-top:4px;" />
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180514-araraquara/20180514-araraquara-46-c-2018-marta-kawamura-goncalves-ccby-4-0-thumb.JPG " alt="" width="540" style="margin-top:4px;" />
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180514-araraquara/20180514-araraquara-62-c-2018-marta-kawamura-goncalves-ccby-4-0-thumb.JPG " alt="" width="540" style="margin-top:4px;" />
</p>

<!-- Photo credits start below --> <p style="padding: 0px 20px 0px 20px; margin-top:1px; text-align:center;"> 
<em>(Copyright &copy; 2018 Marta Kawamura Gonçalves. Photos licensed under <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY 4.0</a>.)</em>

<br style="margin-bottom:15px;" />


<p>&#8230;to Campus Party, which this year was held in
<strong>Salvador de Bahia,</strong> Bahia.  On May 17<sup style="font-size:8px">th</sup>, he gave his free software speech<sup style="font-size:8px"><a href="#fn1" id="ref1">1</a></sup> on the main
(Feel the Future) stage, to about 420 attendees&#8230;</p>

<!-- Image(s) start below -->
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<p style="text-align:center;">
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180517-salvador/20180517-salvador-01-c-2018-campus-party-ccby-4-0.jpg " alt="" width="177" style="margin-top:4px;" />
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180517-salvador/20180517-salvador-02-c-2018-campus-party-ccby-4-0.jpg " alt="" width="177" style="margin-top:4px;" />
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180517-salvador/20180517-salvador-03-c-2018-campus-party-ccby-4-0.jpg " alt="" width="177" style="margin-top:4px;" />
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180517-salvador/20180517-salvador-04-c-2018-campus-party-ccby-4-0.jpg " alt="" width="540" style="margin-top:4px;" />
</p>

<!-- Photo credits start below --> <p style="padding: 0px 20px 0px 20px; margin-top:1px; text-align:center;"> 
<em>(Copyright &copy; 2018 Campus Party (photos by Gabriel Maciel and Rafael Martinelli). Photos licensed under <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY 4.0</a>.)</em>

<br style="margin-bottom:15px;" />


<p>&#8230;and on to Argentina, starting in <strong>Misiones
Posadas,</strong> where, on May 19<sup style="font-size:8px">th</sup>,
in the Sala de Prosa of the Parque del Conocimiento, he gave his
speech "Software libre en la ética y la práctica"<sup style="font-size:8px"><a href="#fn1" id="ref1">1</a></sup> to an
audience of about 400 people, including government officials in
telecommunications and legislators from Misiones.</p>

<!-- Image(s) start below -->
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<p style="text-align:center;">
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180519-misionesposadas/20180519-misionesposadas-01-c-2018-juan-jose-barrientos-ccby-4-0.JPG " alt="" width="540" style="margin-top:4px;" />  
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180519-misionesposadas/20180519-misionesposadas-02-c-2018-juan-jose-barrientos-ccby-4-0.JPG " alt="" width="540" style="margin-top:4px;" />  
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180519-misionesposadas/20180519-misionesposadas-03-c-2018-juan-jose-barrientos-ccby-4-0.JPG " alt="" width="540" style="margin-top:4px;" />  
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180519-misionesposadas/20180519-misionesposadas-06-c-2018-juan-jose-barrientos-ccby-4-0.JPG " alt="" width="540" style="margin-top:4px;" /> 
</p>

<!-- Photo credits start below --> <p style="padding: 0px 20px 0px 20px; margin-top:1px; text-align:center;"> 
<em>(Copyright &copy; 2018 Juan José Barrientos. Photos licensed under <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY 4.0</a>.)</em>

<!-- Image(s) start below -->
<!-- Adjust the width="150" part to change how wide the image appears on the page  -->

<p style="text-align:center;">
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180519-misionesposadas/20180519-misionesposadas-08-c-2018-alejandro-prieto-ccby-4-0.JPG " alt="" width="540" style="margin-top:4px;" />	   
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180519-misionesposadas/20180519-misionesposadas-09-c-2018-alejandro-prieto-ccby-4-0.JPG " alt="" width="540" style="margin-top:4px;" />	   
</p>

<em>(Copyright &copy; 2018 Alejandro Prieto. Photos licensed under <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY 4.0</a>.)</em>

<br style="margin-bottom:15px;" />

<p>&#8230;to <strong>San Miguel de Tucumán,</strong> in Tucumán, and
then on to <strong>Mendoza,</strong> where he spoke at the Facultad
Regional Mendoza de la Universidad Tecnológica Nacional. He again
gave his free software speech,<sup style="font-size:8px"><a href="#fn1" id="ref1">1</a></sup> to a diverse audience of over a
thousand people.</p>

<p>Adrián Sierra, the UTN's secretary of student affairs, who invited
RMS, was pleased with the outcome, saying that, before RMS's visit,
the issue of software freedom had been an "optional" one, and that,
after his visit, it was clear to university authorities that using
free software was about guaranteeing freedom, sovereignty and was a
moral duty for an educational institution.  He added, "All the IT labs
provide the option of running GNU/Linux and the Centro de Copiado
Autogestionado of the <a href="http://www.fsf.org/blogs/rms/&lt;a
href="><a href="https://fotocopia.frm.utn.edu.ar/customer_sessions/new">Centro
de Estudiantes</a> runs and develops free software exclusively."</p>

<!-- Image(s) start below -->
<!-- Adjust the width="150" part to change how wide the image appears on the page  -->

<p style="text-align:center;">
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180524-mendoza/20180524-mendoza-01-c-2018-lucas-sing-ccby-4-0.jpg " alt="" width="265" style="margin-top:4px;" />
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180524-mendoza/20180524-mendoza-04-c-2018-lucas-sing-ccby-4-0.jpg " alt="" width="265" style="margin-top:4px;" />    
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180524-mendoza/20180524-mendoza-05-c-2018-lucas-sing-ccby-4-0.jpg " alt="" width="540" style="margin-top:4px;" />    
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180524-mendoza/20180524-mendoza-09-c-2018-lucas-sing-ccby-4-0.jpg " alt="" width="540" style="margin-top:4px;" />    
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180524-mendoza/20180524-mendoza-19-c-2018-lucas-sing-ccby-4-0.jpg " alt="" width="540" style="margin-top:4px;" />    
</p>

<!-- Photo credits start below --> <p style="padding: 0px 20px 0px 20px; margin-top:1px; text-align:center;"> 
<em>(Copyright &copy; 2018 Lucas Sing.  Photos licensed under <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY 4.0</a>.)</em>

<p>Before the speech started, the UTN, which forms half of Argentina's
engineers, granted RMS the title of honorary professor, its highest
distinction.</p>

<!-- Image(s) start below -->
<!-- Adjust the width="150" part to change how wide the image appears on the page  -->

<p style="text-align:center;">
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180524-mendoza/20180524-mendoza-20-c-2018-lucas-sing-ccby-4-0.jpg " alt="" width="265" style="margin-top:4px;" />    
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180524-mendoza/20180524-mendoza-26-c-2018-lucas-sing-ccby-4-0.jpg " alt="" width="265" style="margin-top:4px;" />
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180524-mendoza/20180524-mendoza-28-c-2018-lucas-sing-ccby-4-0.jpg " alt="" width="265" style="margin-top:4px;" />
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180524-mendoza/20180524-mendoza-30-c-2018-lucas-sing-ccby-4-0.jpg " alt="" width="265" style="margin-top:4px;" />
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180524-mendoza/20180524-mendoza-32-c-2018-lucas-sing-ccby-4-0.jpg " alt="" width="540" style="margin-top:4px;" />
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180524-mendoza/20180524-mendoza-54-c-2018-lucas-sing-ccby-4-0.jpg " alt="" width="178" style="margin-top:4px;" />
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180524-mendoza/20180524-mendoza-57-c-2018-lucas-sing-ccby-4-0.jpg " alt="" width="180" style="margin-top:4px;" />  
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180524-mendoza/20180524-mendoza-58-c-2018-lucas-sing-ccby-4-0.jpg " alt="" width="178" style="margin-top:4px;" />  
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180524-mendoza/20180524-mendoza-72-c-2018-lucas-sing-ccby-4-0.jpg " alt="" width="265" style="margin-top:4px;" />  
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180524-mendoza/20180524-mendoza-73-c-2018-lucas-sing-ccby-4-0.jpg " alt="" width="265" style="margin-top:4px;" />  
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180524-mendoza/20180524-mendoza-74-c-2018-lucas-sing-ccby-4-0.jpg " alt="" width="540" style="margin-top:4px;" />  
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180524-mendoza/20180524-mendoza-75-c-2018-lucas-sing-ccby-4-0.jpg " alt="" width="540" style="margin-top:4px;" />  
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180524-mendoza/20180524-mendoza-76-c-2018-lucas-sing-ccby-4-0.jpg " alt="" width="540" style="margin-top:4px;" />  
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180524-mendoza/20180524-mendoza-77-c-2018-lucas-sing-ccby-4-0.jpg " alt="" width="540" style="margin-top:4px;" />  
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180524-mendoza/20180524-mendoza-78-c-2018-lucas-sing-ccby-4-0.jpg " alt="" width="540" style="margin-top:4px;" />  
</p>

<!-- Photo credits start below --> <p style="padding: 0px 20px 0px 20px; margin-top:1px; text-align:center;"> 
<em>(Copyright &copy; 2018 Lucas Sing.  Photos licensed under <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY 4.0</a>.)</em>

<!-- Image(s) start below -->
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<p style="text-align:center;">
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180524-mendoza/20180524-mendoza-81-c-2018-pablo-cerezo-ccby-4-0.jpg " alt="" width="540" style="margin-top:4px;" />
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180524-mendoza/20180524-mendoza-82-c-2018-pablo-cerezo-ccby-4-0.jpg " alt="" width="540" style="margin-top:4px;" />
</p>

<!-- Photo credits start below --> <p style="padding: 0px 20px 0px 20px; margin-top:1px; text-align:center;"> 
<em>(Copyright &copy; 2018 Pablo Cerezo. Photos licensed under <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY 4.0</a>.)</em>


<br style="margin-bottom:15px;" />

<p>&#8230;to the Centro Cultural Teatrino de la Trapalanda, in
<strong>Río Cuarto,</strong> Córdoba, where he gave his speech "Sociedad digital libre,"<sup style="font-size:8px"><a href="#fn1" id="ref1">1</a></sup> on May 26<sup style="font-size:8px">th</sup>. 
RMS drove home the point:</p>

<div align="justify">
<div style="margin-left:30px">
<div style="margin-right:30px">
<blockquote>
Any school level should teach only free software, because a school's
social mission is to educate citizens of a society that is capable,
strong, independent, caring, and free.  Because to teach a proprietary
program is a way of implanting dependence in the future.  It's like
teaching to smoke tobacco.
</blockquote>
</blockquote>
</div>
</div>
</div>

<!-- Image(s) start below -->
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<p style="text-align:center;">
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180526-riocuarto/20180526-riocuarto-02-c-2018-lucas-bellomo-ccbysa-4-0.jpg " alt="" width="133" style="margin-top:4px;" />    
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180526-riocuarto/20180526-riocuarto-03-c-2018-lucas-bellomo-ccbysa-4-0.jpg " alt="" width="133" style="margin-top:4px;" />    
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180526-riocuarto/20180526-riocuarto-04-c-2018-lucas-bellomo-ccbysa-4-0.jpg " alt="" width="133" style="margin-top:4px;" />    
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180526-riocuarto/20180526-riocuarto-05-c-2018-lucas-bellomo-ccbysa-4-0.jpg " alt="" width="133" style="margin-top:4px;" />    
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180526-riocuarto/20180526-riocuarto-07-c-2018-lucas-bellomo-ccbysa-4-0.jpg " alt="" width="133" style="margin-top:4px;" />    
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180526-riocuarto/20180526-riocuarto-10-c-2018-lucas-bellomo-ccbysa-4-0.jpg " alt="" width="540" style="margin-top:4px;" />  
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180526-riocuarto/20180526-riocuarto-11-c-2018-lucas-bellomo-ccbysa-4-0.jpg " alt="" width="133" style="margin-top:4px;" />
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180526-riocuarto/20180526-riocuarto-12-c-2018-lucas-bellomo-ccbysa-4-0.jpg " alt="" width="133" style="margin-top:4px;" />
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180526-riocuarto/20180526-riocuarto-28-c-2018-lucas-bellomo-ccbysa-4-0.jpg " alt="" width="540" style="margin-top:4px;" />
</p>

<!-- Photo credits start below --> <p style="padding: 0px 20px 0px 20px; margin-top:1px; text-align:center;"> 
<em>(Copyright &copy; 2018 Lucas Bellomo. Photos licensed under <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY 4.0</a>.)</em>

<br style="margin-bottom:15px;" />


<p>&#8230;to the <strong>Autonomous City of Buenos Aires,</strong>
where, on May 28<sup style="font-size:8px">th</sup>, he spoke at the
Instituto Universitario de la Policía Federal (IUPFA), giving his
speech "Software libre: Soberanía e independencia tecnológica."</p>

<!-- Image(s) start below -->
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<p style="text-align:center;">
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180528-buenosaires/20180528-buenosaires-01-c-2018-iupfa-ccby-4-0.jpg " alt="" width="265" style="margin-top:4px;" />
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180528-buenosaires/20180528-buenosaires-03-c-2018-iupfa-ccby-4-0.jpg " alt="" width="265" style="margin-top:4px;" />
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180528-buenosaires/20180528-buenosaires-04-c-2018-iupfa-ccby-4-0.jpg " alt="" width="540" style="margin-top:4px;" />


<!-- Photo credits start below --> <p style="padding: 0px 20px 0px 20px; margin-top:1px; text-align:center;"> 
<em>(Copyright &copy; 2018 IUPFA. Photos licensed under <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY 4.0</a>.)</em>

<br style="margin-bottom:15px;" />


<p>&#8230;and, on May 30<sup style="font-size:8px">th</sup>, at the
Centro Cultural de la Cooperación Floreal Gorini, where people came to
hear him give his speech "Copyright vs. Comunidad."<sup style="font-size:8px"><a href="#fn1" id="ref1">1</a></sup></p>

<!-- Image(s) start below -->
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<p style="text-align:center;">
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180530-buenosaires/20180530-buenosaires-01-c-2018-cristian-segarra-ccby-4-0-thumb.jpg " alt="" width="540" style="margin-top:4px;" />
</p>

<!-- Photo credits start below --> <p style="padding: 0px 20px 0px 20px; margin-top:1px; text-align:center;"> 
<em>(Copyright &copy; 2018 Cristian Segarra. Photos licensed under <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY 4.0</a>.)</em>

<br style="margin-bottom:15px;" />


<p>&#8230;to <strong>La Plata,</strong> Buenos Aires, where he spoke
at the Universidad Nacional de La Plata (UNP), on May 31<sup style="font-size:8px">st</sup>.</p>

<!-- Image(s) start below -->
<!-- Adjust the width="150" part to change how wide the image appears on the page  -->

<p style="text-align:center;">
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180531-laplata/20180531-laplata-01-c-2018-ditcp-unlp-ccby-4-0.jpg " alt="" width="265" style="margin-top:4px;" />  
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180531-laplata/20180531-laplata-02-c-2018-ditcp-unlp-ccby-4-0.jpg " alt="" width="265" style="margin-top:4px;" />  
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180531-laplata/20180531-laplata-07-c-2018-ditcp-unlp-ccby-4-0.jpg " alt="" width="540" style="margin-top:4px;" />  
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180531-laplata/20180531-laplata-08-c-2018-ditcp-unlp-ccby-4-0.jpg " alt="" width="540" style="margin-top:4px;" />  
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180531-laplata/20180531-laplata-13-c-2018-ditcp-unlp-ccby-4-0.jpg " alt="" width="265" style="margin-top:4px;" />
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180531-laplata/20180531-laplata-15-c-2018-ditcp-unlp-ccby-4-0.jpg " alt="" width="265" style="margin-top:4px;" />
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180531-laplata/20180531-laplata-16-c-2018-ditcp-unlp-ccby-4-0.jpg " alt="" width="265" style="margin-top:4px;" />
<img src="/static/nosvn/rms-photos/20180531-laplata/20180531-laplata-17-c-2018-ditcp-unlp-ccby-4-0.jpg " alt="" width="265" style="margin-top:4px;" />
</p>

<!-- Photo credits start below --> <p style="padding: 0px 20px 0px 20px; margin-top:1px; text-align:center;"> 
<em>(Copyright &copy; 2018 Dirección de Innovación Tecnologica y Cadenas Productivas of the UNP. Photos licensed under <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY 4.0</a>.)</em>

<br style="margin-bottom:15px;" />

<p>He finished with speeches in <strong>Mar del Plata,</strong> Buenos
Aires, on June 2<sup style="font-size:8px">nd</sup>, and then, back in
Brazil, in <strong>Pato Branco,</strong> Paraná, on June 4<sup style="font-size:8px">th</sup> and, finally, in <strong>São
Paulo,</strong> on June 6<sup style="font-size:8px">th</sup>.  Much
work remains to be done; however, the trip did much to increase the
public's awareness of the importance of computer-user freedom.
Commenting on the situation in Brazil, Alexandre Oliva, founding
member of <a href="https://FSFLA.org">Free Software Foundation Latin
America</a> and the 2017 winner of the FSF's <a href="https://www.fsf.org/awards/fs-award">Award for the Advancement
of Free Software</a> concluded,</p>

<div align="justify">
<div style="margin-left:30px">
<div style="margin-right:30px">
<blockquote>
Last decade, free software had a lot of exposure and support in
Brazilian governments, from federal to municipal.  This declined
significantly in the present decade: as the government tides turned,
the movement lost many influential positions and even activists who
moved on.  Those of us who remained need to prepare the next
generation of activists, focusing on the young.  They might seem lost
to anti-social networks, mobile phone cells and idIoT surveillance
devices, but these are all additional reasons to inform them and urge
them to join the resistance.  Having RMS around to draw their
attention to these issues is invaluable!
</blockquote>
</div>
</div>
</div>

<p>We hope you will join the movement!</p>

<br style="margin-bottom:15px;" />

<hr /></hr>

<p style="text-align:center;"><strong>Thank you to everyone who made
all these trips possible!  A special thanks to Alexandre for, among
other things, making the Araraquara and São Paulo speeches possible,
and to Javier Barcena for all his help on the Argentinian
side.</strong></p>

<!-- End of image+caption block -->

<p style="text-align:center;">Please fill out our contact form, so
that we can inform you about future events in and around <a href="https://my.fsf.org/civicrm/profile/create?gid=531&amp;reset=1">Araraquara</a>,
<a href="https://my.fsf.org/civicrm/profile/create?gid=537&amp;reset=1">Misiones
Posadas</a>, <a href="https://my.fsf.org/civicrm/profile/create?gid=538&amp;reset=1">Tucumán</a>,
<a href="https://my.fsf.org/civicrm/profile/create?gid=539&amp;reset=1">Mendoza</a>,
<a href="https://my.fsf.org/civicrm/profile/create?gid=540&amp;reset=1">Río
Cuarto</a>, <a href="https://my.fsf.org/civicrm/profile/create?gid=105&amp;reset=1">Buenos Aires
and La Plata</a>, <a href="https://my.fsf.org/civicrm/profile/create?gid=543&amp;reset=1">Mar
del Plata</a>, <a href="https://my.fsf.org/civicrm/profile/create?gid=541&amp;reset=1">Pato
Branco</a>, and <a href="https://my.fsf.org/civicrm/profile/create?gid=542&amp;reset=1">São
Paulo</a>, all of which RMS visited on this trip.</p>

<p style="text-align:center;">Please see <a href="http://www.fsf.org/events">www.fsf.org/events</a> for a full
list of all of RMS's confirmed engagements, <br /> and contact <a href="mailto:rms-assist@gnu.org">rms-assist@gnu.org</a> if you'd like
him to come speak.</p>

<hr /></hr>

<sup id="fn1">1. The recording will soon be posted on <a href="http://audio-video.gnu.org">our audio-video archive</a>.<a href="#ref1" title="Jump back to footnote 1 in the text.">↩</a></sup><br />


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/take-a-stand-before-july-5th-contact-your-mep-today
title: Take a stand before July 5th: Contact your MEP today
uri: Take-a-stand-before-July-5th-Contact-your-MEP-today
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/take-a-stand-before-july-5th-contact-your-mep-today
content:
<p>We recently asked you to <a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/free-software-is-at-risk-in-the-eu-take-action-now">contact your Members of European Parliment
(MEPs)</a> to express your opposition to the Copyright Directive, a
proposed policy including a section called Article 13. Article 13
threatens free speech, free culture, and free software. A number of
you contacted your MEPs and wrote back to us -- thank you!</p>
<p>In spite of your efforts, 15 MEPs in the Legal Affairs Committee
(JURI) voted against Web freedom and passed the Copyright Directive
through its first round of approval.</p>
<p>But there's still hope! The second round is coming up <strong>this Thursday,
July 5th</strong>. We're urging you to contact your MEPs before then.</p>
<p><strong>Talk to your MEP before July 5th to #SaveYourInternet.</strong></p>
<h2>How to contact your MEP</h2>
<h3>Find their details</h3>
<p><a href="http://www.europarl.europa.eu/meps/en/full-list.html">Europa.eu contains contact information</a> for all MEPs. This
includes email addresses, Twitter accounts, mailing addresses, and
phone numbers.</p>
<h3>Call</h3>
<p>Calling is one of the most important things you can do. Try a sample
script:</p>
<p><em>Hi, I'm [NAME]. I live in [LOCATION]. I'm calling to let you know
 that I oppose Article 13 of the Copyright Directive. Thank you.</em></p>
<p>It's that simple. If you want to say more, tell the person you're
talking with a bit about yourself -- are you an artist concerned for
the future of your art? A developer or free software activist looking
out for software freedom? Maybe you're a student, parent, or voter
concerned about the future of the Web.</p>
<p>Feel free to talk more about why you care about Article 13 and its
impact, including the ways it's bad for the Web, free culture, free
speech, and free software. Some key points include:</p>
<ul>
<li>It harms free speech and free expression.</li>
<li>It limits lawful use of commentary, parody, and remix.</li>
<li>It will automatically filter out source code that is being legally used under free software licenses.</li>
</ul>
<p>For more ideas, Julia Reda has <a href="https://juliareda.eu/eu-copyright-reform/censorship-machines/">written about some of the consequences
of Article 13 passing</a>.</p>
<h3>Email your MEP</h3>
<p>Not sure what to say? Try this sample script, or write your own:</p>
<p><em>Dear [NAME],</em></p>
<p><em>I am writing to urge you to vote against the Copyright Directive this
 July.</em></p>
<p><em>The Copyright Directive will turn code sharing platforms that are
 used to build software into censorship machines. When we say
 software, not only do we mean things like apps for our convenience,
 but also the digital infrastructure that runs our world.</em></p>
<p><em>Much of this technology is free software -- software that uses
 licenses that respect the freedom of users and developers of
 software. Among other things, it allows developers to use, modify,
 and reuse code. Automatic filtering would prevent the legal and
 rightful uploading of code that uses these licenses -- a major blow
 for development and digital freedom.</em></p>
<p><em>I hope you'll do the right thing and vote for freedom with a vote
 against the Copyright Directive.</em></p>
<p><em>Cheers,</em><br />
<em>[NAME]</em></p>
<h3>Social media</h3>
<p>We know that many of your MEPs maintain accounts on <a href="https://fsf.org/twitter">Twitter</a>. You
can Tweet at them, using the hashtags <em>SaveYourInternet</em>,
<em>CensorshipMachine</em>, and <em>DeleteArt13</em>.</p>
<h2>What else can I do?</h2>
<p>Share this post with your friends! Educating others and raising
awareness of these issues helps people understand how important these
policies are.</p>
<p>If you write to your MEP, share your letters with us (<a href="mailto:info@fsf.org">&#105;&#110;&#102;&#111;&#64;&#102;&#115;&#102;&#46;&#111;&#114;&#103;</a>)
and those in your networks: having examples of what to say makes it
easier to write a letter. Please feel free to also contact us about
phone calls you make.</p>
<p>To learn more, you can check out the links below:</p>
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.april.org/en/themes/copyright">Various articles by April</a> concerning the latest developments in the fight against the Copyright Directive, and actions you can take.</li>
<li><a href="https://www.communia-association.org/2018/05/22/council-parliament-edge-towards-finalizing-positions-article-13-remains-mess/">A detailed analysis</a> (with flow charts!) from Communia.</li>
<li><a href="https://juliareda.eu/2018/04/free-software-censorship-machines/">Writing by Julia Reda</a>, an MEP.</li>
</ul>
<p>You can also support the work of the <a href="https://fsf.org">Free Software Foundation</a> by
supporting our <a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/get-the-latest-in-libre-from-the-fsf-bulletin/">Spring fundraising and membership drive</a>.</p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/introducing-alyssa-rosenzweig-intern-with-the-fsf-tech-team
title: Introducing Alyssa Rosenzweig, intern with the FSF tech team
uri: Introducing-Alyssa-Rosenzweig-intern-with-the-FSF-tech-team
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/introducing-alyssa-rosenzweig-intern-with-the-fsf-tech-team
content:
<p>Howdy there, fellow cyber denizens; 'tis I, Alyssa Rosenzweig, your friendly
local biological life form! I'm a certified goofball, licensed to be silly
under the GPLv3, but more importantly, I'm passionate about free software's
role in society. I'm excited to join the Free Software Foundation as an intern
this summer to expand my understanding of our movement. Well, that, and
purchasing my first propeller beanie in strict compliance with the FSF office
dress code!</p>
<p>Anywho, I hail from a family of engineers and was introduced to programming at
an early age. As a miniature humanoid, I discovered that practice let me hit
buttons on a keyboard and have my textual protagonist dance on my terminal --
that was cool! Mimicking those around me, I hacked with an Apple laptop,
running macOS, compiling in Xcode, and talking on Skype. I was vaguely aware of the
free software ethos, so sometimes I liberated my code. Sometimes I did not. I
was little more than a button masher with a flashing TTY; I wrote video games
while inside a video game, my life firewalled from reality.</p>
<p>I grew up. Offline, I learned in school about politics, civics, history. My
fascination grew from PHP and C++ to Dr. King, Mahatma Gandhi, Cesar Chavez:
real people, making real change, in the real world. Online, I added Richard
Stallman to my nascent list of heroes. Discovering the free software movement
transformed me. Soon, armed with both programming and politics, I watched the
genie fly out of the bottle, granting me three wishes. I chose liberty,
equality, and fraternity – <em>Vive la philosophie!</em> Yet I was restless. I was
still. How could I? People lived. People died. Programs booted. Programs -9'd.
The world spun. I sat. How could I? How could I? I put 10 and 10 together, and
soon I knew my mission: to program for freedom, to write free software.
Voracious, I read code and prose, and focused, I hacked and hacked. Today, this
path has led to me to copyleft my blog on free software, to condemn proprietary
software at every turn, and most of all, to code, to collaborate, to
contribute.</p>
<p>Critically, I have developed a focus on low-level freedom. I joined Libreboot,
a free boot firmware, and through that immersion in boot freedom, I learned of
two grave new threats: the <a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/the-management-engine-an-attack-on-computer-users-freedom">Intel Management Engine</a> and the AMD Platform
Security Processor. It became clear that Intel and AMD's x86, the dominant
architecture among free and proprietary software users alike, no longer
belonged in our movement. I switched to ARM machines.</p>
<p>Unfortunately, free software support for ARM is lacking. On popular almost-free
chipsets like the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RK3288">RK3288</a>, the graphics processor requires proprietary
blobs. Thus, we hackers are creating <a href="https://panfrost.freedesktop.org/">Panfrost</a>, a free driver for modern ARM
<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mali_(GPU)">Mali chips</a>. Today, on an RK3288 laptop, Panfrost is mature enough to run
the famous benchmark, es2gears, with zero lines of proprietary code. But even
with projects like Panfrost, intense ARM fragmentation has made the
architectural jump a RISCy proposition for free software supporters. Indeed,
there is not yet a user-friendly, fully free GNU/Linux distribution available
for ARM.</p>
<p>This summer with the FSF, I am working to address these issues. My immediate
focus is contributing to ARM-related resources like the <a href="https://libreplanet.org/wiki/Main_Page">LibrePlanet wiki</a>
and the FSF website. Longer-term, I seek to improve distribution support to
enable x86-bound users to make the switch. No one -- and no zero -- has claimed
the road ahead is easy. But little by little, together we can chip away at the
proprietary monopoly, in the name of freer chips.</p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/sonalis-progress-on-the-free-software-directory-weeks-1-2
title: Sonali's Progress on the Free Software Directory, weeks 1-2
uri: Sonali-s-Progress-on-the-Free-Software-Directory-weeks-1-2
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/sonalis-progress-on-the-free-software-directory-weeks-1-2
content:
<p>As a part of my project to make the <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/wiki/Main_Page">Free Software Directory</a> mobile friendly, I
can add extensions, modify the code, and format the pages the way I like. I
have complete freedom to experiment on their development site as much as I want. It's
wonderful to be able to work on something I really enjoy under the guidance of
experienced mentors. </p>
<p><strong>What is the Free Software Directory?</strong></p>
<p>The <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/wiki/Main_Page">Free Software Directory</a> is a project of the Free Software Foundation that
catalogs free software and allows people to download free software with
verified free licenses. In 2011, it was re-launched as a wiki, using MediaWiki
and Semantic MediaWiki to give users greater freedom to add, use or modify its
textual data. </p>
<p><strong>My work:</strong></p>
<p>After setting up <a href="https://trisquel.info/">Trisquel</a> (a
<a href="https://www.gnu.org/distros/free-distros.html">fully free operating system</a> and GNU/Linux
distribution) on my machine and getting access to the development server, I was <a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/introducing-sonali-outreachy-summer-intern-with-free-software-foundation">good to
go</a>
by the second day of my internship. I had already done a lot of research, so
I knew what I was going for.</p>
<p>MediaWiki offers a simple way to make any wiki mobile-optimized. The extension
MobileFrontend provides various site transformations that make your wiki mobile-friendly. It comes with useful features like a mobile menu and section collapsing,
and has a very simple reader-oriented interface. It can be installed very
easily. People with less experience don't need to spend time learning how to understand
complex code. The CSS of the mobile theme can also be edited to achieve desired
customizations using <code>MediaWiki:Mobile.css</code> (which is a Web page on your wiki, a
counterpart of <code>MediaWiki:Common.css</code>).  In short, MobileFrontend can give a very
effective mobile-optimized view without much hassle. (For more information, see
<a href="https://www.mediawiki.org/wiki/Extension:MobileFrontend">the project page</a>.)</p>
<p>I installed MobileFrontend from the MediaWiki extension distributor and
extracted the files locally. Then I uploaded them to the extensions directory
in the root, i.e. <code>/var/www/w/extensions</code>. </p>
<p>Next, I had to edit <code>LocalSettings.php</code>. I used Vim for that. Vim is a very
efficient and simple text editor. I was going to use Vim for the first time, so
I spent some time before that going through Vimtutor.</p>
<p>After ensuring that the extension was installed properly, I couldn't wait to see
how the site looked on mobile. I opened its mobile view on my desktop, and that
was when I realized that while MobileFrontend is able to make most of the
pages mobile optimized, it doesn't necessarily make it "mobile friendly." I
checked the development site for various bugs and text which was not properly
aligned. </p>
<p><strong>Issues I faced:</strong></p>
<ol>
<li>The HeaderTabs extension is incompatible with MobileFrontend. Only the
      first tab is displayed, and the rest of the tabs (and their text)
      disappear. The FSD uses HeaderTabs to display various entries. It was
      necessary to either fix those or disable them for mobile view. The
      solution: I was able to disable HeaderTabs using MobileDetect extension.
      It introduces a function called <code>mobiledetect()</code>, which returns true when a
      mobile device is detected, and false otherwise. I added a simple if
      statement in <code>LocalSettings.php</code> which excluded HeaderTabs from loading on
      mobile browsers.</li>
<li>The mobile menu looks incomplete; there doesn't seem to be an easy way to
      add important links to the mobile menu. </li>
<li>Noticed by Ian (one of my mentors): 2 column view doesn't merge into a
      single column during mobile view, i.e. things that appear on the right
      column in a wide desktop view should come in-line in the mobile view.
      This is caused by the styling of the form: <code>float: left; float: right</code>,
      etc. Solution: I replaced those styles with <code>div</code> classes <code>left-float</code> and
      <code>right-float</code>. Then I defined those classes in <code>MediaWiki:Common.css</code> and
      used a media query to bring the 2 columns in-line for screen size lesser
      than 800 px. </li>
<li>Suggested by Andrew (my mentor), tables appear crammed in small screens.
      I am currently working on this issue. With the help of flexboxes and CSS,
      I am trying to make long horizontal tables appear vertical during mobile
      view.</li>
</ol>
<p><strong>Things I plan to work on in the coming week:</strong></p>
<ol>
<li>Add the FSD logo to the mobile site</li>
<li>Theme the mobile site so that it looks more like the FSF Directory theme</li>
<li>Find a way to enable mobile view on desktops of smaller sizes (less than
      800 px)</li>
<li>And most importantly, spend time learning, researching, and building
      something useful.</li>
</ol>


title: No Friday Free Software Directory IRC meetup on Friday July 20th
uri: No-Friday-Free-Software-Directory-IRC-meetup-on-Friday-July-20th
feed_id:
http://www.fsf.org/blogs/directory/no-friday-free-software-directory-irc-meetup-on-friday-july-20th-1

url:
http://www.fsf.org/blogs/directory/no-friday-free-software-directory-irc-meetup-on-friday-july-20th-1

content:
<p><strong>No meeting will be taking place this week due to travel, but meetings will return to our regular schedule starting on Friday, July 27th.</strong></p>
<p>Tens of thousands of people visit <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/">directory.fsf.org</a> each
month to discover free software. Each entry in the Directory
contains a wealth of useful information, from basic category and
descriptions, to providing detailed info about version control,
IRC channels, documentation, and licensing info that has been
carefully checked by FSF staff and trained volunteers.</p>
<p>When a user comes to the Directory, they know that everything in
it is free software, has only free dependencies, and runs on a
free OS. With over 16,000 entries, it is a massive repository of
information about free software.</p>
<p>While the Directory has been and continues to be a great resource
to the world for many years now, it has the potential to be a
resource of even greater value. But it needs your help! And since
it's a MediaWiki instance, it's easy for anyone to edit and
contribute to the Directory.</p>
<p>If you are eager to help, and you can't wait until the next meeting, our <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/wiki/FSD:Participate">participation guide</a> will provide
you with all the information you need to get started on helping the
Directory today! </p>


title: David's Progress on The Free Software Directory, internship weeks 2-3
uri: David-s-Progress-on-The-Free-Software-Directory-internship-weeks-2-3
feed_id:
http://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/davids-progress-on-the-free-software-directory-internship-weeks-2-3

url:
http://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/davids-progress-on-the-free-software-directory-internship-weeks-2-3

content:
<p><i>For context, see the previous blog post, <a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/introducing-david-hedlund-intern-with-the-fsf-tech-team">Introducing
David Hedlund, intern with the FSF tech team</a>.</i></p>

<p>I'm working on creating a list of free software extensions for
Mozilla-based browsers on the <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/wiki/Main_Page">Free Software Directory</a> based on data from
<a href="https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/">addons.mozilla.org</a>. This is needed because the official extensions
repository includes many proprietary extensions.</p>

<p>I found out that it's not possible to use the addons.mozilla.org API to
list add-on collections, so I submitted a <a href="https://github.com/mozilla/addons/issues/722">bug report</a> for
this. To my surprise they declined my suggestion, so I had to add a
function to my program to parse it manually. Then I went on and wrote a
detailed README file to describe the philosophy for the project to make
it easy for anyone to contribute. I merged my source code to the
Savannah GNU package called <a href="https://savannah.gnu.org/projects/directory">Free Software
Directory</a>, which also has scripts for importing data from Debian.</p>

<p>I started a <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/wiki/Collection:IceCat?&amp;printable=yes">collection of IceCat add-ons</a> and recommended IceCat (and Abrowser) to
use it in Tools -> Add-ons (about:addons) -> Get Add-ons.</p>

<p>During a Free Software Directory meeting, I started to work on my idea to
set up an IRC bot to send automatic messages in our channel, #fsf. For
example, "The Free Software Directory meeting starts now." Eggdrop is
an old stable bot program, so I decided that we should use it. With some
help from a great volunteer, I wrote an Eggdrop script and configuration
script for the FSF along with some documentation.</p>

<p>I wrote a really simple script to figure out the WebExtension support
status for IceCat add-ons on the Directory. Then I deleted all legacy
add-ons for IceCat from the Directory with the edit summary: “Not a
WebExtension so it's not compatible with IceCat 60 that will be released
soon. We don't have resources to maintain legacy add-ons too.” Over 100
entries were deleted. Then I updated my program used to sync selected
add-ons with the Directory, reducing my old legacy collection from 137
to 79. Some of them have functionality that is now part of
Firefox. Finally I removed IceCat legacy add-ons from the Directory's <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/wiki?title=Special:ApprovedRevs&amp;show=unapproved">
unapproved revision list</a>.  I started a <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/wiki/Free_Software_Directory:Buggy_entries">buggy
entries page</a> and fixed some entries.</p>

<p>There is an existing package to import data from Debian into the
Directory, but it hasn't been maintained recently. I ran those scripts,
but got stuck and submitted <a href="https://savannah.gnu.org/bugs/?54080">a bug</a>.</p>

<p><a href="https://www.mediawiki.org/wiki/Manual:Pywikibot">Pywikibot</a> is a Python library and collection of scripts that automate
changes and analysis on MediaWiki sites. I ran into some problems
running it on the Directory, but a developer in #pywikibot helped me
out. I documented the complete instructions for using pywikibot to
upload files in the Directory.</p>

<p>I feel like I'm making good progress and looking forward to getting
automated edits working with Pywikibot or some other way so that Debian and addons.mozilla.org
data can be synced with the directory.</p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/directory/the-free-software-directory-needs-you-irc-meetups-every-friday-1
title: The Free Software Directory needs you! IRC meetups every Friday
uri: The-Free-Software-Directory-needs-you-IRC-meetups-every-Friday
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/directory/the-free-software-directory-needs-you-irc-meetups-every-friday-1
content:
<p>The <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/wiki/Main_Page">Free Software Directory</a> is an essential catalog of free
software online, composed and maintained by countless volunteers
dedicated to the promotion of software that respects your personal
liberty. Tens of thousands of people visit the Directory every month
to discover free software and explore the information about version
control, documentation, and licensing. Adding and maintaining entries
to the Directory is crucial work to give people access to free
software which has only free dependencies and runs on a free OS. All
of this information is also exported in machine-readable formats,
making it a valuable source of data for the study of trends in free
software. The Directory is powered by MediaWiki, the same software
used by Wikipedia.</p>
<p>Every Friday at 12:00-15:00 EDT (16:00 to 19:00 UTC), volunteers meet
<a href="irc://irc.gnu.org/fsf">on IRC in the #fsf channel on irc.freenode.org</a> to add new entries, update existing
ones, and talk about free software together (to see the meeting start
time in your time zone, run this in GNU bash: date
--date='TZ="America/New_York" 12:00 this Fri'). As with any group
composed of volunteers, the informal Directory team has people who
come and go, and right now, it could really use some fresh new members
to kick our efforts into high gear. The Directory just passed 16,000
entries this year, and as far as we're concerned, there's no limit to
how high it should go!</p>
<p>Examples of ways you can help include updating information about
existing entries, proposing new entries, or reviewing new entries
submitted by others to make sure they meet the Directory's criteria.</p>
<p>If you can't wait or don't have the time to jump onto IRC on Friday
afternoons, you can still help: check out the <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/wiki/Free_Software_Directory:Participate">Free Software Directory
Participation Guide</a> for instructions.</p>
<p>No matter how you participate, improving the Free Software Directory
is an easy, nuts-and-bolts way to make a contribution to the free
software movement, bringing us a tinier step every day to a truly free
society. We look forward to seeing you on IRC!</p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/gnu-spotlight-with-mike-gerwitz-15-new-gnu-releases
title: GNU Spotlight with Mike Gerwitz: 15 new GNU releases!
uri: GNU-Spotlight-with-Mike-Gerwitz-15-new-GNU-releases
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/gnu-spotlight-with-mike-gerwitz-15-new-gnu-releases
content:
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/autogen/">autogen-5.18.14</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/binutils/">binutils-2.31.1</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/coreutils/">coreutils-8.30</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/gcc/">gcc-8.2.0</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/gdbm/">gdbm-1.16</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/gnupg/">gnupg-2.2.9</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/gnu-pw-mgr/">gnu-pw-mgr-2.3.3</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/gnutls/">gnutls-3.6.3</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/guile/">guile-2.2.4</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/guix/">guix-0.15.0</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/libextractor/">libextractor-1.7</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/libredwg/">libredwg-0.5</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/linux-libre/">linux-libre-4.17.9-gnu</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/parallel/">parallel-20180722</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/tramp/">tramp-2.4.0</a></li>
</ul>
<p>For announcements of most new GNU releases, subscribe to the info-gnu
mailing list: <a href="https://lists.gnu.org/mailman/listinfo/info-gnu">https://lists.gnu.org/mailman/listinfo/info-gnu</a>.</p>
<p>To download: nearly all GNU software is available from
<a href="https://ftp.gnu.org/gnu/">https://ftp.gnu.org/gnu/</a>, or preferably one of its mirrors from
<a href="https://www.gnu.org/prep/ftp.html">https://www.gnu.org/prep/ftp.html</a>. You can use the url
<a href="https://ftpmirror.gnu.org/">https://ftpmirror.gnu.org/</a> to be automatically redirected to a
(hopefully) nearby and up-to-date mirror.</p>
<p>This month, we welcome Jan Nieuwenhuizen as maintainer of the new
GNU Mes.</p>
<p>A number of GNU packages, as well as the GNU operating system as a
whole, are looking for maintainers and other assistance: please see
<a href="https://www.gnu.org/server/takeaction.html#unmaint">https://www.gnu.org/server/takeaction.html#unmaint</a> if you'd like to
help. The general page on how to help GNU is at
<a href="https://www.gnu.org/help/help.html">https://www.gnu.org/help/help.html</a>.</p>
<p>If you have a working or partly working program that you'd like
to offer to the GNU project as a GNU package, see
<a href="https://www.gnu.org/help/evaluation.html">https://www.gnu.org/help/evaluation.html</a>.</p>
<p>As always, please feel free to write to us at <a href="mailto:maintainers@gnu.org">&#109;&#97;&#105;&#110;&#116;&#97;&#105;&#110;&#101;&#114;&#115;&#64;&#103;&#110;&#117;&#46;&#111;&#114;&#103;</a>
with any GNUish questions or suggestions for future installments.</p>


title: Apple App Store anniversary marks ten years of proprietary appsploitation
uri: Apple-App-Store-anniversary-marks-ten-years-of-proprietary-appsploitat
feed_id:
http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/apple-app-store-anniversary-marks-ten-years-of-proprietary-appsploitation

url:
http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/apple-app-store-anniversary-marks-ten-years-of-proprietary-appsploitation

content:
<p>It's been <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/davidphelan/2018/07/09/ten-years-of-the-apple-app-store-my-ten-favorite-game-changing-apps/">ten years since Apple opened the App Store</a>. This created a whole new industry through which third party app creators and Apple themselves found new ways to threaten user freedom with technical tricks and legal loopholes. Since the beginning, we at the <a href="https://www.fsf.org">Free Software Foundation</a> have recognized the threats posed by the iPhone and have <a href="https://www.fsf.org/campaigns/apple">reported on Apple</a> on fsf.org and <a href="https://www.defectivebydesign.org/apple">DefectiveByDesign</a>, while free software supporters around the world have been taking action.</p>
<h3>Apple controls your apps</h3>
<p>The only way to install apps on a non-jailbroken iPhone is through the iOS App Store -- this means that your device can only run what Apple wants it to run.</p>
<p>Apple acts as a gatekeeper for which apps you're allowed to access. They control what becomes available -- and not every app gets to stay there. They regularly remove apps for many reasons and sometimes no reason at all. They claim this enhances your security, but are happy to abuse their power: Apple <a href="https://dailycaller.com/2018/06/01/apple-russia-blocking-updates/">blocked updates to messaging app Telegram</a> in Russia, after demands from the government. This was after <a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/news/2018/02/01/apple-removes-secretive-telegram-messaging-app-app-store/1086302001/">Telegram was removed entirely</a> from the App Store, only to be made available again later. When BitCoin posed a threat to Apple Pay, they <a href="https://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/apple/10621175/Apple-bans-final-bitcoin-wallet-from-App-Store.html">removed all BitCoin apps</a>.</p>
<p>Other instances of app removal include July 2017, when <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/29/technology/china-apple-censorhip.html">Apple removed apps that circumvented the Great Firewall</a>, making them no longer available in the App Store. <a href="https://www.fsf.org/news/2010-05-app-store-compliance">GNU Go was removed</a> after issues with GPL compliance on Apple's end.</p>
<h3>Apple loves DRM</h3>
<p>Apple loves <a href="https://www.defectivebydesign.org/what_is_drm_digital_restrictions_management">Digital Restrictions Management (DRM)</a>! DRM is the use of technology (including software) to restrict access to digital media like ebooks, games, and music. Apple's use of DRM not only steps on the freedoms of users, but has proven to be downright dangerous. In 2016, <a href="https://researchcenter.paloaltonetworks.com/2016/03/acedeceiver-first-ios-trojan-exploiting-apple-drm-design-flaws-to-infect-any-ios-device/">AceDeceiver</a> became the first iOS trojan exploiting flaws in iOS DRM.</p>
<p><em>In a DRM-free a world, any player can play music purchased from any store, and any store can sell music which is playable on all players. This is clearly the best alternative for consumers, and Apple would embrace it in a heartbeat. - Steve Jobs</em></p>
<p>When DRM was dropped from the iTunes store, <a href="https://gizmodo.com/234448/steve-jobs-on-drm-it-must-die">Steve Jobs wrote an essay</a> titled "Thoughts on Music," which took a firm stance against DRM. It has since been removed from the Apple Web site. In it, Jobs called for the world to abandon DRM technologies, and for Apple to embrace a DRM-free future. This is clearly no longer Apple's stance on DRM.</p>
<h3>Apple loves surveillance</h3>
<p>In addition to colluding with Russia, Apple has allowed itself to be the tool of other governments looking to monitor and control their populations. For example: <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/jun/06/us-tech-giants-nsa-data">the National Security Agency's (NSA) PRISM program</a>, which allows the NSA access to data, including "search history, the content of emails, file transfers, and live chats" of Apple users. While Apple claimed no knowledge of the program, the NSA reported that the company gave them this access. Whether or not this is true, we can never know due to the opaque and proprietary nature of Apple's code and business practices.</p>
<p>The iPhone X brought with it <a href="https://www.apple.com/iphone-x/">facial recognition capabilities</a>. In light of government use of facial recognition and <a href="https://gizmodo.com/amazon-workers-demand-jeff-bezos-cancel-face-recognitio-1827037509">government contracts with Amazon to use their Rekognition facial scanning technology</a>, we are deeply concerned about the transparency and surveillance issues associated with the widespread deployment of this technology.</p>
<p>While Apple has taken strong stances against certain types of government surveillance, they support surveillance in other contexts. By building proprietary technology designed to lock users into a system, they enable the possibility for gross surveillance and limitless anti-privacy policies. Apple CEO Tim Cook is currently preventing this. Should Cook change his mind, decide that being pro-privacy is no longer profitable, or leave Apple, things could change. There are no guarantees a new CEO would not kowtow to government demands.</p>
<p>Apple also offers other forms of surveillance, like the <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/11/technology/personaltech/apple-iphone-screen-time.html">Screen Time feature</a>, which allows users to control the ability to access different apps and functionality on an iPhone. This might seem great if you're looking to keep yourself off Twitter, but it's also a tool of monitoring and control. Tools like this can (and will) be used by domestic abusers looking to control other people's access to technology.</p>
<h2>There are better choices you can make!</h2>
<p>What can you do? </p>
<h3>Talk to Apple</h3>
<p>One thing we always recommend is <a href="https://www.defectivebydesign.org/apple#email">contacting Apple about your stance on iOS devices</a>.</p>
<h3>Talk to others</h3>
<p>If you're looking to get more hands-on, visit your local Apple store with <a href="https://www.fsf.org/resources/materials">flyers and stickers</a> and hand them out to people going into the store. We also have <a href="https://www.defectivebydesign.org/printable">DRM-specific flyers</a>.</p>
<p>If you're organizing an event or action, email <a href="mailto:info@fsf.org">&#105;&#110;&#102;&#111;&#64;&#102;&#115;&#102;&#46;&#111;&#114;&#103;</a> and we can arrange to send you some items to hand out (gratis within the United States, for the cost of shipping outside the United States).</p>
<h3>Buy a better mobile device</h3>
<p>There are more ethical options for your mobile needs. Technoethical -- a company that sells a number of <a href="https://www.fsf.org/resources/hw/endorsement/respects-your-freedom">Respects Your Freedom (RYF)</a> devices -- also <a href="https://tehnoetic.com/mobile-devices">sells mobile devices</a>. These mobile devices come pre-installed with Replicant (see below), a version of Android that has had the nonfree parts removed. Purism is also working on <a href="https://puri.sm/posts/tag/phones/">creating a mobile device</a>. (Please note that at the moment there are no RYF-certified mobile devices.)</p>
<h3>Get better software</h3>
<p>Android and iOS aren't your only choices for a mobile operating system! <a href="https://www.replicant.us/">Replicant</a> is a free software OS. We help support Replicant through the <a href="https://my.fsf.org/civicrm/contribute/transact?id=19">Working Together for Free Software fund</a>, and <a href="https://www.fsf.org/campaigns/priority-projects/free-phone">consider it to be a High Priority Project</a>.</p>
<p>Rather than using a proprietary app store, you can download and install apps using <a href="https://f-droid.org/">F-Droid</a>, a free software marketplace that features free software and is free itself! F-Droid works on Replicant and Android devices.</p>
<h3>Join a project</h3>
<p>Projects like Replicant and F-Droid are always looking for volunteers with a range of skill sets, including designers, developers, translators, and writers. You can also <a href="https://gitlab.com/fdroid/rfp">package for F-Droid</a>, creating a more robust selection of apps available.</p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/licensing/respects-your-freedom-certification-program-continues-to-grow
title: Respects Your Freedom certification program continues to grow
uri: Respects-Your-Freedom-certification-program-continues-to-grow
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/licensing/respects-your-freedom-certification-program-continues-to-grow
content:
<p>We recently had some exciting news for our <a href="https://www.fsf.org/resources/hw/endorsement/respects-your-freedom">Respects Your Freedom</a> (RYF) certification program. Our program helps users to find hardware that they can trust to come with freedom inside. When a retailer receives certification on a device, it means users know they will receive hardware that meets with our strict standards on free software and documentation.</p>
<p>First up, on May 15th, we certified the <a href="https://www.fsf.org/news/zerocat-chipflasher-board-edition-1-now-fsf-certified-to-respect-your-freedom">Zerocat Chipflasher "board-edition-1"</a>, which can be purchased from the <a href="http://www.zerocat.org/shop-en.html">Zerocat Label</a>. This device is a really exciting addition to the program. The Zerocat Chipflasher enables users to flash their own devices using only free software, replacing proprietary firmware with free software. One of the big steps currently for a retailer in creating an RYF-certified laptop is flashing laptops to replace proprietary boot firmware with <a href="http://www.zerocat.org/shop-en.html">Libreboot</a>. With the Zerocat Chipflasher, for the first time ever, retailers (or any user) can flash their laptops with a device that can likewise be trusted to respect the rights of users. It means many more users will be able to free their own devices using only free software, and could even help spur the creation of more RYF-certified devices in the future. Currently they are selling a limited edition version, signed by the founder of the Zerocat Label, which will help to fund future availability of the device. Only five remain at this point, but once they are sold, there will be enough funding for future runs of the device.</p>
<p>Next up, on May 30th, we announced certification of the <a href="https://www.fsf.org/news/minifree-libreboot-x200-tablet-now-fsf-certified-to-respect-your-freedom">Minifree Libreboot X200 Tablet</a>, which can be purchased <a href="https://minifree.org/product/libreboot-x200-tablet/">here</a>. While not the first laptop-tablet hybrid to be RYF-certified (that honor goes to the <a href="https://tehnoetic.com/TET-X200T">Technoethical TET-X200T</a>), it offers users even more choices in finding a tablet computing device they can trust. Minifree is also run by the creator of the free boot firmware project Libreboot, so buying a device from them helps to support the continued development of that critical piece of free software.</p>
<p>Both of these devices show great potential for the future of the RYF certification program, whether it is enabling the next generation of retailers who can free devices for users, or continuing the development of the free software needed on those devices. The future in general is looking quite bright for RYF, as we currently have around fifty devices working their way through the certification program. Help us in congratulating the Zerocat Label and Minifree Ltd in their recent accomplishments. And if you would like to help support our work on RYF and other free software initiatives, here's what you can do:</p>
<ul>
<li>Help spread the good news by sharing this article with friends and colleagues.</li>
<li>If you sell devices with free software, help other users obtain devices they can trust by <a href="https://www.fsf.org/resources/hw/endorsement/respects-your-freedom">applying for RYF-certification</a> yourself.</li>
<li>Support our work financially by becoming an <a href="https://www.fsf.org/join">FSF Associate Member</a> or by <a href="https://www.fsf.org/donate">making a donation</a>.</li>
</ul>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/stop-supreme-court-nominee-kavanaugh-to-protect-free-software
title: Stop Supreme Court nominee Kavanaugh to protect free software!
uri: Stop-Supreme-Court-nominee-Kavanaugh-to-protect-free-software
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/stop-supreme-court-nominee-kavanaugh-to-protect-free-software
content:
<p>United States Supreme Count judges serve from the time they are appointed until they choose to retire -- it's a lifetime appointment. One judge recently stepped down, and Brett Kavanaugh was nominated to fill the empty seat. He comes with a firm stance <strong>against</strong> net neutrality.</p>
<p>Last year <a href="http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/next/body/how-trumps-supreme-court-nominee-sides-on-science-issues/">he wrote</a>:</p>
<p><em>Supreme Court precedent establishes that Internet service providers have a First Amendment right to exercise editorial discretion over whether and how to carry Internet content.</em></p>
<p>Here, Kavanaugh argues that controlling the way you use the Internet is a First Amendment right that ISPs -- companies, not people -- hold. The First Amendment, which guarantees Americans the right to free speech, freedom of the press, and freedom to congregate, is one of the most dearly-held amendments of the United States Constitution. With this statement, he says that net neutrality protections -- policies that prevent companies from "editorializing" what you see on the Web -- is a violation of the Constitution. <strong>He believes net neutrality is unconstitutional.</strong> We know he's wrong.</p>
<p>We need you to contact your congressional representatives, asking them to vote against Kavanaugh's bid for the Supreme Court of the United States.</p>
<h1>Why does net neutrality matter to free software?</h1>
<p>There are so many reasons why we think net neutrality is important -- and why it's necessary for free software. We'll briefly mention that:</p>
<ul>
<li>
<p>Free software is built collaboratively by using Web tools and
  Internet connections around the world.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Free software is most easily discoverable thanks to pages like
  the <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/wiki/Main_Page">Free Software Directory</a>.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Need to update your system or software quickly? You need an
  Internet connection to make that happen.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Organizations like the FSF use the Web to educate and share
  free software ideology and tools.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>The FSF itself is run by a small team spread across the
  globe. Every day we use tools like IRC to communicate and work
  for user freedom together, with one another, and with you.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>We promote decentralized free software replacements for 
   centralized software services, and losing net neutrality means 
   that centralized services will have a huge built-in advantage.</p>
</li>
</ul>
<p>Without a free Web and Internet, what we can do online will be limited by what ISPs like Comcast and Verizon want. They will have the legal right to control which Web sites we can access and how fast that access will be -- and they will take advantage of their new ability to extort even greater fees from Web sites and consumers alike.</p>
<h1>Call, microblog, or write</h1>
<h2>Call your senators!</h2>
<p>Don't know who to call?</p>
<ul>
<li>
<p>Call your Senator directly. <a href="https://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm">Find their number here</a>.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Dial the Senate at <strong>(202) 224-3121</strong> and they will connect
  you.</p>
</li>
</ul>
<p>(Note: The number for the the Senate is a switchboard that will direct your call.)</p>
<p>If you're looking for help knowing what to say, try:</p>
<blockquote>

Hi, I'm [NAME] from [PLACE]. I think Brett Kavanaugh is unfit to serve on the Supreme Court. His position against net neutrality is harmful to all users of the Internet. Please vote against his nomination to the Supreme Court. Thank you.

</blockquote>

<h2>Microblog</h2>
<p>Many Senators are on <a href="https://fsf.org/twitter">microblogging services</a>. You can microblog at yours! </p>
<p>Samples:</p>
<p>Keep Brett Kavanaugh off #SCOTUS for #freesoftware's sake.</p>
<p>Keep #netneutrality, protect #userfreedom, vote against Brett Kavanaugh #SaveSCOTUS</p>
<p>A vote against Kavanaugh is a vote for #netneutrality! #SaveSCOTUS</p>
<h2>Writing to your Senators</h2>
<p>If you're more comfortable reaching out to your senators over email, do it! Their email addresses are <a href="https://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm">available online</a>. If you're looking for ideas, try out:</p>
<blockquote>

Dear [SENATOR],

I'm [NAME] and I live in your district. I am deeply troubled by the nomination of Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court of the United States. He has come out against net neutrality, which is necessary for a free Web, a free society, and user freedom (<https:>).

If Kavanaugh becomes a Supreme Court Justice, the threat to net neutrality is undeniable.

Thank you,

[NAME]

</blockquote>

<p>If your senator [voted for the CRA][5], consider thanking them for that as well.</p>
<h1>Why does the Supreme Court matter for net neutrality?</h1>
<p>While the regulations that are used to protect net neutrality are currently under the Federal Communication Commission, they might not stay this way. Should an Internet Service Provider (ISP) decide to sue for the "right" to ignore net neutrality protections, it is possible such a case would reach the Supreme Court. Should this happen, Kavanaugh's anti-net neutrality opinions could have a serious impact on our digital rights.</p>
<h1>More on net neutrality from the FSF</h1>
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/success-for-net-neutrality-success-for-free-software">Success for net neutrality, success for free software</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/its-not-over-take-action-for-net-neutrality-today">It's not over! Take action for net neutrality today!</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/onemorevote-is-needed-to-save-net-neutrality">OneMoreVote is needed to save net neutrality</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/free-software-needs-net-neutrality-this-is-our-last-chance-to-save-it">Free software needs net neutrality! This is our LAST CHANCE to save it</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/take-action-for-net-neutrality">Protect software freedom: Support net neutrality</a></li>
</ul>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/gnu-spotlight-with-mike-gerwitz-13-new-gnu-releases
title: GNU Spotlight with Mike Gerwitz: 13 new GNU releases!
uri: GNU-Spotlight-with-Mike-Gerwitz-13-new-GNU-releases
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/gnu-spotlight-with-mike-gerwitz-13-new-gnu-releases
content:
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/autogen/">autogen-5.18.16</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/gdb/">gdb-8.1.1</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/gdbm/">gdbm-1.18</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/glibc/">glibc-2.28</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/gnuastro/">gnuastro-0.7</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/guile-debbugs/">guile-debbugs-0.0.2</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/libredwg/">libredwg-0.6</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/librejs/">librejs-7.15.0</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/linux-libre/">linux-libre-4.18</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/mes/">mes-0.17</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/octave/">octave-4.4.1</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/parallel/">parallel-20180822</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/unifont/">unifont-11.0.02</a></li>
</ul>
<p>For announcements of most new GNU releases, subscribe to the info-gnu
mailing list: <a href="https://lists.gnu.org/mailman/listinfo/info-gnu">https://lists.gnu.org/mailman/listinfo/info-gnu</a>.</p>
<p>To download: nearly all GNU software is available from
<a href="https://ftp.gnu.org/gnu/">https://ftp.gnu.org/gnu/</a>, or preferably one of its mirrors from
<a href="https://www.gnu.org/prep/ftp.html">https://www.gnu.org/prep/ftp.html</a>. You can use the URL
<a href="https://ftpmirror.gnu.org/">https://ftpmirror.gnu.org/</a> to be automatically redirected to a
(hopefully) nearby and up-to-date mirror.</p>
<p>A number of GNU packages, as well as the GNU operating system as a
whole, are looking for maintainers and other assistance: please see
<a href="https://www.gnu.org/server/takeaction.html#unmaint">https://www.gnu.org/server/takeaction.html#unmaint</a> if you'd like to
help. The general page on how to help GNU is at
<a href="https://www.gnu.org/help/help.html">https://www.gnu.org/help/help.html</a>.</p>
<p>If you have a working or partly working program that you'd like
to offer to the GNU project as a GNU package, see
<a href="https://www.gnu.org/help/evaluation.html">https://www.gnu.org/help/evaluation.html</a>.</p>
<p>As always, please feel free to write to us at <a href="mailto:maintainers@gnu.org">&#109;&#97;&#105;&#110;&#116;&#97;&#105;&#110;&#101;&#114;&#115;&#64;&#103;&#110;&#117;&#46;&#111;&#114;&#103;</a>
with any GNUish questions or suggestions for future installments.</p>


title: Sign up for the FSF's next seminar on GPL Enforcement and Legal Ethics
uri: 2018-08-27-Sign-up-for-the-FSF-s-next-seminar-on-GPL-Enforcement-and-Legal-Ethics
feed_id:
http://www.fsf.org/blogs/licensing/sign-up-for-the-fsfs-next-seminar-on-gpl-enforcement-and-legal-ethics-1

url:
http://www.fsf.org/blogs/licensing/sign-up-for-the-fsfs-next-seminar-on-gpl-enforcement-and-legal-ethics-1

content:
<p>The Free Software Foundation (FSF) is the recognized canonical source
on best practices for the use of GNU licenses. As stewards of the GNU
family of licenses, we provide a wide variety of resources for helping
developers and lawyers alike to improve their understanding of
software freedom. In addition to published resources, we also
routinely provide in-person instruction in the form of continuing
legal education seminars. The FSF is proud to announce again that
we are offering a seminar to take place on the west coast on September
27th. <strong><a href="https://my.fsf.org/civicrm/event/info?id=81&amp;reset=1">Register here!</a></strong></p>
<p>Attendees of this full-day, five-session seminar will learn about: </p>
<ul>
<li>
<p>Copyleft and other important concepts in the GNU family of licenses,
  including the General Public License;</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Best practices in the free software licensing enforcement process;</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Implementing a compliance program; </p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Government procurement of free software; </p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Current topics in free software licensing; and </p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Ethical considerations important to any lawyer working with clients
  involved in free software.</p>
</li>
</ul>
<p>While registration is open to the public, this seminar is a special
opportunity for law students and legal professionals, who can
potentially earn continuing legal education (CLE) credits for
participating. An application requesting MCLE credit for this activity
is pending for approval by the State Bar of California.</p>
<p>Now is the perfect time for your employer to become an <a href="https://www.fsf.org/patrons">FSF Corporate
Patron</a> and receive complimentary passes to this event, as well as
additional benefits like free software licensing consultation, tickets
to the annual <a href="https://www.libreplanet.org/conference">LibrePlanet conference</a>, GNU Press T-shirts, and more.</p>
<p>The sessions will be led by experts and respected leaders in the free
software community, including <a href="https://www.fsf.org/news/public-lab-and-karen-sandler-are-2017-free-software-awards-winners-1">Karen Sandler</a>, executive director
of the <a href="https://sfconservancy.org">Software Freedom Conservancy</a>; Bradley Kuhn, president of
the Software Freedom Conservancy and a member of the FSF's Board of
Directors; Marc Jones, in-house counsel &amp; security engineer at
<a href="https://civicactions.com/">CivicActions</a>; Aaron Williamson, general counsel &amp; director of
governance at <a href="https://www.finos.org/">FINOS</a>; and <a href="https://www.fsf.org/about/staff-and-board/">Donald R. Robertson, III, J.D.</a>, the
FSF's <a href="https://www.fsf.org/licensing/">licensing &amp; compliance</a> manager. FSF executive director John
Sullivan will also be giving introductory and closing remarks.</p>
<p>A detailed agenda, as well as curriculum materials, will soon be
posted on the <a href="http://www.fsf.org/blogs/licensing/[https://www.fsf.org/events/seminar-on-gpl-enforcement-and-legal-ethics-1]">event page</a>. If you have any questions, please
contact <a href="mailto:licensing@fsf.org">&#108;&#105;&#99;&#101;&#110;&#115;&#105;&#110;&#103;&#64;&#102;&#115;&#102;&#46;&#111;&#114;&#103;</a>.</p>
<p>Thanks in advance for helping us spread the word and we hope to see
you at the event!</p>
<p><strong><a href="https://my.fsf.org/civicrm/event/info?id=81&amp;reset=1">Register now!</a></strong></p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/mark-your-calendars-libreplanet-2019-will-take-place-march-23-24
title: Mark your calendars: LibrePlanet 2019 will take place March 23-24!
uri: Mark-your-calendars-LibrePlanet-2019-will-take-place-March-23-24
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/mark-your-calendars-libreplanet-2019-will-take-place-march-23-24
content:
<p>The <a href="https://my.fsf.org/node/20/">call for proposals</a> is open now, until
October 26, 2018. <a href="https://my.fsf.org/civicrm/event/info?id=79&amp;pk_campaign=lp19&amp;pk_kwd=lw">General registration</a> and <a href="https://my.fsf.org/civicrm/event/info?id=80&amp;reset=1">exhibitor and sponsor
registration</a> are also open, so submit your talk and workshop
ideas, and register for the conference today!</p>
<p><a href="https://www.libreplanet.org/2019">LibrePlanet</a> is an annual conference for free software users and
anyone who cares about the intersection of technology and social
justice. For more than a decade, LibrePlanet has brought together
thousands of diverse voices and knowledge bases, including free
software developers, policy experts, activists, hackers, students, and
people who have just begun to learn about free software.</p>
<p>LibrePlanet 2019 will feature sessions for all ages and experience
levels. Newcomers can gain a deeper understanding of free software and
strong connections with the community here: in 2018, Sharon Woods,
general counsel for the Defense Digital Service (US Department of
Defense) said, “Last year was my first LibrePlanet... I walked away a
complete believer in free software.” This year is your chance to join
the hundreds of people from around the world who attend LibrePlanet
each year and the thousands more who participate online by watching
the free software-powered livestream, joining the conversation on IRC,
or viewing nearly 40 hours of archived video on <a href="https://media.libreplanet.org/">the Free Software
Foundation's (FSF) GNU MediaGoblin instance</a>.</p>
<p>LibrePlanet 2019's theme is “Trailblazing Free Software.” In 1983, the
free software movement was born with the announcement of the GNU
Project. FSF founder Richard Stallman saw the dangers of proprietary
code from the beginning: when code was kept secret from users, they
would be controlled by the technology they used, instead of vice
versa. In contrast, free software emphasized a community-oriented
philosophy of sharing code freely, enabling people to understand how
the programs they used worked, to build off of each other's code, to
pay it forward by sharing their own code, and to create useful
software that treated users fairly.</p>
<p>When he identified control over one's own computer as a requirement
for ethical, trustworthy computing, Stallman anticipated some of the
most toxic aspects of today's proprietary software-filled world,
including Digital Restrictions Management (DRM), bulk surveillance,
and <a href="https://www.gnu.org/philosophy/who-does-that-server-really-serve.html">Service as a Software Substitute (SaaSS)</a>. With a new and
growing generation of free software enthusiasts, we can take this
conference as an opportunity to discuss both the present and the
future of the free software movement. Using the Four Freedoms as a
litmus test for ethical computing, we ask, "How will free software
continue to bring to life trailblazing, principled new technologies
and new approaches to the world?"</p>
<h3>Call for proposals</h3>
<p>LibrePlanet 2019's talks and hands-on workshops can be for developers,
young people, newcomers to free software, activists looking for
technology that aligns with their ideals, policymakers, hackers,
artists, and tinkerers -- and we really want you to propose a talk!
Talks and workshops should examine or utilize free software, copyleft,
and related issues, but otherwise, the sky's the limit. Here are some
types of talks presented at LibrePlanets past:</p>
<ul>
<li>Updates on free software projects, especially if they fulfill a
  <a href="https://www.fsf.org/campaigns/priority-projects/">High Priority Free Software need</a>;</li>
<li>The intersection of free software and broader social issues or
  trends (such as sharing economies vs. gig economies);</li>
<li>How to fight the deleterious effects of proprietary software, using
  free software (for example, securing your digital presence against
  mass government or corporate surveillance);</li>
<li>An introduction to an aspect of free software, for children or
  newcomers of all ages (for example, free software-based
  computing for children, getting started with free software);</li>
<li>A hands-on workshop using free software for a specific application
  (e.g. self-hosting a free software webmail server, or using
  LaTeX), again, for beginners or advanced audiences;</li>
<li>Copyleft and other free software legal issues;</li>
<li>Free software and government; and</li>
<li>How to make art with free software (for example,
  photogrammetry, music composition).</li>
</ul>
<p>Check out <a href="https://media.libreplanet.org/u/libreplanet/tag/libreplanet-2018-video/">talk videos of LibrePlanet 2018</a> for more ideas!</p>
<p><em><a href="https://my.fsf.org/node/20/">Submissions to the call for proposals</a> are being accepted through
 Friday, October 26, 2018 at 10:00 EDT (14:00 UTC).</em></p>
<h2>Gratis admission for FSF members</h2>
<p><a href="https://my.fsf.org/join?pk_campaign=lp19&amp;pk_kwd=lw">Members</a> and students with valid ID attend LibrePlanet gratis. FSF
Associate Membership starts at just $10/month and comes with many
<a href="https://www.fsf.org/associate/benefits">benefits</a>.</p>
<h3>Travel funding available</h3>
<p>Do you want to attend LibrePlanet, but need help with the cost of
travel? The FSF is able to offer a limited amount of funding to bring
conference participants to Boston from all around the world. You can
<a href="https://my.fsf.org/lp-scholarship-application">apply for a scholarship</a> through Friday, November 16 at 10:00 EST
(15:00 UTC). Scholarship recipients will be notified by the end of
November. If you don't need a scholarship, you can help those with
financial need attend LibrePlanet 2019 by <a href="https://my.fsf.org/civicrm/contribute/transact?reset=1&amp;id=33">making a contribution to
the conference's scholarship fund</a> now, or when you register for
LibrePlanet.)</p>
<h2>Free Software Award nominations</h2>
<p>Each year at LibrePlanet, the FSF presents its annual Free Software
Awards. <a href="https://www.fsf.org/awards/">Nominations for the awards</a> are open through Sunday,
November 4th, 2018 at 19:59 EST (23:59 UTC).</p>
<h3>Promotional opportunities</h3>
<p>LibrePlanet is a good place to spread the word about your organization
to the free software community. You can <a href="https://www.libreplanet.org/2019/sponsors">sponsor LibrePlanet or have a
table in our exhibit hall (or both!)</a>. Our exhibit hall is at the
center of the LibrePlanet venue, and sponsors are highly visible at
the conference and in our promotional materials. LibrePlanet is a
distinctive event that centers free software, in its infrastructure,
program of talks and events, and audience, and we appreciate the
support of organizations that embrace free software. <a href="https://www.libreplanet.org/2019/sponsors">Apply to
exhibit</a> at LibrePlanet 2019 or email us at <a href="mailto:campaigns@fsf.org">&#99;&#97;&#109;&#112;&#97;&#105;&#103;&#110;&#115;&#64;&#102;&#115;&#102;&#46;&#111;&#114;&#103;</a> if
you are interested in being a sponsor.</p>
<h3>Volunteering</h3>
<p>LibrePlanet is propelled by the positive energy of dozens of
volunteers. We simply couldn't make this community event happen
without them, and we thank them accordingly, with a gratis T-shirt and
admission to the conference, and our deep gratitude. Applications for
most LibrePlanet volunteer opportunities will be available soon, but
if you would like to help with advance outreach, including spreading
the word about the conference in online communities and your networks,
and by posting flyers in schools and community spaces, please email
<a href="mailto:campaigns@fsf.org">&#99;&#97;&#109;&#112;&#97;&#105;&#103;&#110;&#115;&#64;&#102;&#115;&#102;&#46;&#111;&#114;&#103;</a> to get started!</p>
<h3>2018 recordings</h3>
<p><a href="https://www.libreplanet.org/2018">LibrePlanet 2018</a> was held at MIT from March 24-25, 2018. Nearly
350 attendees came together from across the world for workshops and
talks centered around the theme of "Freedom Embedded." You can <a href="https://media.libreplanet.org/u/libreplanet/tag/libreplanet-2018-video/">watch
videos from last year's conference</a>, including the opening
keynote, an exploration of <a href="https://media.libreplanet.org/u/libreplanet/m/free-software-forever-with-slides/">the potential for the free software
community to last forever</a> by maintaining its ideals while also
welcoming newcomers, by Deb Nicholson, who is now director of
community operations for the Software Freedom Conservancy.</p>
<p>LibrePlanet 2019 is just shy of 200 days away -- mark your calendars,
<a href="https://my.fsf.org/renew?pk_campaign=lp19&amp;pk_kwd=lw">renew your FSF Associate Membership</a>, register, and start
preparing a talk proposal. Time may pass faster than you think, and
you will not want to miss out on this energizing, exciting free
software event!</p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/recognize-free-software-heroes-in-cascadia-at-seagl
title: Recognize free software heroes in Cascadia at SeaGL
uri: Recognize-free-software-heroes-in-Cascadia-at-SeaGL
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/recognize-free-software-heroes-in-cascadia-at-seagl
content:
<p>Presented in November 2018, at the <a href="http://seagl.org">Seattle GNU/Linux Conference
(SeaGL)</a>, the Cascadia Community Builder Award honors the free
software work of people living in the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cascadia_(bioregion)">Cascadia region</a> of the
United States and Canada. The award is designed to recognize work in
software projects, non-profit organizations, outreach and education,
hackerspaces, user groups, or any activity that promotes the adoption
and appreciation of free software to new and larger groups of
people. The awards committee is especially interested in individuals
who have successfully reached out to traditionally under-represented
groups, even if that isn’t their primary goal.</p>
<p>To nominate someone, please send us an email at <a href="mailto:award@seagl.org">&#97;&#119;&#97;&#114;&#100;&#64;&#115;&#101;&#97;&#103;&#108;&#46;&#111;&#114;&#103;</a> with
the nominee’s name in the subject line. Make sure you include the
following details:</p>
<ul>
<li>Name and email address of the nominee (if you have it)</li>
<li>A sentence or two about why you think they deserve this award</li>
<li>Projects or organizations they serve through (links are very helpful!)</li>
</ul>
<p>Please only nominate people who are doing their free software work in
the Cascadia region and who are currently living. Thanks in advance
for helping to honor a great community builder!</p>
<p>The award will be presented at SeaGL, which takes place November 9 and
10, 2018 at Seattle Central College in Seattle, Washington. Want to be
part of the action? SeaGL is actively seeking volunteers! Just email
<a href="mailto:participate@seagl.org">&#112;&#97;&#114;&#116;&#105;&#99;&#105;&#112;&#97;&#116;&#101;&#64;&#115;&#101;&#97;&#103;&#108;&#46;&#111;&#114;&#103;</a> and introduce yourself!</p>
<p>SeaGL is a free software conference that is <a href="https://www.fsf.org/news/fsf-announces-new-fiscal-sponsorship-for-seagl-conference">fiscally sponsored by the
FSF</a> through its <a href="https://www.fsf.org/working-together/fund">Working Together for Free Software Fund</a>. You
can make a donation in support of SeaGL <a href="https://my.fsf.org/civicrm/contribute/transact?reset=1&amp;id=58">here</a>.</p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/boston-supporters-join-us-against-drm
title: Boston supporters! Join us against DRM
uri: Boston-supporters-Join-us-against-DRM
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/boston-supporters-join-us-against-drm
content:
<div style="float: right; width: 250px; margin: 10px 0px 10px 10px; padding: 4px; background-color: #EEEEEE; text-align: center; font-size: 75%;">
<img alt="idad protest" src="media/833cbd05.IDAD-protest-9-2018.jpg" data-original-source="https://static.fsf.org/nosvn/images/IDAD-protest-9-2018.jpg" width="250" />
<p style="margin: 10px 0px;">
</p></div>

<p><a href="https://dayagainstdrm.org">International Day Against DRM</a> (IDAD) is coming up on <strong>Tuesday,
September 18th</strong>. This is our twelfth year gathering together to say
in one voice that we oppose <a href="https://www.defectivebydesign.org/what_is_drm_digital_restrictions_management">Digital Restrictions Management</a>
(DRM). If you live in the Boston area, we hope you'll join us for some
in-person events! We're excited to spread the word about the injustice
of DRM face-to-face, and we hope to see you there.</p>
<h2>IDAD Events</h2>
<ul>
<li>
<p>Thursday, September 13th, at 18:30: Join us for a sign-making party
  at <strong><a href="https://www.fsf.org/about/contact/fsf-office-directions">the Free Software Foundation (FSF) office</a></strong>! Stop by any
  time between 18:30 and 20:30 to meet other free software enthusiasts
  from the Boston area, make signs for IDAD, and enjoy some snacks.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Tuesday, September 18th, from 12:00 - 14:00: We'll be in front of the Copley Square side of the
  <strong><a href="https://www.bpl.org/locations/3/">Boston Public Library</a></strong>, to rally in support of DRM-free
  ebooks, audiobooks, and other media.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Tuesday, September 18th, at 17:30: Meet us at the <strong><a href="https://www.fsf.org/about/contact/fsf-office-directions">FSF
  office</a></strong> in Boston to gather signs and head over to the Apple
  store on Boylston Street.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Tuesday, September 18th, at 18:00: Gathering at the <strong><a href="https://www.apple.com/retail/boylstonstreet/">Apple store
  on Boylston Street</a></strong> to communicate to shoppers that Apple
  devices are stacked with proprietary software and DRM-supporting
  technologies, that Apple opposes their Right to Repair, and that
  there are better options for devices and software.</p>
</li>
</ul>
<h2>Can't join us in person?</h2>
<p>There are still things you can do to participate in IDAD! IDAD is a
global event with people from all around the world participating and
taking action online and in their communities. Here are a few things
you can do:</p>
<ul>
<li>Share on social media using the tag #IDAD;</li>
<li><a href="https://my.fsf.org/civicrm/petition/sign?sid=8&amp;reset=1">Sign the pledge</a> and go a Day Without DRM;</li>
<li>Blog or otherwise write about why you stand against DRM;</li>
<li>Wear <a href="https://shop.fsf.org/tshirts-hoodies/drm-no-one-admitted">your favorite anti-DRM shirt</a> (and send us a photo!); or</li>
<li>Add the <a href="https://www.defectivebydesign.org/blog/idad_2018_modal_window">IDAD modal window</a> to your Web site.</li>
</ul>
<p>If you have any questions, don't hesitate to email us at
<a href="mailto:campaigns@fsf.org">&#99;&#97;&#109;&#112;&#97;&#105;&#103;&#110;&#115;&#64;&#102;&#115;&#102;&#46;&#111;&#114;&#103;</a>. Hope to see you in the office and in the streets!</p>
<p><em><a href="https://defectivebydesign.org">Defective by Design</a> (DbD) is a participatory and grassroots campaign run by the <a href="https://fsf.org">Free Software Foundation</a> (FSF). DbD raises awareness about devices and media encumbered by Digital Restrictions Management (DRM), showing what they really are: Defective by Design. DRM is the practice of placing technological restrictions on digital media, and we're working together to eliminate it as a threat to freedom for computer users, as well as a threat to privacy for readers, viewers, and those making art, media, and more.</em></p>
<p><em>Photo by Karen Rustad Tölva, <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/">Attribution 2.0 Generic (CC BY 2.0)</a></em> </p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/internship-work-on-the-free-software-directory-part-2
title: David's internship work on the Free Software Directory, part 2
uri: David-s-internship-work-on-the-Free-Software-Directory-part-2
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/internship-work-on-the-free-software-directory-part-2
content:
<p><em>For context, see the previous blog post, <a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/davids-progress-on-the-free-software-directory-internship-weeks-2-3">David's Progress on the Free Software Directory, weeks 2-3</a></em></p>
<p><em>Also, by the time this blog was published, more progress has been made. Stay tuned
for more updates!</em></p>
<p><strong> IceCat </strong></p>
<p>Over this period, I worked on various <a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/gnuzilla/">GNU IceCat</a> related issues. IceCat's new API for extensions, called WebExtensions, means that many
legacy extensions will soon no longer work on a supported browser and will be for historical
reference only. There were some that had <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/wiki?title=Special:ApprovedRevs&amp;show=unapproved">never been approved</a> for inclusion
in the Directory. We generally don't approve new entries that are only
for historical reference, so I deleted them. I deleted
IceCatMobile and related addons because we don't list Android apps. I started a <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/wiki/Free_Software_Directory:Buggy_entries">buggy
entries page</a> to address Mozilla brand name issues in Directory entries. For example,
"Firefox" should almost always be replaced with "IceCat."</p>
<p><strong> Pywikibot </strong></p>
<p>I learned how to use Pywikibot to import entries to the Directory with the generous help of a Pywikibot developer over
the course of a few days. He wrote a patch to fix an issue that prevented sites other than Wikipedia
from being written to a configuration file.  Since the Free Software Directory
uses CASAuth for login, we did some work to get <a href="https://github.com/CWRUChielLab/CASAuth/issues/7">pywikibot automated login working</a>.
I wrote <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/wiki/Free_Software_Directory:Pywikibot">documentation</a> on how to set up Pywikibot to
upload files to the Directory.</p>
<p><strong> IceCat addons </strong></p>
<p>I made general improvements and bug fixes to my addons.mozilla.org (AMO)/FSD sync script. For example, I made it clean the titles
from AMO for punctuation and other issues so we could reuse them for the Directory. I added the API variable "platform=linux" to the URI to avoid add-ons
that only work with Windows.</p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/sonalis-internship-work-on-the-free-software-directory-part-2-1
title: Sonali's Internship work on the Free Software Directory, part 2
uri: Sonali-s-Internship-work-on-the-Free-Software-Directory-part-2
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/sonalis-internship-work-on-the-free-software-directory-part-2-1
content:
<p><em>For context, see the previous blog post, <a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/sonalis-progress-on-the-free-software-directory-weeks-1-2">Sonali's Progress on the Free Software Directory, weeks 1-2</a></em></p>
<p><em>Also, by the time this blog was published, more progress has been made. Stay tuned
for more updates.</em></p>
<p><strong>Mobile view project</strong></p>
<p>I made the licenses section of the Directory mobile-friendly by:</p>
<ul>
<li>Changing table tags to divs.</li>
<li>Using media queries and mobileonly and nomobile tags that are provided by the
   MobileDetect extension to enable vertical table view for small screens.</li>
<li>Using if statements to hide headings for table cells with no content in
   mobile view.</li>
</ul>
<p>I added a mobile-friendly logo in the header and footer by adding <code>$wgMFCustomLogos</code> in
<code>LocalSettings.php</code>.</p>
<p><strong>Mediawiki Upgrade</strong></p>
<p>I took up the task of upgrading Free Software Directory from
MediaWiki version 1.27 to 1.31. This version is a long-term stable release of
MediaWiki. This project has been a great opportunity for me to learn things
like importing MySQL database and troubleshooting site issues on a GNU/Linux
server.</p>
<p>MediaWiki version 1.31 comes with more bundled extensions than in version 1.27, like a code editor 
and a mobile-friendly Timeless skin. I spent my time this week
trying to get the site to work correctly, importing the wiki database, and then setting
up a new wiki on the development server.</p>
<p>To begin upgrading the wiki, I went through upgrade instructions given in
<a href="https://www.mediawiki.org/wiki/Manual:Upgrading">https://www.mediawiki.org/wiki/Manual:Upgrading</a>, and then I downloaded the files
for the new release locally and performed a GPG signature check on tar file using
their public keys and signature available at
<a href="https://lists.wikimedia.org/pipermail/mediawiki-announce/2018-June/000221.html">https://lists.wikimedia.org/pipermail/mediawiki-announce/2018-June/000221.html</a>.
After verifying that the file is secure, I decompressed the tarball in
/var/www. I went through the release notes of versions between 1.27 and 1.31,
to get an idea of the changes that were made. Then I created a user in MySQL
and used myloader to import the wiki database. The site wasn’t working so I
checked for errors in Apache by checking error logs and used netstat and netcat
to check if the Web server is running properly. After fixing a few other bugs,
the site began working correctly. Then I set up the new MediaWiki installation, added new
versions of extensions in the extensions directory, and added older
customizations of the Vector module to the new code.</p>
<p><strong>Things I plan to work on in the coming weeks</strong></p>
<ol>
<li>Modify the Vector module further to obtain correct arrangement of content in
   the wiki.</li>
<li>Add semantic MediaWiki extensions to the new installation.</li>
</ol>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/gnu-spotlight-with-mike-gerwitz-15-new-gnu-releases-1
title: GNU Spotlight with Mike Gerwitz: 15 new GNU releases!
uri: 2018-09-27-GNU-Spotlight-with-Mike-Gerwitz-15-new-GNU-releases
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/gnu-spotlight-with-mike-gerwitz-15-new-gnu-releases-1
content:
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/autogen/">autogen-5.18.16</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/bison/">bison-3.1</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/dico/">dico-2.7</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/gdb/">gdb-8.2</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/gnupg/">gnupg-2.2.10</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/gnu-pw-mgr/">gnu-pw-mgr-2.4.2</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/gnutls/">gnutls-3.6.4</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/guile-cv/">guile-cv-0.2.0</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/help2man/">help2man-1.47.7</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/indent/">indent-2.2.12</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/librejs/">librejs-7.17.0</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/mes/">mes-0.17.1</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/nano/">nano-3.1</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/parallel/">parallel-20180922</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/xorriso/">xorriso-1.5.0</a></li>
</ul>
<p>For announcements of most new GNU releases, subscribe to the info-gnu
mailing list: <a href="https://lists.gnu.org/mailman/listinfo/info-gnu">https://lists.gnu.org/mailman/listinfo/info-gnu</a>.</p>
<p>To download: nearly all GNU software is available from
<a href="https://ftp.gnu.org/gnu/">https://ftp.gnu.org/gnu/</a>, or preferably one of its mirrors from
<a href="https://www.gnu.org/prep/ftp.html">https://www.gnu.org/prep/ftp.html</a>. You can use the url
<a href="https://ftpmirror.gnu.org/">https://ftpmirror.gnu.org/</a> to be automatically redirected to a
(hopefully) nearby and up-to-date mirror.</p>
<p>A number of GNU packages, as well as the GNU operating system as a
whole, are looking for maintainers and other assistance: please see
<a href="https://www.gnu.org/server/takeaction.html#unmaint">https://www.gnu.org/server/takeaction.html#unmaint</a> if you'd like to
help. The general page on how to help GNU is at
<a href="https://www.gnu.org/help/help.html">https://www.gnu.org/help/help.html</a>.</p>
<p>If you have a working or partly working program that you'd like
to offer to the GNU project as a GNU package, see
<a href="https://www.gnu.org/help/evaluation.html">https://www.gnu.org/help/evaluation.html</a>.</p>
<p>As always, please feel free to write to us at <a href="mailto:maintainers@gnu.org">&#109;&#97;&#105;&#110;&#116;&#97;&#105;&#110;&#101;&#114;&#115;&#64;&#103;&#110;&#117;&#46;&#111;&#114;&#103;</a>
with any GNUish questions or suggestions for future installments.</p>


title: Thank you for participating in International Day Against DRM 2018!
uri: Thank-you-for-participating-in-International-Day-Against-DRM-2018
feed_id:
http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/thank-you-for-participating-in-international-day-against-drm-2018

url:
http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/thank-you-for-participating-in-international-day-against-drm-2018

content:
<p><img src="media/6810735d.idad_poster.jpg" data-original-source="https://static.fsf.org/nosvn/dbd/day_against_drm/idad_poster.jpg" alt="idad poster" style="float: right; width: 300px; margin: 10px 0px 10px 10px;" /> </p>
<p>Thank you everyone for helping to make September 18th another successful <a href="https://defectivebydesign.org/dayagainstdrm/2018">International Day Against DRM</a> (IDAD)! <a href="https://www.defectivebydesign.org/what_is_drm_digital_restrictions_management">Digital Restrictions Management</a> (DRM) is an issue we have to face every day. In rallying together for a single day against DRM, we sent a powerful message: DRM is just wrong and we can live in a society without it.</p>
<p>Hundreds of you around the world took action on IDAD: going out into your campuses, communities, and around the Web, and sharing your opposition to how DRM restricts your freedom as a user of software and media. The <a href="https://defectivebydesign.org/dayagainstdrm/2018">17 participating organizations</a> took their own actions, <a href="https://www.defectivebydesign.org/blog/whats_happening_international_day_against_drm">creating videos, releasing reports, and writing articles</a>. Here in Boston, we visited the Apple Store and talked with shoppers about their digital rights and how Apple devices abuse those rights using DRM.</p>
<p>Even though IDAD 2019 is a year away, you can continue <a href="https://www.defectivebydesign.org/action">taking action against DRM</a>. You can join the <a href="http://lists.defectivebydesign.org/mailman/listinfo/drm-elimination-crew">DRM Elimination crew</a> and <a href="https://www.defectivebydesign.org/join">sign up</a> for the Defective by Design email list on <a href="https://defectivebydesign.org">DefectiveByDesign.org</a>. You can <a href="https://m.twitter.com/enddrm">follow us on social media</a> or <a href="http://freenode.net/">join the discussion on IRC</a> on the channel #DefectiveByDesign.</p>
<p>We appreciate everything you did this year, and want to give one last big thank you to everyone who was involved.</p>
<p><strong>Thank you!</strong></p>
<p><em>Photo courtesy of <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/48745787@N00/151980760/">rafial</a> on Flickr. This image is licensed under a <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/">CC BY SA 2.0 license</a>.</em></p>


title: The completion of Sonali's Outreachy internship work on the Free Software Directory
uri: The-completion-of-Sonali-s-Outreachy-internship-work-on-the-Free-Softw
feed_id:
http://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/the-completion-of-sonalis-outreachy-internship-work-on-the-free-software-directory

url:
http://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/the-completion-of-sonalis-outreachy-internship-work-on-the-free-software-directory

content:
<p><em>For context, see the previous blog post, <a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/sonalis-internship-work-on-the-free-software-directory-part-2-1">Sonali's Internship work on the Free Software Directory, part 2</a></em></p>
<p>After much work, I finally completed the upgrade of <a href="https://directory.fsf.org">the Directory</a> from the previous
long term support version of MediaWiki, 1.27, to the current one, 1.31,
which was released shortly after my internship started. I also made some
general improvements.</p>
<ul>
<li>I downloaded the Semantic MediaWiki extensions using composer;</li>
<li>I removed deprecated code in <code>LocalSettings.php</code>;</li>
<li>I ported the customizations to Vector skin to the new version;</li>
<li>I improved the search bar by placing it in the right navigation panel
instead of the sidebar;</li>
<li>I added the FSF favicon; and</li>
<li>I spent about a week fixing bugs in the CASAuth and HeaderTabs
extensions.</li>
</ul>
<p>Upgrading the mobile site took more work, and after some testing I
decided to switch from the MobileFrontend extension to the mobile
friendly Timeless skin along with MobileDetect.</p>
<p>I recorded the shell commands required to set up the server and
translated them to ansible commands. Since I was unfamiliar with ansible
and yaml, I took some time to learn about it.</p>
<p>Then we performed the final migration. Andrew (my mentor) gave me the
latest MySQL dump from the directory and made the old site read-only. I
imported it to the new server and ran the upgrade script. Then he
migrated the DNS. There were a few small hiccups, but after a few hours,
the upgrade was complete.</p>
<p>It was my first internship and my first experience of working in a free
software community, and I grew very attached to it. My mentors were very
experienced and responsive. I was able to learn a lot from them. I am
grateful that I got the opportunity to associate with such an amazing
organization. Thanks to <a href="https://www.outreachy.org/">Outreachy</a> organizers for giving me a great way
to work for a distinguished organization and to develop my
skills. Lastly, a big thanks to my mentors, <a href="https://www.fsf.org/about/staff-and-board/">Andrew and Ian</a>, who helped
me all along and made my internship a truly incredible experience!</p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/membership/introducing-our-new-associate-member-forum
title: Introducing our new associate member forum!
uri: Introducing-our-new-associate-member-forum
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/membership/introducing-our-new-associate-member-forum
content:
<p>I'm excited to share that we've launched a new forum for our associate members.
We hope that you find this forum to be a great place to share your experiences
and perspectives surrounding free software and to forge new bonds with the free
software community. If you're a member of the FSF, head on over to
<a href="https://forum.members.fsf.org">https://forum.members.fsf.org</a> to get started. You'll be able to log in using
the Central Authentication Service (CAS) account that you used to create your
membership. (Until we get WebLabels working for the site, you'll have to
whitelist its JavaScript in order to log in and use it, but rest assured that
all of the JavaScript is free software, and a link to all source code can be
found in the footer of the site.) Participation in this forum is just one of
many benefits of being an FSF member – if you're not a member yet, we encourage
you to <a href="https://my.fsf.org/join">join today</a>, for as little as $10 per month,
or $5 per month for students.</p>
<p>The purpose of this member forum is to provide a space where members can meet,
communicate, and collaborate with each other about free software, using free
software. While there are other places on the Internet to talk about free
software, this forum is unique in that it is focused on the common interests of
FSF members, who care very much about using, promoting, and creating free
software.</p>
<p>The forum software we chose to use is <a href="https://www.discourse.org/">Discourse</a>.</p>
<p>One of the technical requirements for the forum was that it needs to work well
with single sign-on (SSO) systems, specifically our CAS system. In the process
of launching the new member forum, I patched our CAS server so that it would
verify FSF associate membership.  I also wrote a patch for the Discourse CAS
SSO service so that we can require email validation when users log into
Discourse for the first time.</p>
<p>We built our own patched instance of Discourse's base Docker image to resolve a
freedom issue, and as preparation for any times in the future that we may need
to make changes to the upstream source code for our local installation.</p>
<p>I spent some time trying to set up Discourse without using Docker, but getting
email delivery to work without a Docker image proved to be very challenging. In
the end, we decided that using Docker adds complexity when making patches to
the software, but think that it makes using Discourse easier overall.</p>
<p>One of the reasons we chose Discourse is because it allows users to respond to
conversations via email. Users may enable the "mailing list mode" in their user
settings, which allows us to interact with with member forum as if it were a
mailing list.</p>
<p>I would like to thank the Discourse team for creating this software, and for
their responsiveness to my questions about Discourse patching, new features,
configuration, and deployment. They responded very quickly to a security issue
that I reported, and donated a hacker bounty to the FSF.</p>
<p>If you want to chat with other members via IRC, I suggest joining
the #fsf-members channel on Freenode, where I made an early announcement about
the member forum launch.</p>
<p>I hope you are excited to use <a href="https://forum.members.fsf.org/">our new forum</a>.
I certainly am! I look forward to the great conversations that we will have
among members who care very much about free software. Happy hacking!</p>


title: Single-board computer guide updated: Free software is winning on ARM!
uri: Single-board-computer-guide-updated-Free-software-is-winning-on-ARM
feed_id:
http://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/single-board-computer-guide-updated-free-software-is-winning-on-arm

url:
http://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/single-board-computer-guide-updated-free-software-is-winning-on-arm

content:
<p>In many geeky circles, single-board computers are popular machines. SBCs come
in small form factors and generally run GNU/Linux, but unfortunately, many
boards like the popular Raspberry Pi are dependent on proprietary software to
use. The Free Software Foundation maintains a
<a href="https://www.fsf.org/resources/hw/single-board-computers">list</a> of
system-on-chip families, sorted by their freedom status.</p>
<p>Unfortunately, this list had not been updated in several years. While it was
accurate when it was published, free software is constantly improving. Today,
more and more boards are usable with free software. On the graphical side, the
Etnaviv project has reached maturity, and the Panfrost project, with which I
have been personally involved, has sprung up. The video processing unit on
Allwinner chips has been reverse-engineered and liberated by the linux-sunxi
community in tandem with Bootlin. Rockchip boards have become viable
competitors to their better known counterparts. Even the Raspberry Pi has had a
proof-of-concept free firmware replacement developed. Free software is winning
on ARM.</p>
<p>Accordingly, I have researched the latest developments in single-board computer
freedom, updating the list. The revised list includes much more detail than its
predecessors, groups boards by system-on-chip rather than brand name for
concision, documents previously-unidentified freedom flaws, and of course
describes progress liberating the remaining elements.</p>
<p>The new guide is, I hope, clearer, more comprehensive, and more useful to free
software users seeking to purchase a board that respects their freedom.</p>
<p><strong><a href="https://www.fsf.org/resources/hw/single-board-computers">Check it out!</a></strong></p>
<p><em>Alyssa is a former intern at the FSF -- you can read more about her work <a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/introducing-alyssa-rosenzweig-intern-with-the-fsf-tech-team">here</a>.</em></p>


title: Announcing keynote speakers for LibrePlanet -- and don't miss your chance to give a talk
uri: Announcing-keynote-speakers-for-LibrePlanet-and-don-t-miss-your-cha
feed_id:
http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/announcing-keynote-speakers-for-libreplanet-and-dont-miss-your-chance-to-give-a-talk

url:
http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/announcing-keynote-speakers-for-libreplanet-and-dont-miss-your-chance-to-give-a-talk

content:
<p>Today, we are proud to announce all four keynote speakers who will
appear at the <a href="https://www.libreplanet.org/2019">LibrePlanet 2019 conference</a>, which takes place in
the Boston area, March 23-24, 2019. They are: Debian Project
contributor Bdale Garbee, free software activist Micky Metts,
physician Tarek Loubani, and FSF founder and president Richard
Stallman, all of whom are trailblazers of free software in their own
right.</p>
<p><strong><a href="https://my.fsf.org/civicrm/event/info?id=79">REGISTER FOR THE LIBREPLANET 2019 CONFERENCE HERE!</a></strong></p>
<p>

<div style="float: right; width: 250px; margin: 10px 0px 10px 10px; padding: 4px; background-color: #EEEEEE; text-align: center; font-size: 75%;">
<img alt="Bdale Garbee" src="media/5d4aecfd.bdale-cropped.jpg" data-original-source="https://static.fsf.org/nosvn/libreplanet/2019/speaker-pics/bdale-cropped.jpg" width="250" />
</div>

</p>

<p>Bdale Garbee has contributed to the free software community since
1979. He was an early participant in the Debian Project, helped port
Debian GNU/Linux to five architectures, served as the Debian Project
Leader, then chairman of the Debian Technical Committee for nearly a
decade, and remains active in the Debian community. For a decade,
Bdale served as president of Software in the Public Interest. He also
served on the board of directors of the Linux Foundation, representing
individual affiliates and the developer community. Bdale currently
serves on the boards of the Freedombox Foundation, the Linux
Professional Institute, and Aleph Objects. He is also a member of the
Evaluations Committee at the Software Freedom Conservancy. In 2008,
Bdale became the first individual recipient of a Lutece d'Or award
from the Federation Nationale de l'Industrie du Logiciel Libre in
France.</p>
<div style="float: right; width: 250px; margin: 10px 0px 10px 10px; padding: 4px; background-color: #EEEEEE; text-align: center; font-size: 75%;">
<img alt="Micky Metts" src="media/c4f8350f.micky-cropped.jpg" data-original-source="https://static.fsf.org/nosvn/libreplanet/2019/speaker-pics/micky-cropped.jpg" width="250" />
</div>

</p>

<p>Micky Metts is an owner of Agaric, a worker-owned technology
cooperative. She is an activist hacker, industry organizer, public
speaker, connector, advisor, and visionary. Micky is a member of the
MayFirst People Link Leadership Committee, and is a liaison between
the Solidarity Economy Network (SEN) and the United States Federation
of Worker Cooperatives (USFWC), with an intention to bring communities
together. Micky is also a founding member of a cohort that is building
a new Boston public high school based in cooperative learning:
BoCoLab. She is a member of the Free Software Foundation and of Drupal.org, a community based in free software. She is a published author contributing to the book <em>Ours to Hack and to Own</em>, one of the top technology books of 2017 in
<em>Wired</em> magazine.</p>
<p>

<div style="float: right; width: 250px; margin: 10px 0px 10px 10px; padding: 4px; background-color: #EEEEEE; text-align: center; font-size: 75%;">
<img alt="Tarek Loubani" src="media/5ec0a764.tarek-loubani-cropped.png" data-original-source="https://static.fsf.org/nosvn/libreplanet/2019/speaker-pics/tarek-loubani-cropped.png" width="250" />
</div>

</p>

<p>Dr. Tarek Loubani is an emergency physician who works at the London
Health Sciences Centre in Canada and at Al Shifa Hospital in the Gaza
Strip. He is a fellow of the Shuttleworth Foundation, where he focuses
on free software medical devices. His organization, the Glia Project,
develops free/libre medical device designs for 3D printing, in an
effort to help medical systems such as Gaza's gain self-sufficiency
and local independence.</p>
<p>

<div style="float: right; width: 250px; margin: 10px 0px 10px 10px; padding: 4px; background-color: #EEEEEE; text-align: center; font-size: 75%;">
<img alt="Richard Stallman" src="media/e14ecebf.rms-cropped.jpg" data-original-source="https://static.fsf.org/nosvn/libreplanet/2019/speaker-pics/rms-cropped.jpg" width="250" />
</div>

</p>

<p>Continuing an annual tradition, FSF president <a href="https://www.fsf.org/about/staff-and-board">Richard Stallman</a>
will present the <a href="https://www.fsf.org/awards">Free Software Awards</a> and discuss opportunities
for, and threats to, the free software movement.</p>
<p>LibrePlanet is an annual event jam-packed with interesting talks and
hands-on workshops -- and we know you have a lot to say! Have an idea
for your own free software-related talk or workshop? <em><a href="https://my.fsf.org/node/20/">Submit it for
consideration</a> by October 26, 2018 at 10:00 EDT (14:00 UTC).</em></p>
<p>Your talk can be aimed at an audience of experienced developers, young
people, newcomers to free software, activists looking for technology
that aligns with their ideals, policymakers, hackers, artists, or
tinkerers. Talks and workshops should examine or utilize free
software, copyleft, and related issues, but beyond that, we welcome
any topics that may educate, entertain, or encourage action.</p>
<p>Some possibilities include updates on free software projects,
especially if they fulfill a <a href="https://www.fsf.org/campaigns/priority-projects/">High Priority</a> free software need;
the intersection of free software and other social issues or movements;
how to resist the harmful effects of proprietary software by using
free software; introductions to aspects of free software for newcomers
generally or children specifically; hands-on workshops using free
software for particular applications; copyleft and other free software
legal issues; free software's intersections with government; and how
to use free software in artmaking. <a href="https://media.libreplanet.org/u/libreplanet/tag/libreplanet-2018-video/">Find more inspiration in videos of
LibrePlanet 2018 talks</a>, as well as the <a href="https://libreplanet.org/2018/program/">full program listing</a>.</p>
<h2>Gratis admission for FSF members</h2>
<p><a href="https://my.fsf.org/join?pk_campaign=lp19&amp;pk_kwd=lw">Current Associate Members</a> and students with valid ID may attend
LibrePlanet gratis. FSF Associate Membership starts at just $10/month
and comes with many <a href="https://www.fsf.org/associate/benefits">benefits</a>. If you're not already a member,
there's no better time to join than the present!</p>
<h3>Travel funding available</h3>
<p>Do you need help with the cost of travel to LibrePlanet? The FSF is
able to offer a limited amount of funding to bring conference
participants to Boston from all around the world. You can <a href="https://my.fsf.org/lp-scholarship-application">apply for a
scholarship</a> through Friday, November 16 at 10:00 EST (15:00
UTC). Scholarship recipients will be notified by the end of
November. If you don't need a scholarship, you can help those with
financial need attend LibrePlanet 2019 by <a href="https://my.fsf.org/civicrm/contribute/transact?reset=1&amp;id=33">making a contribution to
the conference's scholarship fund</a>.</p>
<h2>Free Software Award nominations</h2>
<p>Each year at LibrePlanet, the FSF presents its annual Free Software
Awards. <a href="https://www.fsf.org/awards">Nominations for the awards</a> are open through Sunday,
November 4th, 2018 at 19:59 EST (23:59 UTC).</p>
<h3>Promotional opportunities</h3>
<p>LibrePlanet is a good place to spread the word about your organization
to the free software community. You can <a href="https://my.fsf.org/civicrm/contribute/transact?reset=1&amp;id=33">sponsor LibrePlanet or have a
table in our exhibit hall (or both!)</a>. Our exhibit hall is highly visible at the LibrePlanet venue, and sponsors are highly visible at
the conference and in our promotional materials. LibrePlanet is a
distinctive event that centers free software, in its infrastructure,
program of talks and events, and audience, and we appreciate the
support of organizations that embrace free software. <a href="https://www.libreplanet.org/2019/sponsors">Apply to
exhibit</a> at LibrePlanet 2019 or email us at <a href="mailto:campaigns@fsf.org">&#99;&#97;&#109;&#112;&#97;&#105;&#103;&#110;&#115;&#64;&#102;&#115;&#102;&#46;&#111;&#114;&#103;</a> if
you are interested in being a sponsor.</p>
<h3>Volunteering</h3>
<p>LibrePlanet is propelled by the positive energy of dozens of
volunteers. We simply couldn't make this community event happen
without them, and we thank them accordingly, with a gratis T-shirt and
admission to the conference, and our deep gratitude. Applications for
most LibrePlanet volunteer opportunities will be available soon, but
if you would like to help with advance outreach, including spreading
the word about the conference in online communities and your networks,
and by posting flyers in schools and community spaces, please email
<a href="mailto:resources@fsf.org">&#114;&#101;&#115;&#111;&#117;&#114;&#99;&#101;&#115;&#64;&#102;&#115;&#102;&#46;&#111;&#114;&#103;</a> to get started!</p>
<p>LibrePlanet 2019 is about 170 days away -- tell your friends and
submit a talk proposal today!</p>
<p><em>Photo of Richard Stallman by by Adte.ca. This image is licensed under a <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA 4.0</a> license.</em>
<em>Photo of Tarek Loubani by Tarek Loubani. This image is licensed under a <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA 4.0</a> license.</em>
<em>Photo of Bdale Garbee by Karen Garbee. This image is licensed under a <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA 4.0</a> license.</em>
<em>Photo of Micky Metts by Micky Metts. This image is licensed under a <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY 4.0</a> license.</em></p>


title: LibrePlanet 2019 Call for Sessions deadline extended until Nov 9th
uri: LibrePlanet-2019-Call-for-Sessions-deadline-extended-until-Nov-9th
feed_id:
http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/libreplanet-2019-call-for-sessions-deadline-extended-until-nov-9th

url:
http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/libreplanet-2019-call-for-sessions-deadline-extended-until-nov-9th

content:
<p>Have you submitted a talk for  <a href="https://libreplanet.org/2019/">LibrePlanet 2019</a> yet? The Call for Sessions (CfS) has been extended until Friday, November 9th, 2018 at 10:00 EDT (14:00 UTC). Visit <a href="https://my.fsf.org/lp-call-for-sessions">https://my.fsf.org/lp-call-for-sessions</a> and log in to submit your session. </p>
<p>LibrePlanet is an annual conference hosted by the Free Software Foundation (FSF) that explores the intersection of technology and social justice through a variety of talks and activities. Every year, LibrePlanet brings together developers, policy experts, activists, hackers and end users to learn new skills, share accomplishments, and face challenges concerning computing freedom as a community. LibrePlanet 2019's theme is “Trailblazing Free Software” and will be held on Saturday and Sunday, March 23rd and 24th in the Greater Boston Area, MA. </p>
<p>LibrePlanet is defined by its combination of technical talks with non-technical sessions on free software activism, culture, and current events. These sessions are presented by community members like you, and provide some of the best ways to connect with the free software community. We are especially interested to see proposals from people who use free software or apply its values for social benefit, from academic research to community organizing, education to medicine, and the arts. It's important to us to provide sessions that are friendly to newcomers and experienced hackers alike, and we welcome presentations for kids or teens.</p>
<p>Feel free to find some inspiration by browsing through the sessions programs of previous years’ LibrePlanets: <a href="https://libreplanet.org/2018/program/">2018</a>, <a href="https://libreplanet.org/2017/program/">2017</a>.</p>
<p>We are excited to read about your presentations, and we look forward to learning with you at LibrePlanet 2019.</p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/gnu-spotlight-with-mike-gerwitz-15-new-gnu-releases-2
title: GNU Spotlight with Mike Gerwitz: 15 new GNU releases!
uri: 2018-10-26-GNU-Spotlight-with-Mike-Gerwitz-15-new-GNU-releases
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/gnu-spotlight-with-mike-gerwitz-15-new-gnu-releases-2
content:
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/dico/">dico-2.7</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/gama/">gama-2.01</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/gdb/">gdb-8.2</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/gnu-pw-mgr/">gnu-pw-mgr-2.4.2</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/guile-cv/">guile-cv-0.2.0</a></li>
<li><a href="http://software.schmorp.de/pkg/gvpe.html">gvpe-3.1</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/help2man/">help2man-1.47.8</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/indent/">indent-2.2.12</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/librejs/">librejs-7.17.0</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/mes/">mes-0.18</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/mtools/">mtools-4.0.19</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/nano/">nano-3.1</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/parallel/">parallel-20181022</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/units/">units-2.18</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/xorriso/">xorriso-1.5.0</a></li>
</ul>
<p>For announcements of most new GNU releases, subscribe to the info-gnu
mailing list: <a href="https://lists.gnu.org/mailman/listinfo/info-gnu">https://lists.gnu.org/mailman/listinfo/info-gnu</a>.</p>
<p>To download: nearly all GNU software is available from
<a href="https://ftp.gnu.org/gnu/">https://ftp.gnu.org/gnu/</a>, or preferably one of its mirrors from
<a href="https://www.gnu.org/prep/ftp.html">https://www.gnu.org/prep/ftp.html</a>. You can use the URL
<a href="https://ftpmirror.gnu.org/">https://ftpmirror.gnu.org/</a> to be automatically redirected to a
(hopefully) nearby and up-to-date mirror.</p>
<p>A number of GNU packages, as well as the GNU operating system as a
whole, are looking for maintainers and other assistance: please see
<a href="https://www.gnu.org/server/takeaction.html#unmaint">https://www.gnu.org/server/takeaction.html#unmaint</a> if you'd like to
help. The general page on how to help GNU is at
<a href="https://www.gnu.org/help/help.html">https://www.gnu.org/help/help.html</a>.</p>
<p>If you have a working or partly working program that you'd like
to offer to the GNU project as a GNU package, see
<a href="https://www.gnu.org/help/evaluation.html">https://www.gnu.org/help/evaluation.html</a>.</p>
<p>As always, please feel free to write to us at <a href="mailto:maintainers@gnu.org">&#109;&#97;&#105;&#110;&#116;&#97;&#105;&#110;&#101;&#114;&#115;&#64;&#103;&#110;&#117;&#46;&#111;&#114;&#103;</a>
with any GNUish questions or suggestions for future installments.</p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/gnu-press/innovative-biography-of-rms-returns-to-gnu-press-shop
title: Innovative biography of RMS returns to GNU Press Shop
uri: Innovative-biography-of-RMS-returns-to-GNU-Press-Shop
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/gnu-press/innovative-biography-of-rms-returns-to-gnu-press-shop
content:
<p>After a period of unavailability, the <a href="https://shop.fsf.org/">GNU Press
Shop</a> is proud to once again offer <em>Free As In
Freedom (2.0)</em>, the innovative biography of Free Software Foundation
founder and president Richard M. Stallman.</p>
<div style="float: right; width: 250px; margin: 10px 0px 10px 10px; padding: 4px; background-color: #EEEEEE; text-align: center; font-size: 75%;">
<img alt="free as in freedom book cover" src="media/57461a04.productimage-picture-free-as-in-freedom-2-92.png" data-original-source="https://shop.fsf.org/sites/default/files/styles/product_zoom/public/productimage-picture-free-as-in-freedom-2-92.png" width="250" />
</div>

<p>In 2002, Sam Williams wrote <em>Free as in Freedom</em>, a biography of
Richard M. Stallman. In its epilogue, Williams expressed hope that
choosing to distribute his book under the GNU Free Documentation
License would enable and encourage others to share corrections and
their own perspectives through modifications to his work.</p>
<p><em>Free as in Freedom (2.0)</em> is Stallman's revision of the original
 biography. While preserving Williams's viewpoint, it includes factual
 corrections and extensive new commentary by Stallman, as well as new
 prefaces by both authors written for the occasion. It is a rare kind
 of biography, where the reader has the benefit of both the
 biographer's original words and the subject's response.</p>
<p>You can find <em>Free As In Freedom (2.0)</em> -- available with or without
RMS's autograph -- here:
<a href="https://shop.fsf.org/books/free-freedom-20-richard-stallman">https://shop.fsf.org/books/free-freedom-20-richard-stallman</a></p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/last-chance-to-submit-your-nominations-for-the-fsf-awards
title: Last chance to submit your nominations for the FSF Awards!
uri: Last-chance-to-submit-your-nominations-for-the-FSF-Awards
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/last-chance-to-submit-your-nominations-for-the-fsf-awards
content:
<p>Is there someone who you think has advanced the progress of computing
freedom, someone you think of as a free software hero? How about a
great project that uses free software principles to benefit society? Now 
is your chance to nominate them for a <a href="https://www.fsf.org/awards">Free Software Foundation (FSF) Award</a>. 
The deadline to submit your nominations of <a href="https://my.fsf.org/advancement-of-free-software-award-nomination">individuals</a> or <a href="https://my.fsf.org/projects-of-social-benefit-award-nomination">projects</a> 
for the FSF Awards is Sunday, November 4th, 2018 at 23:59 UTC.</p>
<p>Each year the FSF gives out two awards at the <a href="https://libreplanet.org/2019/">LibrePlanet
conference</a>; the <a href="https://www.fsf.org/awards/fs-award">Award for the Advancement of Free Software</a>
and the <a href="https://www.fsf.org/awards/sb-award">Award for Projects of Social Benefit</a>. The winners of the
2018 awards will be announced at LibrePlanet 2019, happening on March
23rd and 24th, 2019, in the Greater Boston Area.</p>
<p>The FSF Award for the Advancement of Free Software is presented
annually to an individual who has made a great contribution to the
progress and development of free software, through activities that
accord with the spirit of free software. Last year's award was
accepted by Karen Sandler, the executive director of the Software
Freedom Conservancy, as well as a perennial LibrePlanet
speaker. Previous winners include Alexandre Oliva, Matthew Garrett,
Alan Cox, Larry Lessig, Guido van Rossum, Miguel de Icaza and Larry
Wall. Submit your nomination for this individual award at
<a href="https://my.fsf.org/advancement-of-free-software-award-nomination">https://my.fsf.org/advancement-of-free-software-award-nomination</a>.</p>
<p>The FSF Award for Projects of Social Benefit is presented to the
project or team responsible for applying free software, or the ideas
of the free software movement, in a project that intentionally and
significantly benefits society in other aspects of life. Last year,
Public Lab, a community and non-profit organization with the goal of
democratizing science to address environmental issues by utilizing
free software tools and techniques, received the award. Previous
winners include SecureDrop, GNU Health, Tor, the Internet Archive,
Creative Commons, and Wikipedia. Submit your nomination for this
project/team award at
<a href="https://my.fsf.org/projects-of-social-benefit-award-nomination">https://my.fsf.org/projects-of-social-benefit-award-nomination</a>.</p>
<p>The free software movement is powered by dedicated individuals and has
fostered many incredible projects that are making a difference in both
local and global communities. What are you waiting for? Take a few
minutes to give props to people and projects that have changed the
world.</p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/alyssa-rosenzweigs-summer-internship-wrap-up
title: Alyssa Rosenzweig's summer internship wrap up
uri: Alyssa-Rosenzweig-s-summer-internship-wrap-up
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/alyssa-rosenzweigs-summer-internship-wrap-up
content:
<p>As you already know if you read my <a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/introducing-alyssa-rosenzweig-intern-with-the-fsf-tech-team">introductory
blog post</a>, over the summer, I interned with the Free Software
Foundation tech team. A free software enthusiast, I joined the FSF in
order to grow my appreciation, to work on interesting free software
projects for which I normally would not have the opportunity, and to
meet other free software supporters. My dreams were exceeded!</p>
<p>For my first project of the internship, I researched single-board computers in
order to update the FSF's page detailing the freedom status of various
<a href="https://www.fsf.org/resources/hw/single-board-computers">single-board computers</a> -- the page needed updating to reflect how
software freedom continues to advance. You can read about my updates <a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/single-board-computer-guide-updated-free-software-is-winning-on-arm">here</a>.</p>
<p>For my second project, I was tasked with researching out-of-band remote
server management. Like many organizations, the FSF hosts a number of
servers, both on premises controlled by the FSF as well as external data
centers. However, as anyone who has futzed with servers knows, computers
are fickle. Even the most robust setup is prone to breaking once in a
while... and sometimes those breakages can hang the server or prevent it
from booting. Cue <a href="https://www.cartoonstock.com/directory/t/turn_on_and_off_again.asp">comic</a> of a sysadmin asking, "Did you try turning it
off and on again?"</p>
<p>The in-vogue free software solution is <a href="https://www.openbmc.org/">OpenBMC</a>, a free software
implementation of the IPMI remote administration stack. Unfortunately,
due to the diversity of server boards we use, OpenBMC risked becoming a
maintenance burden in and of itself.</p>
<p>Eventually, after a handful of whiteboard sessions with the tech team, I
thought back on my work with ARM single-board computers. I realized a
solution: rather than using a specialized BMC chip attached to the server
motherboard, we could use an external single-board computer running GNU/Linux,
remotely accessible over the Internet, connected to the various
peripherals of interest. We settled on using a BeagleBone Black, which
can run without proprietary blobs, connected to each server's serial
port and power pins via USB-controlled relays. Finally, I wrapped up
this system into a high-level utility, <a href="https://notabug.org/alyssa/libremanage">libremanage</a>, and we
were on our way.</p>
<p>My third and final project was still more ambitious. As you may know
from my work with <a href="https://panfrost.freedesktop.org">Panfrost</a>, the free software
driver for modern Mali GPUs, I enjoy liberating critical proprietary
software by decoding its internal protocols and reimplementing them in
freedom. So, we looked around for latent proprietary software involved
with FSF operations. Although we eat our own dog food, there was one
proprietary system that could not be ignored: PayPal, which recently began requiring nonfree
JavaScript. Pah. Enter <a href="https://notabug.org/alyssa/pagamigo">Pagamigo</a>. (In Calculus,
this is formally known as a p-series.)</p>
<p>Pagamigo liberates the proprietary software required to donate to
organizations like the FSF or the Debian Project via PayPal. Soon, the
FSF Web pages that take online payments will include instructions for
using Pagamigo.</p>
<p>Unfortunately, everything good must come to an end. My summer classes
finished; I have now returned home and am busy with fall semester
classes. Still, although my internship with the FSF has ended, the
lessons I have learned about free software will stay with me.</p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/libreplanet-call-for-sessions-to-close-this-friday
title: LibrePlanet Call for Sessions to close THIS FRIDAY
uri: LibrePlanet-Call-for-Sessions-to-close-THIS-FRIDAY
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/libreplanet-call-for-sessions-to-close-this-friday
content:
<p>The <a href="https://libreplanet.org/2019">LibrePlanet 2019</a> conference <a href="https://my.fsf.org/lp-call-for-sessions">call for sessions</a> (CfS)
deadline is nearly upon us! On Friday, November 9th, 2018, 10:00 EST
(14:00 UTC), in four short days, we will close the CfS and begin the
difficult task of deciding which talks to accept into the LibrePlanet
2019 program. We're excited to hear from new speakers and those new to
free software, as well as those of you who have been around for years.</p>
<p><strong>We want you to <a href="https://my.fsf.org/lp-call-for-sessions">submit to the CfS</a>.</strong></p>
<p>LibrePlanet is an annual conference hosted by the <a href="https://fsf.org">Free Software
Foundation</a> (FSF) for free software enthusiasts and anyone who
cares about the intersection of technology and social
justice. LibrePlanet brings together software developers, law and
policy experts, activists, students, and computer users to learn
skills, celebrate free software accomplishments, and face challenges
to software freedom.</p>
<p>LibrePlanet 2019's theme is “Trailblazing Free Software.” In 1983, the
free software movement was born with the announcement of the <a href="https://www.gnu.org/">GNU
Project</a>. FSF founder Richard Stallman saw the dangers of
proprietary code from the beginning: when code was kept secret from
users, they would be controlled by the technology they used, instead
of vice-versa. In contrast, free software emphasized a
community-oriented philosophy of sharing code freely, enabling people
to understand how the programs they use work, to build off of each
other's code, to pay it forward by sharing their own code, and to
create useful software that treats users fairly.</p>
<p>We're looking for sessions on a wide range of topics: art, community,
education, legal, policy, and technical talks are just a few of the
categories represented at previous LibrePlanet conferences. It's
important to us to provide sessions that are friendly to newcomers and
experienced hackers alike, and we welcome presentations for kids or
teens.</p>
<p>Feel free to find some inspiration by browsing through the sessions
programs of previous years: <a href="https://libreplanet.org/2018/program/">2018</a> and <a href="https://www.libreplanet.org/2017/program/">2017</a>. You can also
<a href="https://media.libreplanet.org/">watch talks from past years</a> on our MediaGoblin instance. Some
sessions from previous years include:</p>
<ul>
<li>A newcomer’s perspective on &amp; patches for the free software movement </li>
<li>Copyleft, diversity, and critical infrastructure</li>
<li>Hardware reverse engineering insights from the MAME </li>
<li>libreCMC: The libre embedded GNU/Linux distro </li>
<li>Nurturing non-coders</li>
<li>State of the Onion</li>
<li>Technology for direct actions </li>
</ul>
<p>If you have any questions, don't hesitate to reach out to us at
<a href="mailto:campaigns@fsf.org">&#99;&#97;&#109;&#112;&#97;&#105;&#103;&#110;&#115;&#64;&#102;&#115;&#102;&#46;&#111;&#114;&#103;</a>.</p>


title: The completion of David's internship work on the Free Software Directory
uri: The-completion-of-David-s-internship-work-on-the-Free-Software-Directo
feed_id:
http://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/the-completion-of-davids-internship-work-on-the-free-software-directory

url:
http://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/the-completion-of-davids-internship-work-on-the-free-software-directory

content:
<p><em>For context, see the previous blog post, <a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/internship-work-on-the-free-software-directory-part-2">David's internship work on the Free Software Directory, part 2</a></em></p>
<p>One of the main projects of my internship has been importing information
about free software extensions for Mozilla-based browsers on the Free
Software Directory based on data from addons.mozilla.org. I call this
project FreeAMO (AMO stands for addons.mozilla.org) and it exists as
part of the <a href="https://savannah.gnu.org/projects/directory/">directory package on
Savannah</a>. After many weeks of work, it generates usable directory
entries. In the same project is a script to import entries from the
Debian package repository. I also fixed bugs in that script, and got it
to a usable state. However, before importing entries to the Directory,
we want to solve one remaining issue: making it so we can import the
data automatically on a regular basis, but also allow users to edit parts
of the imported entry. I hope to complete this work sometime after my
internship is done.</p>
<p>One of the issues I encountered when developing FreeAMO is that license
names in the AMO package metadata are not the same as in the
Directory. There is an effort to standardize license names called <a href="https://spdx.org/">SPDX</a>. I decided to take on the task of
getting the Directory to adopt the latest SPDX license names. I created
the <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/wiki/Free_Software_Directory:SPDX_Group">Free
Software Directory SPDX Group</a> to coordinate this project. There are
over 200 licenses and 16,000 packages on the Directory. Each
package can have multiple licenses. I clearly needed to automate the
renaming process. I used the <a href="https://www.mediawiki.org/wiki/Extension:Replace_Text">Replace
Text</a> MediaWiki extension. After some trial and error and work to
improve its performance, I finally renamed most of the licenses.</p>
<p>There are still packages with nonstandard license names that need to be
evaluated one by one. One common issue is explained in the article <a href="https://www.gnu.org/licenses/identify-licenses-clearly.html">For
Clarity's Sake, Please Don't Say “Licensed under GNU GPL 2”!</a> When
people tell you a program is released “under GNU GPL version 2,” they
are leaving the licensing of the program unclear. Is it released under
GPL-2.0-only, or GPL-2.0-or-later? Can you merge the code with packages
released under GPL-3.0-or-later?</p>
<p>Unfortunately, Mozilla is contributing to this problem because when
someone uploads an addon package to addons.mozilla.org, they are asked
to specify which license the package is under by selecting from a drop-down list of licenses. Then that name is displayed on
addons.mozilla.org. However, the GPL license options are ambiguous and
don't specify "only" and "or-later." To accurately specify the license,
uploaders should choose "Custom License" and then mention the correct
license in the description field. We hope Mozilla will change this, but
since the Directory only lists free addons, and anyone can improve the
Directory, we encourage people to use it instead of addons.mozilla.org.</p>
<p>I learned a great deal from my internship and from working with the FSF
staff: Ian Kelling, Andrew Engelbrecht, and Donald Robertson. After
taking some time off, I hope to continue contributing to the Directory.</p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/licensing/recent-licensing-updates
title: Recent licensing updates
uri: Recent-licensing-updates
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/licensing/recent-licensing-updates
content:
<p>We recently published a number of updates to our licensing materials. While we generally post individual announcements for these types of important changes, there were so many in such a short span that we needed to combine them all in one place. We recently added two licenses to our list of <a href="https://www.gnu.org/licenses/license-list.html">Various Licenses and Comments about Them</a>, updated our article on <a href="http://www.gnu.org/licenses/license-compatibility.html">License Compatibility and Relicensing</a>, and added a new entry to the <a href="https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-faq.html">Frequently Asked Questions about the GNU Licenses</a>. What follows is a brief rundown on those changes, and how you can learn more about free software licensing.</p>
<h1>Commons Clause</h1>
<p>We added the <a href="https://www.gnu.org/licenses/license-list.html#comclause">Commons Clause</a> to our list of nonfree licenses. Not a stand-alone license in and of itself, it is meant to be added to an existing free license to prevent using the work commercially, rendering the work nonfree. It's particularly nasty given that the name, and the fact that it is attached to pre-existing free licenses, may make it seem as if the work is still free software. </p>
<p>If a previously existing project that was under a free license adds the Commons Clause, users should work to fork that program and continue using it under the free license. If it isn't worth forking, users should simply avoid the package. We are glad to see that in the case of Redis modules using the Commons Clause, people are <a href="https://goodformcode.com/">stepping up to maintain free versions</a>.</p>
<h1>The Fraunhofer FDK AAC license</h1>
<p>We recently added the <a href="https://www.gnu.org/licenses/license-list.html#fdk">Fraunhofer FDK AAC</a> license to our list of licenses. This is a free license, incompatible with any version of the GNU General Public License (GNU GPL), but also contains a potential trap. While Fraunhofer provides a copyright license here, they explicitly decline to grant any patent license. In fact, they direct users to contact them to obtain a patent license. Users should act with caution in determining whether they feel comfortable using works under this license.</p>
<h1>License Compatibility</h1>
<p>In September, we added a new section to our article on <a href="http://www.gnu.org/licenses/license-compatibility.html">License Compatibility and Relicensing</a>, addressing combinations of code. This new section helps you to simplify the picture when dealing with a project that combines code under multiple compatible licenses. If complying with one license necessarily means compliance with the other, then you can reduce the question of complying with both in the following manner:</p>
<p>"[Y]ou start with a list of all the pertinent licenses. Then you can delete from the list any license which is subsumed by another in the list.</p>
<p>We say that license A subsumes license B when compliance with license A implies compliance with license B."</p>
<p>The updated section then goes on to list various examples of this in action. The list may be expanded in the future to cover more cases.</p>
<h1>Translated Code</h1>
<p>Finally, there is a new addition to our Frequently Asked Questions about the GNU Licenses, with an entry explaining <a href="https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-faq.html#TranslateCode">what the GNU GPL says about translating code into another programming language</a>. In short, since copyright law treats a translation as a modified version of a work, translating a program into another programming language has the same consequences as creating a modified version.</p>
<h1>How to learn more</h1>
<p>These updates touch upon quite a few different resources that we make available, but that's only the start of the materials we provide that can help you to understand free software licensing. For an overview of the resources available, visit us at <a href="https://www.fsf.org/licensing">https://www.fsf.org/licensing</a>, or if you have questions, you can ask the Compliance Lab directly by emailing <a href="mailto:licensing@fsf.org">&#108;&#105;&#99;&#101;&#110;&#115;&#105;&#110;&#103;&#64;&#102;&#115;&#102;&#46;&#111;&#114;&#103;</a>. The Compliance Lab is our resource on free software licensing, providing materials and expertise to free software users and developers everywhere. Here's what you can do to help keep this vital program going strong:</p>
<ul>
<li>Help more users keep informed by asking them to sign up for the <a href="https://my.fsf.org/civicrm/mailing/subscribe?reset=1&amp;gid=1524">FSF licensing mailing list</a>.</li>
<li>Support our work financially by becoming and <a href="https://www.fsf.org/join">FSF Associate Member</a>, or by making a <a href="https://donate.fsf.org">donation</a> .</li>
</ul>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/introducing-jake-glass-fsf-campaigns-and-licensing-intern
title: Introducing Jake Glass, FSF campaigns and licensing intern
uri: Introducing-Jake-Glass-FSF-campaigns-and-licensing-intern
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/introducing-jake-glass-fsf-campaigns-and-licensing-intern
content:
<p>Hello software freedom supporters! I am Jake Glass, and I will be interning for both the <a href="https://www.fsf.org/campaigns/">campaigns</a> and the <a href="https://www.fsf.org/licensing/">licensing</a> teams this fall/winter. I am a recent graduate of the University of Michigan, where I earned an engineering degree in computer science, and I am currently in the process of applying to law school. </p>
<p>During my summers as an undergraduate, I worked in software development, where I began to consider the ethical ramifications of computing. I realized that my peers and I were often unintentionally building tools to exert social and political control. As the <a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/edward-snowden-will-kick-off-libreplanet-2016-will-you-be-there">Snowden leaks</a> were emerging around this time, it became clear to me that the pervasiveness of these tools is an imminent threat to freedom worldwide. This was my original motivation in supporting the free software movement: how can we be sure the programs running on our own machines are not spying on us without having access to the source, as required by <a href="https://www.gnu.org/philosophy/free-sw.html">the Four Freedoms</a>? My interest in these issues concerning copyrights, patents, and civil rights on the Internet has convinced me to attend law school, where I can engage in formal study of these topics.</p>
<p>The FSF's campaigns target important opportunities for free software adoption and development, empower people against specific threats to their freedom, and build communities around free software. My work with the campaigns team will focus on preparing written material for the <a href="https://libreplanet.org/2019/">Libreplanet 2019</a> conference and the 2019 fundraising season. On the licensing side, I will be assisting in the FSF Licensing &amp; Compliance Lab, the preeminent resource of free licensing for free software developers for over 20 years. Specifically, I will be helping free software developers with their questions sent to <a href="mailto:licensing@gnu.org">&#108;&#105;&#99;&#101;&#110;&#115;&#105;&#110;&#103;&#64;&#103;&#110;&#117;&#46;&#111;&#114;&#103;</a>, along with creating some new licensing educational material for <a href="https://www.gnu.org/">gnu.org</a> and <a href="https://www.fsf.org/">fsf.org</a>. I like to quickly describe my internship as copywriting and copyrights! I’m excited to explore the legal and ethical questions concerning computing while building my writing and analytical skills through a organization contributing to global good. </p>
<p>Outside of internet and software freedom, my technology interests include machine learning, data science, and distributed systems. When I'm not working with tech, I enjoy cooking, hockey, biking, and card games. </p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/give-the-gift-of-freedom-this-year
title: Give the gift of freedom this year!
uri: Give-the-gift-of-freedom-this-year
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/give-the-gift-of-freedom-this-year
content:
<p>As the end-of-the-year gift-giving season approaches, we have a dilemma: how do we give the people in our lives the gifts they want without subjecting them to software that violates their user freedoms? So many new gadgets are loaded with digital gremlins that can take all of the fun out of the holidays, using proprietary software to sneak in surveillance, <a href="https://www.defectivebydesign.org/">Digital Restrictions Management (DRM)</a>, and other malware in along with the functions we actually want these items to serve.</p>
<p>Every year, the <a href="https://fsf.org">Free Software Foundation</a> (FSF) offers you an easy solution: our <a href="https://www.fsf.org/givingguide?pk_campaign=fall18&amp;pk_kwd=gga">Ethical Tech Giving Guide</a>! The Giving Guide is back with version 9, and loaded with tech you can feel good about giving your loved ones -- and it also highlights some dangerous devices that are better left on the shelf.</p>
<p><em>We create resources like the Ethical Tech Giving Guide because software freedom is necessary to our overall freedom. Will you propel the free software movement to new frontiers by supporting the FSF? <a href="https://my.fsf.org/appeal">Our annual fundraiser is happening right now</a>, and we want to welcome 400 new <a href="https://www.fsf.org/associate/benefits">Associate Members</a> before December 31st. As a special bonus, all new and renewing Annual Associate Members ($120+) can choose to receive a set of enamel pins. <a href="https://my.fsf.org/join?pk_campaign=fall18&amp;pk_kwd=ggajoin">Become a member</a> or <a href="https://my.fsf.org/donate?pk_campaign=fall18&amp;pk_kwd=ggadonate">make a donation today</a>.</em></p>
<p>2018 has been an exciting year for user freedom. There have been <a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/licensing/respects-your-freedom-certification-program-continues-to-grow">multiple new additions</a> to our <a href="https://fsf.org/ryf">Respects Your Freedom (RYF)</a> certification program, with around 50 new products just waiting to be reviewed. Many of the products in the Giving Guide are RYF-certified, so you can give them knowing you're giving the most ethical technical toys you can. The Giving Guide has a huge assortment of digital gifts that will delight your family and friends, including:</p>
<ul>
<li>Digital media, including ebooks and movies;<br />
</li>
<li>Laptops and tablets;<br />
</li>
<li>3D printers;<br />
</li>
<li>Accessories to help keep your computer as free as you want it to be; and<br />
</li>
<li>A list of nonprofit charities working hard for your digital rights.</li>
</ul>
<p>When you're buying gifts this year, please remember that we're not just trying to protect ourselves from spyware, surveillance, and other threats brought on by proprietary software. This encroachment of our rights as users doesn't just affect us. It's not enough to choose to not buy a Google Home or Amazon Alexa for ourselves -- we need to help keep these proprietary technologies out of the homes of our families, friends, and loved ones. We can do this by educating them about threats <em>and</em> helping them to make better choices -- and to give you a hand, we've included talking points with each Giving Guide item to explain why the proprietary alternative is a bad buy.</p>
<p>Share the Guide with your friends and use it yourself! <a href="https://www.fsf.org/givingguide/giving-guide-giveaway-primer">Host a Giving Guide Giveaway</a>. You can <a href="https://www.fsf.org/share?u=https://www.fsf.org/givingguide">tell your story about using the Guide on social media</a> by tagging @fsf or using the hashtag #givefreely.</p>
<p>Happy holidays and happy hacking!</p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/gnu-spotlight-with-mike-gerwitz-18-new-gnu-releases-3
title: GNU Spotlight with Mike Gerwitz: 18 new GNU releases!
uri: 2018-11-28-GNU-Spotlight-with-Mike-Gerwitz-18-new-GNU-releases
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/gnu-spotlight-with-mike-gerwitz-18-new-gnu-releases-3
content:
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/bison/">bison-3.2.2</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/emms/">emms-5.1</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/health/">gnuhealth-3.4.0</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/guile-cv/">guile-cv-0.2.1</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/gnuzilla/">icecat-60.3.0</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/indent/">indent-2.2.11</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/libextractor/">libextractor-1.8</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/libmicrohttpd/">libmicrohttpd-0.9.60</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/libredwg/">libredwg-0.6.2</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/librejs/">librejs-7.18.1</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/mit-scheme/">mit-scheme-10.1.1</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/mtools/">mtools-4.0.21</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/nano/">nano-3.2</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/orgadoc/">orgadoc-1.0</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/parallel/">parallel-20181122</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/pspp/">pspp-1.2.0</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/swbis/">swbis-1.13.1</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/unrtf/">unrtf-0.21.10</a></li>
</ul>
<p>For announcements of most new GNU releases, subscribe to the info-gnu
mailing list: <a href="https://lists.gnu.org/mailman/listinfo/info-gnu">https://lists.gnu.org/mailman/listinfo/info-gnu</a>.</p>
<p>To download: nearly all GNU software is available from
<a href="https://ftp.gnu.org/gnu/">https://ftp.gnu.org/gnu/</a>, or preferably one of its mirrors from
<a href="https://www.gnu.org/prep/ftp.html">https://www.gnu.org/prep/ftp.html</a>.  You can use the URL
<a href="https://ftpmirror.gnu.org/">https://ftpmirror.gnu.org/</a> to be automatically redirected to a
(hopefully) nearby and up-to-date mirror.</p>
<p>This month, we welcome Adam Bilbrough as the new maintainer of mcron.</p>
<p>A number of GNU packages, as well as the GNU operating system as a
whole, are looking for maintainers and other assistance: please see
<a href="https://www.gnu.org/server/takeaction.html#unmaint">https://www.gnu.org/server/takeaction.html#unmaint</a> if you'd like to
help.  The general page on how to help GNU is at
<a href="https://www.gnu.org/help/help.html">https://www.gnu.org/help/help.html</a>.</p>
<p>If you have a working or partly working program that you'd like
to offer to the GNU project as a GNU package, see
<a href="https://www.gnu.org/help/evaluation.html">https://www.gnu.org/help/evaluation.html</a>.</p>
<p>As always, please feel free to write to us at <a href="mailto:maintainers@gnu.org">&#109;&#97;&#105;&#110;&#116;&#97;&#105;&#110;&#101;&#114;&#115;&#64;&#103;&#110;&#117;&#46;&#111;&#114;&#103;</a>
with any GNUish questions or suggestions for future installments.</p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/help-the-fsf-tech-team-build-the-future-of-free-software
title: Help the FSF tech team build the future of free software
uri: Help-the-FSF-tech-team-build-the-future-of-free-software
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/help-the-fsf-tech-team-build-the-future-of-free-software
content:
<p><em>The <a href="https://fsf.org">Free Software Foundation</a> (FSF) tech team works every day to
maintain and improve the infrastructure that supports hundreds of free
software projects, along with the FSF itself and its mission to create
a world where all software is free. Will you propel the free software
movement to new frontiers by supporting the FSF? Our <a href="https://fsf.org/appeal">annual
fundraiser</a> is happening right now, and we want to welcome 400 new
Associate Members before December 31st. You can <a href="https://my.fsf.org/join?pk_campaign=fall18&amp;pk_kwd=techjoin">join for as little as
$10 per month</a> ($5 per month for students) or <a href="https://my.fsf.org/donate?pk_campaign=fall18&amp;pk_kwd=techdonate">make a donation</a>.
As a special bonus, all new and <a href="https://my.fsf.org/renew?pk_campaign=fall18&amp;pk_kwd=techrenew">renewing</a> Annual Associate Members
($120+) can choose to receive a set of enamel pins. <a href="https://my.fsf.org/join?pk_campaign=fall18&amp;pk_kwd=techjoin">Become a member</a> or
<a href="https://my.fsf.org/donate?pk_campaign=fall18&amp;pk_kwd=techdonate">make a donation</a> today.</em></p>
<p>The FSF tech team has been busy over the last year. Our small three-person band supports FSF and GNU infrastructure, and we work hard to improve the services we provide. All of this infrastructure runs on free software and is self-hosted: for example, we use <a href="https://www.civicrm.org">CiviCRM</a> to
manage events, campaigns, mailing lists, and our database of members;
our <a href="https://forum.members.fsf.org">new member forum</a> is powered by <a href="https://www.discourse.org/">Discourse</a>; and we used tools like <a href="https://savannah.nongnu.org/projects/hubangl">HUBAngl</a> and <a href="https://mediagoblin.org/">GNU MediaGoblin</a> to stream, record, and publish <a href="https://media.libreplanet.org">30+ hours of
video</a> from <a href="https://libreplanet.org/2019">LibrePlanet</a> 2018. Much of our infrastructure is routinely under an impressive load -- the <a href="https://my.fsf.org/civicrm/contribute/transact?reset=1&amp;id=22">Mailman</a> list server we run for hundreds of free software projects continues to spool out nearly a half-million messages per day.</p>
<p>We don't do this work alone. We are fortunate to have both a worldwide community of volunteers and a thriving <a href="https://www.fsf.org/volunteer/internships">internship program</a>.
The six interns we mentored over the past year have inspired us with
their work and dedication. Projects they worked on include:</p>
<ul>
<li>A <a href="https://notabug.org/alyssa/pagamigo">free software replacement</a> for PayPal's nonfree JavaScript, which can be run from the command line; </li>
<li>A <a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/alyssa-rosenzweigs-summer-internship-wrap-up">physical system</a> for remotely resetting unresponsive servers with freedom-respecting software; </li>
<li><a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/the-completion-of-sonalis-outreachy-internship-work-on-the-free-software-directory">Upgrades</a> and <a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/the-completion-of-davids-internship-work-on-the-free-software-directory">improvements</a> to the <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/wiki/Main_Page">Free Software Directory</a>;</li>
<li>The replacement of the GNU Image Manipulation Program's old JPEG codec with a well-maintained library;</li>
<li>Researching site monitoring systems like Prometheus;</li>
<li>Testing Pagure, a code collaboration platform; and </li>
<li>Researching the code used for license selection in GitLab, to facilitate future patches.</li>
</ul>
<p>Two of our interns came to us from <a href="https://outreachy.org">Outreachy</a>, which
connects under-represented people with paid internships working
on free software projects. In addition to completing the above
specific projects, our interns are now better prepared to take on future challenges
within free software. We're proud that we helped them deepen their involvement in the movement.</p>
<p>We rely on volunteers to provide and maintain services to support thousands of free software developers around the world. An important part
of what we do as staff is make sure those volunteers have what they need. Volunteers
continue to maintain <a href="https://savannah.gnu.org">Savannah</a>, which hosts both GNU and non-GNU code,
and to take care of <a href="https://www.gnu.org">https://www.gnu.org</a> and its translations. </p>
<p>In addition to supporting free software development and advocacy by others, the team also directly funds some upstream contributions. We are not just users of free software -- we also submit patches and bug reports to the projects we rely on. When we have the resources, we fund extra development in areas that are particularly important for user freedom. This year, we contracted with the author of the popular browser extension NoScript to do major improvements on <a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/librejs/">GNU LibreJS</a>, giving a significant boost to the campaign for protecting users against proprietary JavaScript.</p>
<p>We also use our position as technical representatives of an established institution in the world of free software to attract new kinds of resources to the movement. Currently, we are working with students at the UC Berkeley Blueprint program to develop software which will enable people around the world to more easily support the free software movement both financially and with their activist energy.</p>
<p>We've done a lot this year, but there are also many projects we didn't get to, and new projects that we want to take on in 2019.  We want to spend more time directly
supporting and improving the GNU Project infrastructure beyond the
maintenance of the services we host. We would like to provide better options for developers who want to host their projects with organizations that share their commitment to free software principles; we want to be offering a more attractive public online presence for the FSF itself; and we need to show that a nonprofit can be best-in-class in its operations and at its mission without giving up its freedom to <a href="https://www.gnu.org/philosophy/who-does-that-server-really-serve">Service as a Software Substitute</a> or proprietary software.</p>
<p>Thanks to the generous donations we've received this past year, we are building our capacity to take on these challenges. Ruben Rodriguez, formerly a senior systems administrator,
has taken on a new role as our chief technology officer. Ruben's new role affords him
time each week to continue contributing to Trisquel, a <a href="https://www.gnu.org/distros/free-distros.html">fully free GNU/Linux
operating
system</a>. Andrew Engelbrecht, previously our Web developer, has joined Ian Kelling as a senior systems administrator, which means we're
currently <a href="https://www.fsf.org/news/fsf-job-opportunity-web-developer-1">hiring for a Web
developer</a>. We're excited to be growing from a trio to a quartet, but we also know we could keep a whole orchestra productively busy. </p>
<p>In order to continue our work and push free software to new frontiers,
the <a href="https://fsf.org/appeal">FSF tech team needs your help</a>. Much like free software itself, the
FSF is only as strong as the communities of users and contributors
that support it. I encourage you to do what you can to give us the boost we need to start 2019 strong.</p>
<p>Yours in freedom,</p>
<p>Andrew Engelbrecht, Senior Systems Administrator,<br />
and the Free Software Foundation Tech Team</p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/register-today-for-libreplanet-2019-1
title: Register today for LibrePlanet 2019!
uri: Register-today-for-LibrePlanet-2019
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/register-today-for-libreplanet-2019-1
content:
<p>The free software community spans the entire world, with supporters in nearly every corner of the globe, busily coding, tinkering, and spreading the word about the growing importance of controlling our computing. The Internet provides us with many great tools to share the latest news and advances, but ultimately, there’s nothing quite like meeting in person at the <a href="https://libreplanet.org/2019/">LibrePlanet conference</a>! At LibrePlanet, you can meet other developers, activists, policy experts, students, and more, to make connections and help us strategize the future of free software.</p>
<h2><a href="https://my.fsf.org/civicrm/event/info?id=79">REGISTER FOR LIBREPLANET 2019 HERE</a></h2>
<p>LibrePlanet 2019 is only four months away, on March 23-24, here in the Greater Boston area. We’re already in high gear here at the <a href="https://www.fsf.org">Free Software Foundation (FSF)</a>: we’ve secured <a href="https://libreplanet.org/2019/speakers/">four amazing keynote speakers</a>, and we’re hard at work putting together an exciting schedule. Session topics will include:</p>
<ul>
<li>
<p>Free software activism;</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Practical and creative applications of free software;</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Case studies;</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Legal and compliance issues;</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Fighting surveillance and defending our privacy; and much more!</p>
</li>
</ul>
<p>LibrePlanet 2019's theme is "Trailblazing Free Software." In 1983, the free software movement was born with the announcement of the GNU Project. FSF founder Richard Stallman saw the dangers of proprietary code from the beginning: when code was kept secret from users, they would be controlled by the technology they used, instead of vice versa. In contrast, free software emphasized a community-oriented philosophy of sharing code freely, enabling people to understand how the programs they used worked, to build off of each other's code, to pay it forward by sharing their own code, and to create useful software that treated users fairly.</p>
<p>LibrePlanet boasts three days of free software activities, starting with a Friday night party at the FSF office in Boston. Saturday and Sunday are packed with conference sessions, lectures, workshops, lightning talks, and a party.
To attend LibrePlanet, simply <a href="https://my.fsf.org/civicrm/event/info?id=79">register online</a>. Registration is gratis for <a href="https://www.fsf.org/associate/benefits">FSF members</a>, and $90 for both days or $60 for one day for non-members.</p>
<p>See you in March!</p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/introducing-lei-zhao-intern-with-the-fsf-tech-team
title: Introducing Lei Zhao, intern with the FSF tech team
uri: Introducing-Lei-Zhao-intern-with-the-FSF-tech-team
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/introducing-lei-zhao-intern-with-the-fsf-tech-team
content:
<p>My name is Lei Zhao, and I often stylize it as Leei Jaw. I am one of
the fall interns for the FSF tech team.</p>
<p>I first became aware of free software <a href="https://www.gnu.org/philosophy/free-sw.html">in the sense of freedom</a> at the age
of 19. I encountered free software even earlier, but it took some time to
appreciate the free/libre aspect of free software.</p>
<p>I'm working on making changes to GitLab to improve the license selection
for new projects. As written in the article, <a href="https://www.gnu.org/licenses/identify-licenses-clearly.html">For
Clarity's Sake, Please Don't Say “Licensed under GNU GPL 2”!</a>: </p>
<p><em>"When
sites such as GitHub invite developers to choose “GPL 3” or “GPL 2”
among other license options, and don't raise the issue of future
versions, this leads thousands of developers to leave their code's
licensing unclear. Asking those users to choose between “only” and “or
later” would lead them to make their code's licensing clear. It also
provides an opportunity to explain how the latter choice avoids future
incompatibility."</em> </p>
<p>GitLab has the same problem, but it is free software,
so I'm working to change that. This is the first time I've participated
in such a large project, and I am very excited.</p>
<p>I learned my first programming language, Pascal, in high school. Then
Python, Java, C/C++, Scala, JavaScript, SQL, and Lisp. The language I've
used most often is Python, since it is the language I used for my past
jobs. My primary editor is Emacs.</p>
<p>In my spare time, I like listening to music, and playing the guitar. When
I have spare money, I enjoy driving recreational go-karts.</p>
<p><strong><em>Interested in interning for the Free Software Foundation? The application period for spring 2019 internships is open until December 23, 2018 -- see details <a href="https://www.fsf.org/volunteer/internships/internships">here</a>.</em></strong></p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/introducing-hrishikesh-barman-intern-with-the-fsf-tech-team
title: Introducing Hrishikesh Barman, intern with the FSF tech team
uri: Introducing-Hrishikesh-Barman-intern-with-the-FSF-tech-team
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/introducing-hrishikesh-barman-intern-with-the-fsf-tech-team
content:
<p>Hello everyone! My name is Hrishikesh Barman, and I am a third-year
computer science undergraduate student. Growing up, I had an inclination
towards computer networks, and in my first year at college I got started
with programming properly. Eventually, I got introduced to free software,
and it always gave me immense pleasure to be a small part of a bigger
project by contributing to it. I realized that tech is made for the
people (the society) and not the other way around, and users should have
software freedom.</p>
<p>I came to know about the FSF through a documentary about Aaron Swartz. I
greatly appreciated the FSF's ideas and was intrigued to be a part of it, so
when I got the mail that I've been selected as a fall tech intern it was
truly a great moment for me. The interview process was very smooth and
friendly. I am being mentored by Ian, Andrew, and Ruben from the tech team. I
am really psyched about the campaigns and the tech things happening at
the FSF.</p>
<p>As a remote tech intern, I will be researching monitoring systems,
alerting systems, and LibreJS. The main way of communication with the
team so far is through IRC and emails. In my first week of the
internship, and as an initial task, I was asked to write this blog post
and start learning related technologies so as to draft my work plan.</p>
<p>The monitoring and alerting system project is about making fewer alerts
for issues that aren't important, and more alerts for issues that are
more important. The FSF runs over 100 virtual machines and a dozen
servers. It will be very interesting and informative to learn about the
current setup of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nagios">Nagios</a> and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Munin_(software)">Munin</a> at the FSF, and explore
Prometheus. This will enable the tech team to have better insights into
the software they run and the hardware it runs on.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/librejs/">GNU LibreJS</a> is a browser add-on that blocks nonfree nontrivial JavaScript,
while allowing JavaScript that is free or trivial. The first thing that
I did was to make my personal blog LibreJS compatible. I am looking for
issues that I can work on.</p>
<p>I am still learning how the FSF uses Nagios, but so far it is going
well. The best part about interning at the FSF in my opinion is that it
helps both ways, I learn and improve my skills and at the same time help
the FSF achieve its goals. I'm looking forward to an amazing time and
learning experience.</p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/gnu-press/support-software-freedom-shop-the-gnu-press
title: Support software freedom: Shop the GNU Press
uri: Support-software-freedom-Shop-the-GNU-Press
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/gnu-press/support-software-freedom-shop-the-gnu-press
content:
<p>This autumn is a great time to visit the <a href="https://shop.fsf.org/">GNU Press Shop</a>, the
online store that promotes software freedom with every T-shirt, every
button, and every two socks. We are always busy improving and
expanding our selection of documentation, cool stickers, and garments
as attractive as they are useful. There can be little doubt that every
hacker, coder, and software freedom enthusiast you know devoutly
wishes for a gift from the GNU Press Shop to help them upgrade their
skills and spread the word about software freedom far, wide, and
often. In case you haven't visited since last year, here's what's
brand new in 2018:</p>
<ul>
<li>
<p>An updated 18th Edition of the perennially-popular <a href="https://shop.fsf.org/books/gnu-emacs-manual-18th-edition-v-261"><em>GNU Emacs
  Manual</em></a>: an invaluable reference to the many, many, many
  functions of the world's most useful text editor. Order it by
  itself, or as part of the <a href="https://shop.fsf.org/books-docs/all-things-emacs-bundle">"All Things Emacs" bundle</a>!</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>For a lighter read, we have returned to availability <a href="https://shop.fsf.org/books/free-freedom-20-richard-stallman"><em>Free As In
  Freedom 2.0</em></a>,the biography of Free Software Foundation (FSF)
  founder and president Richard M. Stallman (RMS), written by Sam
  Williams and annotated by RMS himself. At the FSF we always
  encourage you to study the source directly, and biography is no
  exception. Autographed copies of this book are available for
  dedicated free software enthusiasts!</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Looking for something with even more "aura" than an autographed
  book? New and improved <a href="https://shop.fsf.org/wall-art/signed-rms-photo-print">glossy photos of RMS</a> have been staged,
  shot, and printed by none other than FSF chief technology officer
  Ruben Rodriguez, and signed by RMS. I'll ship one to you carefully
  packed so it arrives pristine and ready to be framed.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>This is also a banner year if you enjoy software freedom <em>and</em>
  beverages. We have made available a <a href="https://shop.fsf.org/gear/league-programming-freedom-mug">limited number of mugs</a>
  originally issued by the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/League_for_Programming_Freedom">League for Programming Freedom</a>, a
  fellow software freedom advocacy organization, in the year 1991. If
  a less venerable drinking vessel suits your needs, check out the new
  <a href="https://shop.fsf.org/gear/emacs-auto-fill-mode-mug">Emacs "Auto-Fill Mode" mug</a> -- another constituent of the <a href="https://shop.fsf.org/books-docs/all-things-emacs-bundle">"All
  Things Emacs" bundle</a>!</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Behold: A <a href="https://shop.fsf.org/tshirts-hoodies/gnu-head">new gnu</a>. We've printed one of our longest-running
  T-shirts in a new color: you can now wear the GNU Head shirt in
  Heather Mauve, a color we find flatters just about everyone. The
  remaining blue and grey shirts are the last of their kind -- get
  them before they're gone!</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>2018 was the year of the sticker at the GNU Press Shop: you can now
  order several of our <a href="https://shop.fsf.org/collection/stickers">iconic sticker designs</a> by the
  fistful. The Emacs logo and "There Is No Cloud" designs have been
  hot items in 2018 -- and the Bash logo and vintage Emacs icon
  stickers are brand new. Stickers get seen: there's no more efficient
  way to raise awareness of software freedom.</p>
</li>
</ul>
<p>That's what's new and exciting this fall at the GNU Press
Shop. If you read this blog all the way through you are of course
very eager to order all the items in it -- and you can! By <a href="https://my.fsf.org/join?pk_campaign=fall18&amp;pk_kwd=gpjoin">becoming
an FSF member</a>, you support the mission of the FSF, help push free
software to new frontiers, help us reach our goal of <a href="https://www.fsf.org/appeal?pk_campaign=fall18&amp;pk_kwd=gpappeal">400 new
members</a> by the end of the year, and of course receive a 20%
discount at the GNU Press Shop. This means, for instance, if you are
starting a free software manual book club and tea drinking society,
the fifth member of your club can be outfitted with books and mug
gratis.</p>
<p>Last but not least: if you need your GNU Press Shop orders to arrive
on time for Christmas gift-giving, please place your order no later
than December 20! For all GNU Press shop inquiries, email me at
<a href="mailto:sales@fsf.org">&#115;&#97;&#108;&#101;&#115;&#64;&#102;&#115;&#102;&#46;&#111;&#114;&#103;</a>. This includes, but is not limited to, inquiries about
shipping, sizing, inventory, past and future products, and anything
else that's on your mind. Stay tuned for more excellent GNU Press
products to come!</p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/licensing/fsf-licensing-compliance-lab-2018-and-the-future
title: FSF Licensing and Compliance Lab: 2018 and the future
uri: FSF-Licensing-and-Compliance-Lab-2018-and-the-future
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/licensing/fsf-licensing-compliance-lab-2018-and-the-future
content:
<p><em>We are currently running a <a href="https://www.fsf.org/appeal?pk_campaign=fall18&amp;pk_kwd=liappeal">fundraising drive</a> to launch free software to new frontiers. Would you consider supporting the work of the Free Software Foundation (FSF) and Licensing and Compliance team by <a href="https://my.fsf.org/join?pk_campaign=fall18&amp;pk_kwd=lijoin">becoming a member</a> or <a href="https://my.fsf.org/donate?pk_campaign=fall18&amp;pk_kwd=lidonate">making a donation today</a>?</em></p>
<p>I am the current licensing and compliance manager for the FSF, though I've had several roles in my time here. The Lab handles all the free software licensing work for the FSF. Copyleft is the best legal tool we have for protecting the rights of users, and the Lab makes sure that tool is at full power by providing fundamental licensing education. From publishing articles and resources on free software licensing, to doing license compliance work for <a href="https://www.gnu.org/">the GNU Project</a>, to handling our certification programs like <a href="https://www.fsf.org/ryf">Respects Your Freedom</a>, if there is a license involved, the Lab is on the case. </p>
<p>When I started working at the FSF part-time in 2008, the GNU General Public License version 3 (GPLv3) was only a year old. Our Respects Your Freedom certification program didn't yet exist. The <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/">Free Software Directory</a> wasn't yet a wiki that could be updated by the community at large. Things have changed a lot over the years, as has our ability to help users to understand and share freely licensed works. I'd like to take just a moment as 2018 draws to a close to look back on some of the great work we accomplished. </p>
<p>While the <a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/licensing/gnu-gplv3-turns-10">GPLv3 celebrated its tenth anniversary</a> last year, there still remains a lot to be done in helping developers understand how to best use it and other GNU licenses. The Licensing and Compliance Lab, along with a team of volunteers, has for many years answered questions from the community. This year, we were delighted for <a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/introducing-jake-glass-fsf-campaigns-and-licensing-intern">Jake Glass</a> to join the team as an intern, and are grateful for his help in improving licensing materials as well as answering questions from the community. The world of free software has grown so much over the past decade that we want to help make it as easy as possible to use free software and track the licenses in projects. Many organizations are developing tools to help tackle this issue, such as the <a href="https://spdx.org/licenses/">Software Package Data Exchange</a> (SPDX). But these tools are only useful if they are accurate and support best practices. Looking to improve the situation, we worked together with SPDX to make sure that their identifiers correctly reflected the licensing choices of developers. In 2018, we were happy to announce that <a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/rms/rms-article-for-claritys-sake-please-dont-say-licensed-under-gnu-gpl-2">SPDX updated their identifiers</a> to differentiate between choosing only a specific version of a GNU license versus that version or any later version (e.g. GPLv3-only or GPLv3-or-any-later-version). This is just one example of our ongoing work interfacing with other organizations and projects in order to improve the culture of free software licensing for everyone.</p>
<p>This year also saw more growth in our <a href="https://www.fsf.org/ryf">Respects Your Freedom</a> certification program. This program helps users to find hardware devices they can trust to respect their freedom and privacy. We were excited to add another laptop/tablet hybrid with the <a href="https://www.fsf.org/news/minifree-libreboot-x200-tablet-now-fsf-certified-to-respect-your-freedom">Minifree Libreboot X200 Tablet</a>. While we have previously certified many <a href="https://libreboot.org/">Librebooted</a> laptops, 2018 was the year we finally certified a device to help you Libreboot your own device: the <a href="https://www.fsf.org/news/zerocat-chipflasher-board-edition-1-now-fsf-certified-to-respect-your-freedom">Zerocat Chipflasher Board Edition 1</a>. While we celebrate reaching thirty total certified devices, we are looking forward to even more exciting additions in the future, with over fifty devices currently working their way through certification. Watching this important program grow so fast from the beginning has been incredibly rewarding.</p>
<p>2018 also saw the return of our <a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/licensing/sign-up-for-the-fsfs-next-seminar-on-gpl-enforcement-and-legal-ethics-1">Continuing Legal Education</a> seminars. While executive director John Sullivan and I give many licensing talks at conferences throughout the year geared towards a more general audience,  these seminars are sessions meant for legal professionals and interested licensing geeks to dive deeply into their understanding of the GPL and to help people understand how the <a href="https://www.fsf.org/licensing/enforcement-principles">Principles of Community Oriented GPL Enforcement</a> work. It's an opportunity to teach the law and history of free software, as well as to connect with legal practitioners from around the world. The last seminar prior to this was over four years ago, so we were long overdue to run another. Looking to the future, we plan on making these seminars a more regular occurrence.</p>
<p>The <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/">Free Software Directory</a> saw a major milestone in the past year, surpassing 16,000 listed packages. We were also aided by the tech team interns, <a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/the-completion-of-davids-internship-work-on-the-free-software-directory">David Hedlund</a> and <a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/the-completion-of-sonalis-outreachy-internship-work-on-the-free-software-directory">Sonali Singhal</a>. David is a long-time Directory volunteer who exemplifies the way that program grew and developed over the past decade. David long ago took a leadership role in updating and improving the Directory, and we were grateful that he was able to take a role as an intern to extend that work even further. Sonali was an <a href="https://www.outreachy.org/">Outreachy</a> intern who was able to upgrade the software running the Directory itself. This important work helps keep the Directory running while putting us in a great place for the future. However, while we celebrate the accomplishments of this year, there's clearly a lot more work to be done in order to ensure that the Free Software Directory truly lists every free software package in existence. </p>
<p>Even as 2018 demonstrates how much the size of our job grew in the past decade, the size of our team hasn't quite kept the same pace. When I started, there were just one and a half staff members dedicated to licensing at the FSF -- Brett Smith was the licensing and compliance manager at the time, and I was working with him part-time. I later moved to full time, and since then the team has stayed at just two staff members working with a team of paid and pro bono attorneys. Just think: we've expanded many programs, and created whole new ones, while still maintaining <a href="https://www.fsf.org/licensing/">all the other programs of the Compliance Lab</a> with just two staff. It's really a testament to what we can accomplish. Looking back over the past ten years fills me with pride, but also awe at the size of the job in front of us. </p>
<p>Reviewing past accomplishments always makes one think of challenges not yet met. We have to keep expanding and improving our work, if we want the next ten years to be as successful. But as always, that depends in large part on you. None of what we've done would have been possible without your support, and nothing that we hope for in the future will happen without your help. Will you build the foundation for the next great expansion?</p>
<p>The Licensing and Compliance team's work is fueled primarily by donors and associate members of the FSF. We are asking you to <a href="https://my.fsf.org/join?pk_campaign=fall18&amp;pk_kwd=lijoin">become an associate member</a> or <a href="https://my.fsf.org/donate?pk_campaign=fall18&amp;pk_kwd=lidonate">make a donation</a> to the FSF to support our work expanding to new frontiers over the next year. Membership costs as little as $10 per month ($5 per month for students). Membership comes with <a href="https://www.fsf.org/associate/benefits">benefits</a>, and if you join by the end of 2018, you can choose to receive an enamel pin set, so you can wear your free software pride on your sleeve wherever you go.</p>
<p>Sincerely,<br />
Donald Robertson, III<br />
Licensing and Compliance Manager</p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/support-gnu-guix
title: Support GNU Guix!
uri: Support-GNU-Guix
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/support-gnu-guix
content:
<p><a href="https://lists.gnu.org/archive/html/gnu-system-discuss/2012-11/msg00000.html">A little over six years ago</a>, the GNU Guix project was
announced. Since that first email, the project and the community
gathering around Guix have grown steadily.</p>
<p>Around 265 people have collectively contributed tens of thousands of
commits to the project. In the past year alone, we have received close
to 11,000 commits. More than 8,700 packages are now available, and
Guix is supported on five different CPU architectures. Guix has made
inroads in the field of scientific computing, and we have been able to
secure institutional support for parts of our build farm providing
binary substitutes to users. As a welcoming community, you have spent
countless hours introducing Guix to new users, to help them when they
experienced bugs, and to remove those bugs from Guix.</p>
<p>In addition to all of that, your generous financial contributions in
the past year have been instrumental in bootstrapping and maintaining
our new build new farm, for which we experimented with hardware that
has been stripped of Intel's Management Engine, and which is running
<a href="https://libreboot.org">Libreboot</a> instead of a proprietary BIOS.  While it turned out to
be not quite as simple as we had expected, we have learned valuable
lessons from this experience. Your contributions have also paid for
server hosting fees, for hardware replacement and maintenance costs,
and for additional ARM build hosts.</p>
<p>For all this: thank you very much!</p>
<p>Reflecting on the past year's successes and missteps, we (the
maintainers) have come up with ideas for the coming year that will
need your support.</p>
<ul>
<li>
<p>We want to better support users of non-Intel hardware. This will
  necessitate growing our distributed build farm. Currently,
  professional server hosting fees are an ongoing monthly cost, and
  this will also be the case in 2019. With additional servers and
  build hosts in data centers across the globe, your donations could
  help pay for these increasing costs.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>As powerful ARM-based server hardware becomes more affordable, we
  would like to extend our build farm to more quickly provide binary
  substitutes for users of low-power ARM hardware. We are looking into
  buying at least one Softiron Overdrive 3000 rack server to build
  packages for both armhf and aarch64.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>We would like to increase our efforts to welcome more people from
  communities that are currently underrepresented in tech into the
  circle of Guix contributors. To that end, we want to continue to
  participate in <a href="https://www.outreachy.org/">Outreachy</a>, a successful internship program for
  applicants from underrepresented backgrounds.  Your contributions
  could help us pay for the stipends that would be paid to interns
  working on Guix-related projects for three months.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Past experience has shown that regular in-person meetings are often
  very productive and beneficial to the community. In the past, we
  have sometimes piggy-backed on other meetings, but we think that it
  is worth organizing independent meetups and hack sessions. In 2019,
  we could use additional funds to pay for expenses relating to such
  meetings.</p>
</li>
</ul>
<p>The Guix project was very lucky to <a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/guix/blog/2018/gnu-guix-receives-donation-from-the-handshake-project/">receive a large donation from
Handshake a few weeks ago</a>. Unexpected funding like this can
certainly accelerate the realization of some of our planned activities
in the short term. However, the continued support of donors like
yourself remains crucial to cover recurring expenses in the long term,
to ensure the project's financial stability, and to allow us to plan
ahead with confidence.</p>
<p>Can you match our average contribution of $110 (not counting the large
gift we just received)? We appreciate any size donation you can make
at <a href="https://my.fsf.org/civicrm/contribute/transact?reset=1&amp;id=50">https://my.fsf.org/civicrm/contribute/transact?reset=1&amp;id=50</a>.  We
can also accept contributions by wire transfer in USD, Euro, and GBP
-- for that, please write to <a href="mailto:donate@fsf.org">&#100;&#111;&#110;&#97;&#116;&#101;&#64;&#102;&#115;&#102;&#46;&#111;&#114;&#103;</a> asking for the account
details. If you can contribute $500 or more, you'll receive a special
public "Thank GNU" appreciation from the FSF.</p>
<p>Thank you!</p>
<p>P.S. The FSF is also currently holding its major fundraiser of the
year. 10% of donations for GNU Guix go to the FSF to help sustain the
services they provide for us -- please <a href="https://www.fsf.org/appeal">help to get the word out</a>!</p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/some-losses-from-2018
title: Some losses from 2018
uri: Some-losses-from-2018
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/some-losses-from-2018
content:
<p>When I look back on 2018, of course I see successes for user freedom across the world: the appeal in Christoph Hellwig's GPL compliance case against VMWare is <a href="https://sfconservancy.org/news/2018/nov/29/gplappeal/">moving forward</a>; <a href="https://www.theverge.com/2018/11/27/18114285/google-employee-china-censorship-protest-project-dragonfly-search-engine-letter">Google employees are rallying</a> against <a href="https://thinkprogress.org/google-dragonfly-china-censorship-human-rights-fe1fe1ddf55a/">Dragonfly</a>, the authoritarian search engine being built for the Chinese government; the <a href="https://fsf.org">Free Software Foundation's</a> (FSF) home state of Massachusetts is <a href="https://motherboard.vice.com/en_us/article/7xq4zz/massachusetts-senate-passes-resolution-to-do-in-depth-study-on-right-to-repair">taking steps for the Right to Repair</a>; and people all over the world <a href="https://www.privateinternetaccess.com/blog/2018/08/5-tips-for-helping-children-think-critically-about-privacy/">shared their tips and tricks</a> to leading safer digital lives -- just to name a few! It's hard not to be impressed and inspired by everything the free software -- and greater digital rights -- community has done so much over the past year.</p>
<p>But the work we need to do for freedom is far from over. I want to highlight just a few of the (many) losses from 2018. I think these make it clear why the work of organizations like the FSF is so important. The FSF sets a hard line for freedom -- uncompromising in our ideology and bringing it to everything we do. I look at this list and am reminded why the FSF exists, why we need to keep fighting, and why we can only succeed by rallying as a community.</p>
<h2>Project Dragonfly</h2>
<p><a href="https://thinkprogress.org/google-dragonfly-china-censorship-human-rights-fe1fe1ddf55a/">Dragonfly</a>, mentioned above, is a censored search engine Google is likely building for use in China. It is a travesty for the future of software freedom in China. It is explicitly designed to allow censorship of the Web and Web access.</p>
<p>Project Dragonfly was "<a href="https://theintercept.com/2018/12/17/google-china-censored-search-engine-2/">effectively ended</a>" in mid-December, after five months of hard efforts by Google staff, journalists, and activists around the world. This is a great success, and should be celebrated, but <strong>Dragonfly never should have existed in the first place.</strong> We have no doubt that someone will try this again, with or without Google.</p>
<p><strong>What does this mean for free software?</strong> Projects like Dragonfly allow greater targeting of tools used to create, maintain, share, and use free software. We know from experience that the Chinese government will use this power to block access to important free software, especially in the categories of cryptography and security. It is possible that users would not even be able to learn about free software.</p>
<p>On the note of censorship...</p>
<h2>The European Copyright Directive and Censorship Machines</h2>
<p>Activists and activist organizations in the European Union use the term "Censorship Machines" for the upload filters the European Copyright Directive will require sites to install. These attempts to "prevent copyright infringement" only serve to stifle creativity and software freedom. You can <a href="https://www.wired.co.uk/article/article-13-eu-copyright-directive-memes">read more at juliareda.eu</a>.</p>
<p>While a first round of voting saw <a href="https://juliareda.eu/eu-copyright-reform/">the proposed Copyright Directive rejected</a>, it later <a href="https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2018/10/whats-next-europes-internet-censorship-plan-0">passed onto next steps</a>, bringing us closer to a more controlled, more dystopian Internet and Web.</p>
<p><strong>What does this mean for free software?</strong> One of the themes from 2018 is greater government and corporate control over what we can access on the Web and how we interact with the Internet. According to the <a href="https://fsfe.org/news/nl/nl-201804.en.html">Free Software Foundation Europe</a>, Article 13 "imposes preventive blocking of online code repositories."</p>
<h2>Net neutrality, the FCC, and the ongoing battle for freedom on the Net</h2>
<p><a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/success-for-net-neutrality-success-for-free-software">The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) voted to gut net neutrality protections in the United States</a>. In the US, Title II is a provision that treated Internet Service Providers (ISPs) as "common carriers," or organizations that are required to provide "<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_carrier#Telecommunications">general service to the public without discrimination</a>." This is the closest thing the US had to providing net neutrality.</p>
<p>In 2018, the US Congress created a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Discharge_petition">discharge petition</a> to overturn the FCC's ruling. As of writing this, the House of Representatives is waiting to vote on the petition.</p>
<p><strong>What does this mean for free software?</strong> This is a twist on how Article 13 affects us, with the government allowing corporate control over what we see and do on the Internet. With net neutrality protections gone, ISPs can (and will) throttle access to Web sites and users that aren't able to pay extra fees. This will impact smaller Web sites, including code sharing sites and other tools we use to build and share free software. It will give major DRM-ed Web sites a privileged status, as they will be the ones able to pay extra fees, and they already have good relationships with the ISPs.</p>
<h2><em>Oracle, Inc. v. Google, Inc.</em></h2>
<p>In the words of Parker Higgins, "<a href="https://parkerhiggins.net/2016/05/you-wouldnt-reimplement-an-api/">you wouldn't reimplement an API</a>." The US Federal Circuit agrees.</p>
<p>The <em>Oracle v. Google</em> case concerning the copyright of Java APIs, originally from 2010, continues to this day. After years of back and forth, 2016 brought good news: a jury found Google’s reimplementation of Oracle’s Java APIs to be fair use and therefore acceptable. However, Oracle appealed, and this year the Federal Circuit ruled in favor of Oracle, finding Google’s use of the Java APIs to be copyright infringement.</p>
<p>Read the FSF's <a href="https://www.fsf.org/news/fsf-statement-on-jurys-partial-verdict-in-oracle-v-google">2012</a> and <a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/licensing/fsf-statement-on-court-of-appeals-ruling-in-oracle-v-google">2014</a> statements on the matter.</p>
<p><strong>What does this mean for free software?</strong> This ruling is a big loss for interoperability in software. With the recent results of this case, and the potential for large penalties due to copyright infringement, developing free software through API compatibility could become a legally risky activity. This ruling could fundamentally alter the standard software practice of interoperability through APIs.</p>
<h2>Licensing and the Commons Clause</h2>
<p>I'd be remiss to not mention one of the most contentious licensing debates in recent history: the Commons Clause.</p>
<p>The <a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/licensing/recent-licensing-updates">Commons Clause</a> isn't a license per se, but something to add to a pre-existing license. Released towards the end of 2018 by Redis, the misleadingly named Commons Clause is a non-commercial use clause, and using it renders a previously free license nonfree.</p>
<p><strong>What does this mean for free software?</strong> This is a risk to user freedom, as it makes a free license into a nonfree one. It does not guarantee the four freedoms of free software, and it does not respect user (or developer) rights. Not only does the Commons Clause set a precedent that a free license can be contorted into a nonfree one, it could potentially confuse people looking to use free software.</p>
<h2>In summary...</h2>
<p>These are just a few of the setbacks software freedom took in 2018. Each one reminds me why I do what I do at the FSF every day -- stand up for user rights by standing up for software freedom. I hope you'll look at this list and not feel despondent. Instead, I ask you to look at it as a to-do list for 2019 -- seeing where and how we can do better, what controversies are on the horizon, and how we can keep working together for a freer world. If you want to support the work of the FSF in 2019, please consider <a href="http://fsf.org/join">becoming a member</a>.</p>
<p>I started this by mentioning a few of the successes we saw in 2018. These aren't the only ones! <strong><a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/small-victories-matter-the-year-in-free-software">Read more about the small victories of 2018 here.</a></strong></p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/small-victories-matter-the-year-in-free-software
title: Small victories matter: the year in free software
uri: Small-victories-matter-the-year-in-free-software
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/small-victories-matter-the-year-in-free-software
content:
<p>At a brief glance, 2018 might seem like a big old bummer when it comes to the fight for software freedom: the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) <a href="https://www.wired.com/story/after-fcc-vote-net-neutrality-fight-moves-to-courts-congress/">voted to dismantle net neutrality regulations</a>, <a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/clear-history-why-not-deletefacebook-instead">Facebook</a> continued to abuse public trust, and <a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/take-a-stand-before-july-5th-contact-your-mep-today">the European Union passed the disastrous Article 13</a>, which threatens free speech and free software. Plus, smartphones and other computers are thoroughly infested with spyware, Digital Restrictions Management (DRM), and other creepy crawlies, and we don’t even have to tell you how sinister the Internet of Things is -- don’t invite Alexa, Echo, Google Home, Nest, or any of those other invaders into your house!</p>
<p>The wins for 2018 haven’t made headlines in the same way as all of these items, but they reflect some important trends: greater public awareness of the importance of controlling the technology we use, and greater awareness of how to fight back. The Free Software Foundation (FSF) works hard every day for wins like these, and in this article, we're sharing some of the progress the digital rights community has made.</p>
<h2>Major donations</h2>
<p>As you may have already heard, the FSF received two wonderful, enormous monetary gifts this year: 91.45 Bitcoin (valued at $1 million) <a href="https://www.fsf.org/news/free-software-foundation-receives-1-million-donation-from-pineapple-fund">from the Pineapple Fund</a>, and another $1 million <a href="https://www.fsf.org/news/free-software-foundation-receives-1-million-from-handshake">from Handshake</a>. We weren’t alone in this windfall: other great organizations who got big donations included <a href="https://sfconservancy.org/news/2018/jan/11/pineapple-fund-donation/">Software Freedom Conservancy</a>, <a href="http://blog.archive.org/2018/05/01/internet-archive-meets-pineapple-funds-1m-challenge/">the Internet Archive</a>, and <a href="https://gizmodo.com/an-anonymous-bitcoin-millionaire-is-donating-their-fort-1821340050">the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF)</a>.</p>
<p>This influx of funds don’t just keep the lights on and improve our ability to communicate the importance of free software: they expand what we can actually do to bring more free software into existence, improve the free software that exists, and support the development of free software that replaces proprietary software that people depend on every day. The Handshake donation, in particular, includes funds earmarked for GNU Guix and GuixSD, GNU Octave, the GNU Toolchain, the fight against nonfree JavaScript, and <a href="https://replicant.us/">Replicant</a>, the fully free mobile operating system based on Android.</p>
<p>This doesn't mean that everyday members and donors are any less important: we can't count on huge windfalls every year, and the steady support provided by associate members is priceless for our stability. Thousands of people who care about software freedom donate less than $200 a year on average to support the work we do, so every individual at any amount makes an important contribution. If you're not a member already, <a href="https://my.fsf.org/join">we encourage you to join today</a>, and if you're already a member, tell your friends why they should join too!</p>
<h2>Microsoft joins the Open Invention Network</h2>
<p>Just to be clear, Microsoft <a href="https://www.gnu.org/proprietary/malware-microsoft.en.html">has a very long way to go</a> to earn the free software movement's trust. However, we were pleased to hear that they’re starting to pay some attention to our calls to cease their use of computational idea patents to aggressively intimidate free software developers, distributors, and users. The announcement that they’ve joined both <a href="https://techcrunch.com/2018/10/04/microsoft-joins-the-lot-network-to-help-fight-patent-trolls/">the LOT Network and the Open Invention Network (OIN)</a> was an excellent first step -- but not one we’re going to settle for, either. <a href="https://www.fsf.org/news/fsf-statement-on-microsoft-joining-the-open-invention-network">You can read the rest of our statement here.</a></p>
<h2>LibreJS: GNU and improved</h2>
<p>As we pointed out in the <a href="https://www.fsf.org/bulletin/2018/fall/issue-33-fall-2018">Fall 2018 <em>Free Software Bulletin</em></a>, <a href="https://www.fsf.org/bulletin/2018/fall/escaping-the-javascript-trap-with-librejs">JavaScript is almost impossible to escape</a> on the Internet, and when you open a page with JavaScript on it, it will run automatically. Nonfree JavaScript includes many of the standard abuses that come with proprietary software: for instance, it can be used to identify and profile you. A JavaScript blocker allows you to browse the Web without nonfree JavaScript running willy-nilly in the background and doing who knows what without your permission, so we’ve made <a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/librejs/">GNU LibreJS</a> a high priority. <a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/gnu-librejs-new-and-improved">The new version of LibreJS</a>, funded by the FSF, loads pages faster, does not require a browser restart to enable and disable the plugin, and is compatible with WebExtensions, and thus newer Mozilla-based browsers, including Abrowser and a future version of IceCat.</p>
<p>Of course, there’s way more to do before we can call the issue of proprietary JavaScript solved: for instance, you lose a lot of Web functionality if you block JavaScript, and some sites don't even work at all, so we need to get Web site owners to stop using nonfree JavaScript, period. Check out <a href="https://www.fsf.org/bulletin/2018/fall/escaping-the-javascript-trap-with-librejs">the <em>Bulletin</em> article</a> for some more ways to take action on this issue!</p>
<h2>ActivityPub becomes a W3C recommended standard</h2>
<p>While we do not recommend the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) as a place to do standards work since they sold out to proprietary corporate interests and betrayed your freedom by <a href="https://www.defectivebydesign.org/blog/tim_bernerslee_approves_web_drm_w3c_member_organizations_have_two_weeks_appeal">adopting the Encrypted Media Extensions standard for Digital Restriction Management (DRM)</a>, it’s nevertheless cause for celebration that the group of community experts working on the standard brought their work to the completion, leading to <a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/victory-for-libre-networks-activitypub-is-now-a-w3c-recommended-standard">the W3C recommending ActivityPub</a> this past January. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.w3.org/TR/activitypub/">ActivityPub</a> is a protocol for building decentralized social networking applications. Decentralized free software social networks are <a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/a-new-challenger-to-twitters-walled-garden-mastodon">becoming increasingly popular</a>, and we maintain accounts on <a href="https://status.fsf.org/fsf">GNU social</a> and <a href="https://u.fsf.org/2ly">Diaspora</a>, but most of these networks can’t talk to each other, keeping them from having the popular reach of, say, Twitter. ActivityPub <a href="https://jeremydormitzer.com/blog/what-is-activitypub-and-how-will-it-change-the-internet/">“gives applications a shared vocabulary that they can use to communicate with each other,”</a> enabling users of a social network that implements ActivityPub to communicate beyond the individual instance of, say, Mastodon. It connects multiple social networks to create one monster, federated network, sans the abuses of Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter. This is a terrific first step to freeing users from the proprietary software requirements and SaaSS functions of commonly used social media, and we hope to see more exciting developments soon.</p>
<h2>Slow but positive progress on DRM</h2>
<p>The Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) creates legal penalties for trying to break the DRM on the products you own -- a major violation of your user freedom. <a href="https://www.defectivebydesign.org/blog/help_fight_against_dmca_anticircumvention_rules_december_15th">The process of applying for exemptions is a Kafkaesque mess,</a> but many of the exemptions we supported <a href="https://www.eff.org/press/releases/eff-wins-dmca-exemption-petitions-tinkering-echos-and-repairing-appliances-new">were granted in the latest round</a>, which will at least stop some malicious prosecution while we work to abolish the restrictions entirely. For instance, the rules for permitting researchers to access the software on devices have been loosened, so that researchers who are just trying to determine how badly a product violates your privacy won’t be risking DMCA charges.</p>
<p>In the meantime, while DRM is imposed in items from baby monitors to medical devices, some clever and brave hackers and developers have discovered roundabout ways to seize control of these items. In the case of <a href="https://motherboard.vice.com/en_us/article/xwjd4w/im-possibly-alive-because-it-exists-why-sleep-apnea-patients-rely-on-a-cpap-machine-hacker">the Sleepyhead software program</a>, which lets the users of continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) machines access the data the machine generates in order to improve their results, these efforts may even be saving lives, and we’re always glad when a news story breaks that brings more attention to the injustice and insanity of outlawing this kind of extremely beneficial tinkering.</p>
<h2>Tech workers get active</h2>
<p>No matter how brilliant the people at the reins of a tech company are, it takes thousands of other people’s work and ingenuity to create the products, services, and software we use every day -- which means that if tech workers were to, say, refuse to build nonfree software, our battle would be won. They aren’t taking this particular stand in large numbers just yet, but tech workers are developing a habit lately of taking stands on other matters: for instance, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/08/16/technology/google-employees-protest-search-censored-china.html">Google employees demanded answers</a> about the company’s plan to build "Dragonfly," a censored version of their search engine for China (followed by a demand to cancel the initiative, <a href="https://theintercept.com/2018/08/28/google-china-censorship-plan-human-rights/">signed by 14 human rights organizations</a>). Between public outrage and <a href="https://www.theverge.com/2018/11/30/18118711/google-strike-project-dragonfly-fundraising">threats of a strike</a>, Google backed down, and <a href="https://theintercept.com/2018/12/17/google-china-censored-search-engine-2/">the Dragonfly project is now "effectively ended."</a> </p>
<p>We find it heartening to see the people who build software exercising their conscience and refusing to be responsible for evil software, and we encourage you to stand up against all software that controls you, including what you’re allowed to see, say, and download. Along with activism <a href="https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2018/08/you-did-it-california-net-neutrality-passes-state-assembly">for net neutrality</a>, <a href="https://www.fsf.org/news/international-day-against-drm-takes-action-for-a-day-without-drm-on-september-18th">against DRM</a>, <a href="https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2018/12/letter-eu-european-film-companies-and-sports-leagues-disavow-article-13-say-it">against Article 13 in Europe</a>, and for <a href="https://www.cnet.com/news/right-to-repair-legislation-heading-to-california/">the right to repair</a>, it can only be a positive thing when the community demands more control over technology, and we hope that this activist energy will translate into more wins for free software as well.</p>
<p>In the meantime, here at the FSF, we'll be making sure you hear about every opportunity to stand up against companies, governments, and programs that abuse your computing freedom, and letting you know what free software options exist to serve your computing needs. Although the outlook may look grim on the surface, lots of important and hopeful trends are bubbling beneath the surface, and we can't wait to see what happens next. Keep an eye on these blogs, our news page, and our <a href="https://status.fsf.org/fsf">GNU social</a>, <a href="https://u.fsf.org/2ly">Diaspora</a>, and <a href="https://www.fsf.org/twitter">Twitter</a> accounts for the latest news!</p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/new-frontiers-in-freedom-for-a-new-year-1
title: New frontiers in freedom for a new year
uri: New-frontiers-in-freedom-for-a-new-year
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/new-frontiers-in-freedom-for-a-new-year-1
content:
<p>The beginning of a new year invests us with new hope for the future: while the free software movement has been dealt <a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/some-losses-from-2018">some harsh blows in 2018</a>, here at the Free Software Foundation (FSF) we have a lot of <a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/small-victories-matter-the-year-in-free-software">reasons for optimism</a> as well. </p>
<p>The public is slowly becoming aware that Google, Facebook, Microsoft, Apple, and other purveyors of proprietary software don’t have their best interests at heart, that “smart home” appliances are an unwise buy, and that allowing bulk surveillance in the name of “security” isn’t worth the loss of freedom. The less people outside of the inner circle of tech trust the peddlers of nonfree software and related products, the more open they are to our message; the more the public fights back to defend net neutrality, smash the disastrous <a href="https://juliareda.eu/2018/12/article-13-mess/">EU Copyright Directive Article 13</a>, and demand answers about how social media giants are violating their privacy, the broader our potential audience grows.</p>
<p>In order to create the free world we need, free software must become a "kitchen table" issue. Making that happen is a large part of the FSF’s mission, and it takes the everyday advocacy and hard work of a huge community of supporters to make it possible. It also takes funds for campaigns, software development, and more -- freedom isn’t always gratis, unfortunately. So we’re making one last push to ask you to help us start 2019 in a position of strength.</p>
<p>Our members provide the most crucial building blocks for our movement, and member dues fuel the <a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/help-the-fsf-tech-team-build-the-future-of-free-software">infrastructure of the FSF and the GNU Project</a>, <a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/gnu-press/support-software-freedom-shop-the-gnu-press">keep the GNU Press churning out important free software documentation and cool T-shirts,</a> <a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/licensing/fsf-licensing-compliance-lab-2018-and-the-future">enables the enforcement of copyleft licenses</a>, and so much more. We urge you to start off your new year by <a href="https://my.fsf.org/join?pk_campaign=fall18&amp;pk_kwd=gnuyearjoin">becoming a new member of the FSF</a>. <a href="https://u.fsf.org/1m6">Benefits of FSF membership</a> include a 20% discount on FSF merchandise, gratis entrance to the yearly LibrePlanet conference, and more -- plus, as a thank-you gift, we’re sending all new and renewing associate members a fun set of exclusive enamel pins! We're just shy of our goal of 400 new members in this fundraiser period, and with your help, we'll start off 2019 ready to launch software freedom to new frontiers.</p>
<p>In the meantime, the FSF is bigger and better than ever, and more equipped to do the work you count on us to do: standing up against companies, governments, and programs that abuse your computing freedom, and expanding your ability to replace nonfree programs with free software that meets all of your computing needs. Keep an eye on <a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs">our blogs</a>, <a href="https://www.fsf.org/news">our news page</a>, and our <a href="https://status.fsf.org/fsf">GNU Social</a>, <a href="https://u.fsf.org/2ly">Diaspora</a>, and <a href="https://www.fsf.org/twitter">Twitter</a> accounts for the latest news. With your help, we can make this the best year for free software yet.</p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/gnu-spotlight-with-mike-gerwitz-21-new-gnu-releases-1
title: GNU Spotlight with Mike Gerwitz: 21 new GNU releases!
uri: GNU-Spotlight-with-Mike-Gerwitz-21-new-GNU-releases
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/gnu-spotlight-with-mike-gerwitz-21-new-gnu-releases-1
content:
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/bison/">bison-3.2.4</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/datamash/">datamash-1.4</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/gama/">gama-2.02</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/gcc/">gcc-7.4.0</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/gdb/">gdb-8.2.1</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/global/">global-6.6.3</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/gnun/">gnun-0.12</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/gnupg/">gnupg-2.2.12</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/grep/">grep-3.3</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/groff/">groff-1.22.4</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/guix/">guix-0.16.0</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/libmicrohttpd/">libmicrohttpd-0.9.62</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/libredwg/">libredwg-0.7</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/linux-libre/">linux-libre-4.20-gnu</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/mes/">mes-0.19</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/mtools/">mtools-4.0.23</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/nettle/">nettle-3.4.1</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/parallel/">parallel-20181222</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/sed/">sed-4.7</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/unifont/">unifont-11.0.03</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/wget/">wget-1.20</a></li>
</ul>
<p>For announcements of most new GNU releases, subscribe to the info-gnu
mailing list: <a href="https://lists.gnu.org/mailman/listinfo/info-gnu">https://lists.gnu.org/mailman/listinfo/info-gnu</a>.</p>
<p>To download: nearly all GNU software is available from
<a href="https://ftp.gnu.org/gnu/">https://ftp.gnu.org/gnu/</a>, or preferably one of its mirrors from
<a href="https://www.gnu.org/prep/ftp.html">https://www.gnu.org/prep/ftp.html</a>. You can use the URL
<a href="https://ftpmirror.gnu.org/">https://ftpmirror.gnu.org/</a> to be automatically redirected to a
(hopefully) nearby and up-to-date mirror.</p>
<p>A number of GNU packages, as well as the GNU operating system as a
whole, are looking for maintainers and other assistance: please see
<a href="https://www.gnu.org/server/takeaction.html#unmaint">https://www.gnu.org/server/takeaction.html#unmaint</a> if you'd like to
help. The general page on how to help GNU is at
<a href="https://www.gnu.org/help/help.html">https://www.gnu.org/help/help.html</a>.</p>
<p>If you have a working or partly working program that you'd like
to offer to the GNU project as a GNU package, see
<a href="https://www.gnu.org/help/evaluation.html">https://www.gnu.org/help/evaluation.html</a>.</p>
<p>As always, please feel free to write to us at <a href="mailto:maintainers@gnu.org">&#109;&#97;&#105;&#110;&#116;&#97;&#105;&#110;&#101;&#114;&#115;&#64;&#103;&#110;&#117;&#46;&#111;&#114;&#103;</a>
with any GNUish questions or suggestions for future installments.</p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/a-message-from-richard-m-stallman
title: A message from Richard M. Stallman
uri: A-message-from-Richard-M-Stallman
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/a-message-from-richard-m-stallman
content:
<p>The
donation from the <a href="https://www.fsf.org/news/free-software-foundation-receives-1-million-donation-from-pineapple-fund">Pineapple Fund</a> arrived in the form of Bitcoin
and had gone down to around $860,000 by the time we could convert it
all to dollars. Around half of the donation from <a href="https://www.fsf.org/news/free-software-foundation-receives-1-million-from-handshake">Handshake</a> is
earmarked for specific software projects; some of that will go to
improving Replicant, the free Android fork, but that half won't help
fund the FSF's general operations.</p>
<p>We will need to add part of these donations to our reserves, which are
meant to enable us to keep operating in the case of a possible
downturn.  That still leaves enough to expand our staff by two or
three positions.  We will be able to do some of the work that always
needed doing but that we could not undertake.</p>
<p>We have added a position to the <a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/help-the-fsf-tech-team-build-the-future-of-free-software">tech team</a> so that they can upgrade
the support platforms for GNU packages -- repositories, Web pages,
translation, testing -- and publish about how we run the FSF without
nonfree software.</p>
<p>We intend also to add another person to the <a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/licensing/fsf-licensing-compliance-lab-2018-and-the-future">Licensing and Compliance
team</a>, which certifies distributions and products and enforces the
GNU General Public License. Because of the success of Respects Your
Freedom, we have a long backlog of products to evaluate. Expanding the
team will increase our ability to help people purchase hardware that
runs entirely on free software.</p>
<p>We will also fund development of free JavaScript code to make certain
Web sites function in the free world. Making sites depend on sending
users <a href="https://www.fsf.org/campaigns/freejs">nonfree JavaScript code</a> has become fashionable, so that
organizations and even governments do it without even thinking about
it. The option to communicate with Web sites without running nonfree
software is a crucial part of freedom for users of the World Wide Web.
We will also continue improving the GNU LibreJS extension, and making
GNU IceCat protect against JavaScript spyware techniques.</p>
<p>This year's surprise one-time donations make it possible for us to
hire additional staff and do more work, but we can't coast very long
on them alone; we will need to continue paying the staff to keep doing
the work. Most of our income, these donations aside, comes from
individual donors giving less than $200 a year. To carry on with this
work, <a href="https://fsf.org/appeal">we need your support</a>.</p>
<p>The increased operations, as we are planning them now, will still not
do all that needs to be done to win freedom in computing. You can
enable us to continue -- and to undertake the other work that we are
still not doing -- by <a href="https://my.fsf.org/join?pk_campaign=fall18&amp;pk_kwd=rmsjoin">joining the Free Software Foundation</a> or
<a href="https://my.fsf.org/donate?pk_campaign=fall18&amp;pk_kwd=rmsdonate">donating now</a>. Even better, do both!</p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/the-fsf-is-5-000-members-strong-thanks-to-you
title: The FSF is 5,000 members strong -- thanks to you
uri: The-FSF-is-5-000-members-strong-thanks-to-you
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/the-fsf-is-5-000-members-strong-thanks-to-you
content:
<p>In the first week of January, we closed the <a href="https://fsf.org">Free Software
Foundation's</a> <a href="https://fsf.org/appeal">end of the year fundraiser and associate membership
drive</a>, and we'd like to thank you for your generosity and
support. Because of you, we've raised $441,802 and had 488 new
associate members join -- surpassing our goal of 400 new
members. Thank you for donating, joining, and spreading the word.</p>
<p>Your support is just what we need to push the free software movement
to new frontiers. Our ever-growing base of members, donors, and
activists are the backbone of our work and free software. Without you,
we wouldn't have been able to raise over $440,000 for software
freedom. With the 488 new members, we now have more than 5,000 active
FSF members. Thanks to you, we'll be able to <a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/a-message-from-richard-m-stallman">expand the staff of the
FSF</a>, increasing our organizational capacity, ability to work on
issues that matter, and build the community; certify more <a href="https://www.fsf.org/ryf">Respects
Your Freedom</a> products to ensure that your devices run free
software out of the box, and continue enforcing the <a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/licensing/fsf-licensing-compliance-lab-2018-and-the-future">GNU General
Public License</a> and <a href="https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-3.0.en.html">leading other copyleft efforts</a>; <a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/help-the-fsf-tech-team-build-the-future-of-free-software">build our
technical infrastructure</a> and provide greater support for the many
projects that rely on the FSF; create new items for our catalog of
<a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/gnu-press/support-software-freedom-shop-the-gnu-press">cool new swag</a> and engaging publications from the GNU Press Shop;
<a href="https://www.defectivebydesign.org/blog/forging_drmfree_future_dbd">ramp up the fight against DRM</a>; and <a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/new-frontiers-in-freedom-for-a-new-year-1">create a better future</a>
for free software.</p>
<p>We're excited to see what 2019 brings, which is only possible because
of you. Thank you.</p>


title: Licensing and Compliance Lab: The most frequently asked Frequently Asked Questions
uri: Licensing-and-Compliance-Lab-The-most-frequently-asked-Frequently-Ask
feed_id:
http://www.fsf.org/blogs/licensing/licensing-and-compliance-lab-the-most-frequently-asked-frequently-asked-questions

url:
http://www.fsf.org/blogs/licensing/licensing-and-compliance-lab-the-most-frequently-asked-frequently-asked-questions

content:
<p>The <a href="https://www.fsf.org/licensing/">FSF Licensing and Compliance Lab</a> is committed to helping free software developers around the world with their questions sent to <a href="mailto:licensing@fsf.org">&#108;&#105;&#99;&#101;&#110;&#115;&#105;&#110;&#103;&#64;&#102;&#115;&#102;&#46;&#111;&#114;&#103;</a>. Our primary goal is to support what we believe is the best legal tool we have for protecting the rights of users, copyleft. The Lab works toward that goal by offering licensing education, running certification programs like <a href="https://www.fsf.org/resources/hw/endorsement/respects-your-freedom">Respects Your Freedom</a>, providing license compliance and enforcement for <a href="https://www.gnu.org/">the GNU Project</a>, and fielding licensing questions from the free software community. </p>
<p>In the course of this work, we often refer back to questions in the comprehensive <a href="https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-faq.html">Frequently Asked Questions about the GNU Licenses</a> (FAQ). The FAQ is quite long, with over 150 questions. Looking at the Licensing and Compliance Lab's email referrals to the FAQ can help us gauge the questions that are the most frequent, or perhaps the most confusing. We'd like to share some of the insights we've gathered in our work to make our licensing resources as effective as possible. I amassed all the referrals to FAQ questions made by the Compliance Lab from the past 17 years in order to get a better understanding of what types of questions we field the most. This article will provide an overview of the most frequently referenced FAQ topics, and provide clarification and additional resources for more encumbered scenarios.</p>
<div style="float: right; width: 350px; margin: 10px 0px 10px 10px; padding: 4px; background-color: #EEEEEE; text-align: center; font-size: 75%;">
<img alt="graph showing distribution of frequency of FAQ references" src="media/bef2d728.licensing-longTailFAQ.png" data-original-source="https://static.fsf.org/nosvn/images/licensing-longTailFAQ.png" width="350" />
<p style="margin: 10px 0px;">Distribution of Frequency of FAQ References</p></div>

<p>Unsurprisingly, we see a long-tailed distribution. Worded differently, we see great inequality in the number of references to FAQ questions. The top 20 most referred to questions (included below) account for over 60% of the references. The single most referenced question, <a href="https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-faq.html#GPLIncompatibleLibs">on incompatible libraries</a>, accounts for over 10% of all references. This question deals with using incompatible libraries with GNU General Public License (GPL) software. The solution, as outlined in the FAQ: If you want your GPLed program to link against a library not covered by the system library exception, you need to provide permission to do that. The FAQ then gives examples on how to explicitly provide that permission.</p>
<p>Though only accounting for a fifth of the FAQ, questions about combining work with code released under the GNU licenses account for about half of the lab’s references, making combining work the most frequently referenced topic. Richard Stallman published an excellent licensing guide on <a href="https://www.gnu.org">gnu.org</a> regarding license compatibility and relicensing at <a href="https://www.gnu.org/licenses/license-compatibility.html">https://www.gnu.org/licenses/license-compatibility.html</a>. As Stallman states, "In general we say that several licenses are compatible if there is a way to merge code under those various licenses while complying with all of them." Even where two licenses are crafted in a such a way that they cannot naturally be combined, however, explicit relicensing provisions can enable code combinations that otherwise wouldn't be permitted. The linked article covers many such questions of compatibility in further detail, and we encourage you to give it a read when researching potential compatibility concerns.</p>
<p>Private use questions are quite common as well. The GPLv3 introduced explicit language guaranteeing the freedom to privately modify and run the covered work in order to alleviate ambiguity. Previously, in the GPLv2, such freedoms were regarded as implicit. Additionally, I’d like to highlight that the GPLv3 contains an explicit contractors' provision, permitting companies to give GPLed works to contractors operating exclusively on the companies' behalf. One concern the Compliance Lab regularly sees regards making copies of GPLed programs within a company, and whether such internal copying triggers the copyleft distribution clauses. The short answer is no. The <a href="https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-faq.html#InternalDistribution">FAQ</a> goes on to explain: “The organization is just making the copies for itself. As a consequence, a company or other organization can develop a modified version and install that version through its own facilities, without giving the staff permission to release that modified version to outsiders. However, when the organization transfers copies to other organizations or individuals, that is distribution."</p>
<p>We continue to receive a multitude of questions concerning the output of GPLed programs. This is understandably a point of concern, as much of today's software and multimedia is produced using other software. As explained in the <a href="https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-faq.html#WhatCaseIsOutputGPL">FAQ</a>, “The output of a program is not, in general, covered by the copyright on the code of the program... The exception would be when the program displays a full screen of text and/or art that comes from the program. Then the copyright on that text and/or art covers the output." The GNU Compiler Collection (GCC) is one such example of this exception because portions of its GPLed source code can be included in a compiled program (GCC's output). That’s why its license includes the (aptly named) <a href="https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gcc-exception.html">GCC runtime library exception</a>. As explained in the exceptions preamble, "When you use GCC to compile a program, GCC may combine portions of certain GCC header files and runtime libraries with the compiled program. The purpose of this Exception is to allow compilation of non-GPL (including proprietary) programs to use, in this way, the header files and runtime libraries covered by this Exception.”</p>
<p>We used to see a lot of questions concerning the perceived differences of the copyleft provisions in the GPL between static linking and dynamic linking. Explained succinctly in the <a href="https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-faq.html#LinkingOverControlledInterface">FAQ</a>: “Linking [some program] ABC statically or dynamically with other modules is making a combined work based on ABC. Thus, the terms and conditions of the GNU General Public License cover the whole combination.” Satisfyingly, questions of this nature have been on the decline as the community continues to debunk this false dichotomy.</p>
<p>The FSF Licensing and Compliance Lab is proud to support free software activists worldwide. Providing resources for developers, hobbyists, and users, in addition to legal professionals, allows us to better spread the ideals of free software. These resources help build a common understanding of copyleft and encourage best practices in software licensing, helping the legal system work more smoothly for everyone. As always, we continue to welcome your questions sent to <a href="mailto:licensing@fsf.org">&#108;&#105;&#99;&#101;&#110;&#115;&#105;&#110;&#103;&#64;&#102;&#115;&#102;&#46;&#111;&#114;&#103;</a>. Resources like the FAQ and articles like this are made possible by your support. Here's what you can do to help continue and improve our educational resources:</p>
<ul>
<li>Keep up to date on all the latest in licensing news by joining our <a href="https://my.fsf.org/civicrm/mailing/subscribe?reset=1&amp;gid=1524">licensing-updates mailing list</a>.</li>
<li>Support our work by <a href="https://fsf.org/join">becoming a member</a> or making a <a href="https://donate.fsf.org/">donation</a>.</li>
</ul>
<h1>The top 20 most referenced FAQ questions</h1>
<ol>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-faq.en.html#GPLIncompatibleLibs">What legal issues come up if I use GPL-incompatible libraries with GPL software?</a> </li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-faq.en.html#MereAggregation">What is the difference between an “aggregate” and other kinds of “modified versions”?</a> </li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-faq.en.html#UnreleasedMods">A company is running a modified version of a GPLed program on a Web site. Does the GPL say they must release their modified sources?</a> </li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-faq.en.html#GPLRequireSourcePostedPublic">Does the GPL require that source code of modified versions be posted to the public?</a> </li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-faq.en.html#GPLAndPlugins">If I write a plug-in to use with a GPL-covered program, what requirements does that impose on the licenses I can use for distributing my plug-in?</a> </li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-faq.en.html#WhatDoesCompatMean">What does it mean to say a license is “compatible with the GPL?”</a> </li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-faq.en.html#GPLOutput">Is there some way that I can GPL the output people get from use of my program? For example, if my program is used to develop hardware designs, can I require that these designs must be free?</a> </li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-faq.en.html#CanIUseGPLToolsForNF">Can I use GPL-covered editors such as GNU Emacs to develop nonfree programs? Can I use GPL-covered tools such as GCC to compile them?</a><br />
</li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-faq.en.html#DoesTheGPLAllowMoney">Does the GPL allow me to sell copies of the program for money?</a> </li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-faq.en.html#WhatIsCompatible">What does it mean to say that two licenses are “compatible”?</a> </li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-faq.en.html#GPLInProprietarySystem">I'd like to incorporate GPL-covered software in my proprietary system. I have no permission to use that software except what the GPL gives me. Can I do this?</a> </li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-faq.en.html#FSWithNFLibs">Can I write free software that uses nonfree libraries?</a> </li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-faq.en.html#AllCompatibility">How are the various GNU licenses compatible with each other?</a> </li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-faq.en.html#ManyDifferentLicenses">I have written an application that links with many different components, that have different licenses. I am very confused as to what licensing requirements are placed on my program. Can you please tell me what licenses I may use?</a> </li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-faq.en.html#NFUseGPLPlugins">Can I release a nonfree program that's designed to load a GPL-covered plug-in?</a> </li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-faq.en.html#IfInterpreterIsGPL">If a programming language interpreter is released under the GPL, does that mean programs written to be interpreted by it must be under GPL-compatible licenses?</a> </li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-faq.en.html#LinkingOverControlledInterface">How can I allow linking of proprietary modules with my GPL-covered library under a controlled interface only?</a> </li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-faq.en.html#InternalDistribution">Is making and using multiple copies within one organization or company “distribution”?</a> </li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-faq.en.html#GPLPluginsInNF">Can I apply the GPL when writing a plug-in for a nonfree program?</a> </li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-faq.en.html#ModifyGPL">Can I modify the GPL and make a modified license?</a> </li>
</ol>
<p><em>Graph by Jake Glass, FSF intern. This image is licensed under a <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-SA 4.0)</a> license.</em> </p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/gnu-spotlight-with-mike-gerwitz-22-new-gnu-releases
title: GNU Spotlight with Mike Gerwitz: 22 new GNU releases!
uri: GNU-Spotlight-with-Mike-Gerwitz-22-new-GNU-releases
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/gnu-spotlight-with-mike-gerwitz-22-new-gnu-releases
content:
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/artanis/">artanis-0.3.1</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/autoconf-archive/">autoconf-archive-2019.01.06</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/bash/">bash-5.0</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/bison/">bison-3.3.1</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/c-graph/">c-graph-2.0.1</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/diffutils/">diffutils-3.7</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/ed/">ed-1.15</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/freedink/">freedink-109.4</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/freeipmi/">freeipmi-1.6.3</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/gnuastro/">gnuastro-0.8</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/health/">gnuhealth-client-3.4.3</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/gzip/">gzip-1.10</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/libidn/">libidn2-2.1.0</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/mdk/">mdk-1.2.10</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/mit-scheme/">mit-scheme-10.1.5</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/moe/">moe-1.10</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/ocrad/">ocrad-0.27</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/parallel/">parallel-20190122</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/readline/">readline-8.0</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/recutils/">recutils-1.8</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/tar/">tar-1.31</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/tramp/">tramp-2.4.1</a></li>
</ul>
<p>For announcements of most new GNU releases, subscribe to the info-gnu
mailing list: <a href="https://lists.gnu.org/mailman/listinfo/info-gnu">https://lists.gnu.org/mailman/listinfo/info-gnu</a>.</p>
<p>To download: nearly all GNU software is available from
<a href="https://ftp.gnu.org/gnu/">https://ftp.gnu.org/gnu/</a>, or preferably one of its mirrors from
<a href="https://www.gnu.org/prep/ftp.html">https://www.gnu.org/prep/ftp.html</a>. You can use the URL
<a href="https://ftpmirror.gnu.org/">https://ftpmirror.gnu.org/</a> to be automatically redirected to a
(hopefully) nearby and up-to-date mirror.</p>
<p>A number of GNU packages, as well as the GNU operating system as a
whole, are looking for maintainers and other assistance: please see
<a href="https://www.gnu.org/server/takeaction.html#unmaint">https://www.gnu.org/server/takeaction.html#unmaint</a> if you'd like to
help. The general page on how to help GNU is at
<a href="https://www.gnu.org/help/help.html">https://www.gnu.org/help/help.html</a>.</p>
<p>If you have a working or partly working program that you'd like
to offer to the GNU project as a GNU package, see
<a href="https://www.gnu.org/help/evaluation.html">https://www.gnu.org/help/evaluation.html</a>.</p>
<p>As always, please feel free to write to us at <a href="mailto:maintainers@gnu.org">&#109;&#97;&#105;&#110;&#116;&#97;&#105;&#110;&#101;&#114;&#115;&#64;&#103;&#110;&#117;&#46;&#111;&#114;&#103;</a>
with any GNUish questions or suggestions for future installments.</p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/show-your-love-for-free-software-this-valentine2019s-day
title: Show your love for free software this Valentine’s Day!
uri: Show-your-love-for-free-software-this-Valentine-s-Day
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/show-your-love-for-free-software-this-valentine2019s-day
content:
<p>Free software is crucial for a free society, and we love being able to use technology that respects our rights. Spread the love this Valentine’s Day and spread the word about free software by sharing this graphic, which invites your friends and family to learn more about computer user freedom, with the hashtag #ilovefs:</p>
<div style="width: 400px; margin: 10px 0px 10px 10px; padding: 4px; background-color: #EEEEEE; text-align: center; font-size: 75%;">
<img alt="free software valentine -- pic of computer with big smile and hearts for eyes, says i heart free software" src="media/93cdf4a7.iheartfreesoftware2.png" data-original-source="https://static.fsf.org/nosvn/images/iheartfreesoftware2.png" width="400" />
</div>

<p>Want to take your relationship with software freedom, security, and privacy to the next level? Ask a friend or loved one <a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/whats-a-cryptovalentine">to be your cryptovalentine</a>! It’s a great opportunity to teach the importance of encrypted communication AND to help someone you care about secure their communication from prying eyes. </p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/dating-is-a-free-software-issue
title: Dating is a free software issue
uri: Dating-is-a-free-software-issue
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/dating-is-a-free-software-issue
content:
<p>I've been making the argument that <a href="https://debconf18.debconf.org/talks/38-thats-a-free-software-issue/">everything is a free software issue</a> for a few months now. Back in November, I was lucky enough to speak at <a href="http://seagl.org/">SeaGL</a> and <a href="http://sfscon.it/">SFSCon</a>, specifically on the issues proprietary technology poses in dating and maintaining romantic relationships. </p>
<p>I've been thinking about this since then -- the issues and infringements on user freedom we face when using technology to meet people, date, and fall in love. I think Valentine's Day is the perfect opportunity to share just some of these thoughts I've been having.</p>
<h2>Meeting people</h2>
<p>Many dating Web sites run <a href="https://www.gnu.org/philosophy/javascript-trap.en.html">proprietary JavaScript</a>. JavaScript is code that Web sites run on your computer in order to make certain features on Web sites function. <a href="https://www.fsf.org/bulletin/2018/fall/escaping-the-javascript-trap-with-librejs">Proprietary JavaScript is a trap</a> that impacts your ability to run a free system, and not only does it sneak proprietary software onto your machine, but it also poses a security risk. Any piece of software can be malicious, but proprietary JavaScript goes the extra mile. Much of the JavaScript you encounter runs automatically when you load a Web site, which enables it to attack you without you even noticing.</p>
<p>Proprietary JavaScript doesn't have to be the only way to use Web sites. <a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/librejs/">LibreJS</a> is an initiative which blocks "nonfree nontrivial" JavaScript while allowing JavaScript that is either free or trivial.</p>
<p>Many dating apps are also proprietary, available only at the Apple App and Google Play stores, both of which currently require the use of proprietary software.</p>
<h2>Going out</h2>
<p>When it's time to meet your online date in person, or spend time together with the person you're dating, more proprietary software is ready to crash the party, whether you're going out or staying in. Many restaurants run reservations entirely through Web sites, using software and JavaScript that is proprietary. Using ride sharing apps like Uber to get around <a href="https://www.fsf.org/bulletin/2018/spring/uber-takes-software-users-for-a-ride-1">puts users and drivers alike at all sorts of risks</a>. Or, if you decide to have a romantic evening at home, you might find yourself tempted by freedom disrespecting, DRM-supporting streaming services like Hulu and Netflix.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.defectivebydesign.org/what_is_drm_digital_restrictions_management">DRM is an oppressive technology</a>, prevalent among downloadable, online, and streaming media. It restricts your ability to use, reuse, modify, share, and really own the media you purchase. There are practical damages DRM causes: it prevents modifying media for accessibility needs; it keeps people from being able to access their media whenever they want or need to; and it stifles creativity through the prevention of re-use. However, most importantly, the type of control enabled by DRM infringes on your freedoms.</p>
<p>Luckily, there are <a href="https://www.defectivebydesign.org/guide">DRM-free media options</a> available to you. Whether you want to find movies, listen to music, or curl up and read together, there is the perfect DRM-free choice available now.</p>
<h2>A few other points</h2>
<p>There are lots of computing technologies people use to maintain our relationships, whether romantic, familial, or platonic. They share online calendars, they use Web sites like Amazon to purchase and send presents, and they use apps like Snapchat, WhatsApp, and Facebook Messenger to connect with one another every day. These are all proprietary tools, and the act of using them restricts our freedoms.</p>
<p>When the ways we connect with one another are proprietary, we're trusting our secrets, intimacies, and relationships to technology we cannot trust. Software freedom is a necessary step in building trust in our computing technologies. When code is visible, the people who create that code are accountable, but also we have the rights to use, share, study and modify, and share our modifications with one another.</p>
<p>Software freedom is important in all aspects of our life, and that includes romance. By valuing freedom in our relationships, we're not only respecting ourselves, but we're respecting the people with whom we have those relationships. </p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/what-i-learned-during-my-internship-with-the-fsf-tech-team
title: What I learned during my internship with the FSF tech team
uri: What-I-learned-during-my-internship-with-the-FSF-tech-team
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/what-i-learned-during-my-internship-with-the-fsf-tech-team
content:
<p>Hello everyone, I am
<a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/introducing-hrishikesh-barman-intern-with-the-fsf-tech-team">Hrishikesh</a>,
and this is my follow-up blog post concluding my experiences and the work I did
during my 3.5 month remote internship with the FSF. During my internship, I
worked with the tech team to research and propose replacements for their
network monitoring infrastructure.</p>
<p>A few things did not go quite as planned, but a lot of good things that I did
not plan happened along the way. For example, I planned to work on <a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/librejs/">GNU
LibreJS</a>, but never could find enough
time for it. On the other hand, I gained a lot of system administration
experience by reading IRC conversations, and by working on my project. I even
got to have a brief conversation with RMS!</p>
<p>My mentors, Ian, Andrew, and Ruben, were extremely helpful and understanding
throughout my internship. As someone who previously had not worked with a team,
I learned a lot about teamwork. Aside from IRC, we interacted weekly in a
conference call via phone, and used the FSF's
<a href="https://directory.fsf.org/wiki/Etherpad">Etherpad</a> instance for live
collaborative editing, to take notes.</p>
<p>The first two months were mostly spent studying the FSF's existing
<a href="https://directory.fsf.org/wiki/Nagios">Nagios</a>- and
<a href="https://directory.fsf.org/wiki/Munin">Munin</a>-based monitoring and alert
system, to understand how it works. The tech team provided two VMs for
experimenting with <a href="https://prometheus.io/">Prometheus</a> and Nagios, which I
used throughout the internship. During this time, I also spent a lot of time
reading about licenses, and other posts about free software published by the
FSF.</p>
<p>My primary tasks involved writing
<a href="https://directory.fsf.org/wiki/Ansible">Ansible</a> roles and small
<a href="https://directory.fsf.org/wiki/Python">Python</a> tools, as well as understanding
how Prometheus and its ecosystem worked. I even picked up
<a href="https://golang.org/project/">Golang</a> and started contributing small PRs to the
Prometheus project itself.</p>
<p>The final outcome was a documented repository along with all the Ansible roles
that are capable of spinning up a fully functional Prometheus server with
related tools and configurations specific to the FSF. It's not yet ready to be
implemented, but is in a good position to be extended.</p>
<p>Even though this internship is unpaid, I would highly encourage anyone reading
this blog post to apply for future internship positions with the FSF tech team
because of the knowledge value it provides.</p>
<p>I would like to thank the FSF for providing me this internship, and hope that
my work will extend their current network monitoring systems into the future.</p>
<p><strong>Interested in interning for the Free Software Foundation? The application
period for summer 2019 internships is open until March 31, 2019 -- see details
<a href="https://www.fsf.org/volunteer/internships">here</a>.</strong></p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/libreplanet-2019-coming-to-cambridge-ma
title: LibrePlanet 2019: Coming to Cambridge, MA
uri: LibrePlanet-2019-Coming-to-Cambridge-MA
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/libreplanet-2019-coming-to-cambridge-ma
content:
<p><a href="https://libreplanet.org/2019">Registration is open</a>, and we hope you’ll join us!</p>
<p>Hundreds of people from across the globe will join us at <a href="https://libreplanet.org/2019">LibrePlanet 2019</a> in Cambridge, Massachusetts to explore this year's theme, "Trailblazing Free Software." With a new and growing generation of free software enthusiasts, we can take this conference as an opportunity to discuss both the present and the future of the free software movement. Using <a href="https://www.gnu.org/philosophy/free-sw.en.html">the Four Freedoms</a> as a litmus test for ethical computing, we ask, "How will free software continue to bring to life trailblazing, principled new technologies and new approaches to the world?"</p>
<p>LibrePlanet brings together software developers, activists, policy experts, and computer users to share accomplishments, learn new skills, and address challenges to software freedom. Newcomers are always welcome, and LibrePlanet 2019 will feature programming for all experience levels, including students (who can attend the conference gratis).</p>
<p>In addition to the <a href="https://www.fsf.org/news/keynotes-announced-for-libreplanet-2019-free-software-conference-1">keynote speakers</a> we’ve already announced, LibrePlanet 2019 is scheduled to feature a panoply of presentations including:</p>
<ul>
<li>Governing free software projects</li>
<li>Redis Labs and the tragedy of the Commons Clause</li>
<li>Right to Repair and the DMCA</li>
<li>Security by and for free software</li>
<li>The Tor Project: State of the onion</li>
</ul>
<p><a href="https://fsf.org/associate">FSF members</a> attend gratis.</p>
<h2>LibrePlanet needs volunteers -- maybe you!</h2>
<p>The continued success of the LibrePlanet conference is thanks to dozens of volunteers who help prepare for and run the conference. Volunteering is a great way to meet fellow community members and contribute to LibrePlanet, even if you can't attend in person! If you are interested in volunteering for LibrePlanet 2019, email <a href="mailto:resources@fsf.org">&#114;&#101;&#115;&#111;&#117;&#114;&#99;&#101;&#115;&#64;&#102;&#115;&#102;&#46;&#111;&#114;&#103;</a>. We thank all of our volunteers by offering them gratis conference admission, lunch, and a LibrePlanet T-shirt.</p>
<h2>Seeking sponsors!</h2>
<p><a href="https://libreplanet.org/2019/sponsors/">Take your support for LibrePlanet to the next level</a> by becoming a sponsor. Without sponsors, LibrePlanet wouldn't happen. Thanks to conference sponsors, we can offer free admission to students, travel scholarships, welcoming event space and social activities, and refreshments for attendees. Support from generous sponsors also enables LibrePlanet to run on free software infrastructure, including livestreaming and session recordings.</p>
<p>Spread the word about LibrePlanet 2019: blog or <a href="https://www.fsf.org/share">microblog</a> to let people know that you'll be there, using the hashtag #libreplanet.</p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/gnu-spotlight-with-mike-gerwitz-21-new-gnu-releases-2
title: GNU Spotlight with Mike Gerwitz: 21 new GNU releases!
uri: 2019-02-27-GNU-Spotlight-with-Mike-Gerwitz-21-new-GNU-releases
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/gnu-spotlight-with-mike-gerwitz-21-new-gnu-releases-2
content:
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/binutils/">binutils-2.32</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/bison/">bison-3.3.2</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/cflow/">cflow-1.6</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/ddrescue/">ddrescue-1.24</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/freedink/">freedink-109.6</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/gama/">gama-2.03</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/gcc/">gcc-8.3.0</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/libc/">glibc-2.29</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/gnupg/">gnupg-2.2.13</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/gprolog/">gprolog-1.4.5</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/libextractor/">libextractor-1.9</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/libidn/">libidn2-2.1.1a</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/libmicrohttpd/">libmicrohttpd-0.9.63</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/librejs/">librejs-7.19rc3</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/mailutils/">mailutils-3.6</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/mcsim/">mcsim-6.1.0</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/mpfr/">mpfr-4.0.2</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/octave/">octave-5.1.0</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/parallel/">parallel-20190222</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/tar/">tar-1.32</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/texinfo/">texinfo-6.6</a></li>
</ul>
<p>For announcements of most new GNU releases, subscribe to the info-gnu
mailing list: <a href="https://lists.gnu.org/mailman/listinfo/info-gnu">https://lists.gnu.org/mailman/listinfo/info-gnu</a>.</p>
<p>To download: nearly all GNU software is available from
<a href="https://ftp.gnu.org/gnu/">https://ftp.gnu.org/gnu/</a>, or preferably one of its mirrors from
<a href="https://www.gnu.org/prep/ftp.html">https://www.gnu.org/prep/ftp.html</a>. You can use the URL
<a href="https://ftpmirror.gnu.org/">https://ftpmirror.gnu.org/</a> to be automatically redirected to a
(hopefully) nearby and up-to-date mirror.</p>
<p>A number of GNU packages, as well as the GNU operating system as a
whole, are looking for maintainers and other assistance: please see
<a href="https://www.gnu.org/server/takeaction.html#unmaint">https://www.gnu.org/server/takeaction.html#unmaint</a> if you'd like to
help. The general page on how to help GNU is at
<a href="https://www.gnu.org/help/help.html">https://www.gnu.org/help/help.html</a>.</p>
<p>If you have a working or partly working program that you'd like
to offer to the GNU project as a GNU package, see
<a href="https://www.gnu.org/help/evaluation.html">https://www.gnu.org/help/evaluation.html</a>.</p>
<p>As always, please feel free to write to us at <a href="mailto:maintainers@gnu.org">&#109;&#97;&#105;&#110;&#116;&#97;&#105;&#110;&#101;&#114;&#115;&#64;&#103;&#110;&#117;&#46;&#111;&#114;&#103;</a>
with any GNUish questions or suggestions for future installments.</p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/gnu-press/new-libreplanet-2019-tees-explore-new-frontiers-of-free-software
title: New LibrePlanet 2019 tees: explore new frontiers of free software
uri: New-LibrePlanet-2019-tees-explore-new-frontiers-of-free-software
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/gnu-press/new-libreplanet-2019-tees-explore-new-frontiers-of-free-software
content:
<p>Every year the Free Software Foundation creates a new collectible T-shirt to celebrate another LibrePlanet conference, and this space-themed tee is one you won’t want to miss. The <a href="https://libreplanet.org/2019/">LibrePlanet 2019 conference</a> T-shirt design imagines this year’s theme, “Trailblazing Free Software,” as a space journey to unexplored frontiers, featuring a cute little spaceship zooming out of a wormhole filled with eerie green planetoids. Like this intrepid explorer, we have many new worlds of technology to discover, and we hope you’ll join us on this very important voyage! (Not registered for LibrePlanet 2019 yet? <a href="https://shop.fsf.org/tshirts-hoodies/reserve-your-libreplanet-2019-t-shirt">Register now!</a>)</p>
<div style="width: 250px; margin: 10px 0px 10px 10px; padding: 4px; background-color: #EEEEEE; text-align: center; font-size: 75%;">
<img alt="libreplanet t-shirt -- purple shirt with design of planets" src="media/25a60688.LP2019-shirt-on-background-lores.jpg" data-original-source="https://static.fsf.org/nosvn/libreplanet/2019/LP2019-shirt-on-background-lores.jpg" width="250" /></div>

<p>The space journey design is printed on a bold purple T-shirt made of soft, high-quality cotton. 
You can pre-order yours before Wednesday, March 20, at midnight, EDT, to collect at the conference: just <a href="https://shop.fsf.org/tshirts-hoodies/reserve-your-libreplanet-2019-t-shirt">place the order for your shirt here</a>; on the order page, you'll find a coupon code to reserve your shirt for pick-up at the GNU Press booth at the conference with no shipping fee. If you're not attending, you can still preorder, and we will ship you your shirt after the conference (in April). Either way, you wind up with an eye-catching limited edition tee that is sure to start conversations about the universe of possibilities presented by free software.</p>
<h2>LibrePlanet needs volunteers -- maybe you!</h2>
<p>LibrePlanet’s continued success is thanks to dozens of volunteers who help prepare for and run the conference. Volunteering is a great way to meet fellow community members and contribute to LibrePlanet, even if you can't attend in person! If you are interested in volunteering for LibrePlanet 2019, email <a href="mailto:resources@fsf.org">&#114;&#101;&#115;&#111;&#117;&#114;&#99;&#101;&#115;&#64;&#102;&#115;&#102;&#46;&#111;&#114;&#103;</a>. We thank all of our volunteers by offering them gratis conference admission, lunch, and a LibrePlanet T-shirt.</p>
<p>We're also still seeking sponsors and exhibitors for LibrePlanet 2019 -- for information on how your company can <a href="https://www.libreplanet.org/2019/sponsors">sponsor LibrePlanet or have a
table in our exhibit hall</a>, email <a href="mailto:campaigns@fsf.org">&#99;&#97;&#109;&#112;&#97;&#105;&#103;&#110;&#115;&#64;&#102;&#115;&#102;&#46;&#111;&#114;&#103;</a>.</p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/introducing-valessio-brito-intern-with-the-fsf-tech-team
title: Introducing Valessio Brito, intern with the FSF tech team
uri: Introducing-Valessio-Brito-intern-with-the-FSF-tech-team
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/introducing-valessio-brito-intern-with-the-fsf-tech-team
content:
<p>I have had the opportunity to collaborate and
participate in many projects and events in many schools and
universities, primarily in Brazil, but also other countries such as
South Africa, Spain, Argentina, Peru, Cuba, Mexico, Germany,
Switzerland, Canada, China and USA.</p>
<p>I majored in Social Communication, with a specialization in free
software development, and I am currently an ESL student at the Cambridge
School. In 2005, I worked on the implementation of laboratories with
Linux Terminal Server Project GNU/Linux systems as a digital inclusion
initiative in more than 230 municipalities in the state of Bahia, in
Brazil. Between 2009 and 2011, I worked at the Federal University of
Bahia, teaching free software to public school teachers.</p>
<p>I collaborated with the creation of the Brazilian Free Technologies
Cooperative (COLIVRE), which uses Noosfero to develop free social media
Web sites. In the period from 2012 to 2016, I was a consultant in the
federal government of Brazil, working on the adoption and development of
free technologies for social participation, open data, information
security, and digital inclusion projects.</p>
<p>At the Free Software Foundation, I will be collaborating with the tech
team on the streaming and recording of <a href="https://libreplanet.org/2019/">LibrePlanet 2019</a>. I will also be
working on preparing laptops to be used in workshops at public schools
to introduce free software and programming to students. I hope to
contribute to the development of internal projects and FSF campaigns as
well. I am grateful to be part of this important FSF internship program,
and hope to collaborate and learn a lot with the tech team.</p>
<p>I invite you to come to LibrePlanet, or we can meet at another free
software event somewhere around the planet!</p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/what-talks-will-you-attend-at-libreplanet-2019
title: What talks will you attend at LibrePlanet 2019?
uri: What-talks-will-you-attend-at-LibrePlanet-2019
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/what-talks-will-you-attend-at-libreplanet-2019
content:
<p><a href="https://libreplanet.org/2019/">LibrePlanet 2019</a> is coming up in only two weeks, and it's finally time to talk about... talks! <a href="https://libreplanet.org/2019/program/grid-schedule.html">The official schedule</a> is now live, and we've got so many exciting presentations in store, addressing the social, ethical, legal, and technological past, present, and future of free software. Together, we'll explore the theme of "Trailblazing Free Software," asking the question, "How
will free software continue to bring to life trailblazing,
principled new technologies and new approaches to the world?"</p>
<p><strong>If you're not already registered to attend LibrePlanet 2019, happening on March 23-24 at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), in Cambridge, MA, <a href="https://my.fsf.org/civicrm/event/info?id=79">register here</a>!</strong> Free Software Foundation (FSF) members and students can attend gratis!</p>
<p>This year's schedule is packed with important project reports, debates, and discussions on the future of software freedom. Along with keynote speeches by Bdale Garbee, Micky Metts, Tarek Loubani, and Richard Stallman, you can choose from LibrePlanet talks that include:</p>
<ul>
<li>"Computational symbiosis: Methods that meld mind and machine," with <a href="https://media.libreplanet.org/u/libreplanet/m/the-ethics-void/">Mike Gerwitz</a>; </li>
<li>"The Tor Project: State of the Onion," with <a href="https://media.libreplanet.org/u/libreplanet/m/state-of-the-onion/">Stephanie Whited and other members of the Tor Project</a>; </li>
<li>"Hackerspace Rancho Electrónico," with <a href="https://ranchoelectronico.org/">Martha Esperilla and Stefania Acevedo Ortega</a>; </li>
<li>"The secret battle of encryption algorithms," with Amanda Sopkin; </li>
<li>"Right to Repair and the <a href="https://www.defectivebydesign.org/blog/2018_dmca_anticircumvention_exemption_process_some_progress_not_enough">DMCA</a>," a panel moderated by Jim Garrett; and more!</li>
</ul>
<p>On a lighter note, we're also looking forward to hearing Adam Monsen's talk on "Free software for safe and happy chickens." And of course, LibrePlanet 2019 will include the usual social events, with the traditional Friday evening social <a href="https://www.fsf.org/about/contact/">at the FSF office</a>, and the Saturday night party in downtown Boston, location to be announced.</p>
<h3>Pre-order your LibrePlanet 2019 T-shirt!</h3>
<p>This year's T-shirt design imagines this year’s theme, “Trailblazing Free Software,” as a space journey to unexplored frontiers, featuring a cute little spaceship zooming out of a wormhole filled with eerie green planetoids. The space journey design is printed on a bold purple T-shirt made of soft, high-quality cotton. </p>
<p>You can pre-order yours before Wednesday, March 20, at midnight, EDT, to collect at the conference: just <a href="https://shop.fsf.org/tshirts-hoodies/reserve-your-libreplanet-2019-t-shirt">place the order for your shirt here</a>; on the order page, you'll find a coupon code to reserve your shirt for pick-up at the GNU Press booth at the conference with no shipping fee. If you're not attending, you can still preorder, and we will ship you your shirt after the conference (in April). Either way, you wind up with an eye-catching limited edition tee that is sure to start conversations about the universe of possibilities presented by free software.</p>
<h3>Last call for sponsors, exhibitors, and raffle prizes</h3>
<p>Join LibrePlanet partner Red Hat and other free software supporters by <a href="https://libreplanet.org/2019/sponsors/">becoming a LibrePlanet sponsor</a>! Email us at <a href="mailto:campaigns@fsf.org">&#99;&#97;&#109;&#112;&#97;&#105;&#103;&#110;&#115;&#64;&#102;&#115;&#102;&#46;&#111;&#114;&#103;</a> if you'd like a booth in our lively exhibit hall. The deadline for sponsor and exhibitor registration is March 10. </p>
<p>We are also still looking for prizes to raffle off at this year's conference. If you or your company have a prize you would like to donate, please email <a href="mailto:campaigns@fsf.org">&#99;&#97;&#109;&#112;&#97;&#105;&#103;&#110;&#115;&#64;&#102;&#115;&#102;&#46;&#111;&#114;&#103;</a>. Examples of past LibrePlanet raffle prizes include a 3D printer running free software, a laptop with free BIOS and free GNU/Linux distro, and DRM-free eBook gift certificates.</p>
<p>Supporting LibrePlanet is a great way to support software freedom while engaging the diverse audience who attends the conference. Thanks to sponsors, exhibitors, and raffle prize donors, we can offer free admission to students, travel scholarships, welcoming event space and social activities, and refreshments for attendees and volunteers. Your generosity also enables LibrePlanet to run on free software infrastructure, including livestreaming and session recordings. Supporters receive acknowledgment on the Web, via social media, in the program book, and at the conference.</p>
<p>Whether you're exhibiting, sponsoring, or just attending, please spread the word about LibrePlanet 2019: blog or microblog to let people know that you'll be there, using the hashtag #libreplanet.</p>
<h3>LibrePlanet needs volunteers -- maybe you!</h3>
<p>In ten years, LibrePlanet has grown in size and scope -- and its continued success is thanks to dozens of volunteers who help prepare for and run the conference. Volunteering is a great way to meet fellow community members and contribute to the conference, even if you can't attend in person! If you are interested in volunteering for LibrePlanet 2019, email <a href="mailto:resources@fsf.org">&#114;&#101;&#115;&#111;&#117;&#114;&#99;&#101;&#115;&#64;&#102;&#115;&#102;&#46;&#111;&#114;&#103;</a>. We thank all of our volunteers by offering them gratis conference admission, lunch, and a LibrePlanet T-shirt.</p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/your-guide-to-libreplanet-2019-march-23-24
title: Your guide to LibrePlanet 2019, March 23-24!
uri: Your-guide-to-LibrePlanet-2019-March-23-24
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/your-guide-to-libreplanet-2019-march-23-24
content:
<p>Are you planning on joining us for LibrePlanet 2019, coming up this weekend, March 23-24, at the <a href="https://libreplanet.org/2019/getting-around/#arriving">Stata Center</a>, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)? If you haven't registered yet, there's still time -- <a href="https://my.fsf.org/civicrm/event/info?id=79">registration is open</a> through Tuesday, March 19 at 10:00 EDT, and we also welcome walk-ins (space permitting)! Remember, students and <a href="https://fsf.org/membership">Free Software Foundation (FSF) associate members</a> get in gratis.</p>
<p>We also hope you'll join us for the Friday night open house at <a href="https://www.fsf.org/about/contact/fsf-office-directions">the FSF office</a>, here in Boston -- you can pick up your badge early to skip the line Saturday morning (more details below). </p>
<p>Here's your guide to maximum enjoyment of LibrePlanet:</p>
<ul>
<li>
<p>If you haven't seen it yet, the <a href="https://libreplanet.org/2019/program/">full conference program</a> is now available.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Badge pickup, registration, and coffee begin at 09:00 on Saturday at the conference site, the Stata Center at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), 32 Vassar Street, Cambridge, MA 02139.</p>
</li>
</ul>
<h4>Social events</h4>
<p>You're invited to <a href="https://libreplanet.org/2019/fun/">social and community events</a> happening before the conference and during the conference weekend. All ages are welcome at all social events, and we strongly recommend using public transportation.</p>
<ul>
<li>
<p>On Friday evening, the FSF is hosting an open house at the FSF office, 51 Franklin Street, 5th Floor, Boston, MA 02110 from 17:00 to 19:30. The FSF office is a short walk from the Downtown Crossing, State, and Park Street MBTA stops. The FSF office is an accessible space. We will provide beverages and light refreshments.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>After the open house, all women, genderqueer, non-binary, and gender non-conforming people interested in free software are invited to the Welcome Dinner. This is a gratis meal with some great people in free software -- keep an eye on the <a href="https://libreplanet.org/2019/fun/">social activities page</a> for the details.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>We'll celebrate on Saturday, March 23rd, after the Free Software Awards, from 19:00 to 22:00, at Scholars Bistro, 25 School Street, Boston, MA 02108, near the FSF office. All ages are welcome until 21:00. Gratis snacks will be provided, and your first drink is on the FSF. A full dinner menu is also available for purchase. The venue is accessible.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Prefer a quieter social space? The FSF office will be open late for hacking and hanging out on Saturday from 19:00 to 21:30. Snacks, beverages, and power are provided. This is an alcohol-free event.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>On Sunday afternoon, during the lunch break from 12:35-13:35, we'll be holding an FSF members meeting at the LibrePlanet site (room TBA), where you can join other associate members to discuss successes from the past year and what you'd like to see in the future of the FSF. Pizza and salad will be provided. Please RSVP at <a href="https://libreplanet.org/wiki/LibrePlanet:Conference/2019/sunday_members_lunch">https://libreplanet.org/wiki/LibrePlanet:Conference/2019/sunday_members_lunch</a>. </p>
</li>
<li>
<p>On Sunday night, starting at 21:00, join us at Grendel's Den, a Cambridge pub that is popular with local free software and free culture folks, located at 89 Winthrop Street in Harvard Square. This afterparty is not an official conference event, but is a standing tradition of many years. There is elevator access upon request. Call 617-491-1160 to have someone from Grendel's assist you.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Want to plan a group dinner or other social gathering during LibrePlanet? <a href="https://libreplanet.org/wiki/LibrePlanet:Conference/2019">Use the wiki</a> to plan an event or join someone else's event.</p>
</li>
</ul>
<h4>More at LibrePlanet</h4>
<ul>
<li>
<p>We're continuing our popular five-minute lightning talks by conference attendees about their free software passions. <a href="https://libreplanet.org/wiki/LibrePlanet:Conference/2019/Lightning_Talks">Sign up to give one!</a></p>
</li>
<li>
<p>We're hosting an exhibit hall for a select group of projects and businesses in the free software world. Come by from 09:00 until 18:00 on both days of the conference to check out tables from 3NWeb, CivicActions, FreedomBox Foundation, GNOME, MIT Libraries' Program on Information Science, Private Internet Access, Purism, Technoethical, ThinkPenguin, and the Tor Project.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>You can use the #libreplanet IRC channel on freenode (irc.freenode.org) to participate in the online discussion before, during, and after the conference. You can also use <a href="https://www.mumble.com/mumble-download.php">Mumble voice chat</a> on the mumble server at mumble.fsf.org. We provide these resources, along with video streaming, so that free software supporters who are unable to travel to the US for economic and/or political reasons are still able to participate.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>You can pre-order your <a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/gnu-press/new-libreplanet-2019-tees-explore-new-frontiers-of-free-software">LibrePlanet 2019 T-shirt</a> until Wednesday, March 20, at midnight EDT -- or, just wait and buy yours at the GNU Press table at the conference!</p>
</li>
</ul>
<h4>Resources</h4>
<ul>
<li>
<p><a href="https://libreplanet.org/2019/getting-around/">Logistics info</a>, including transportation, accommodations,
and restaurants, is available to make it easy for you to figure out
travel and choose lodging near the conference.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>The <a href="https://lists.gnu.org/mailman/listinfo/libreplanet-discuss">libreplanet-discuss</a> mailing list is great for planning
ride-shares or social events during the conference weekend, and also
for participating in the year-round conversation about free software
events and issues.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Are there two LibrePlanet sessions you want to see, and they're at the
same time? Fear not, recordings will be available after the conference
at <a href="https://media.libreplanet.org">https://media.libreplanet.org</a>.</p>
</li>
</ul>
<h4>Win a raffle prize!</h4>
<p>This year LibrePlanet will be having another awesome raffle. Buy tickets to support free software while also getting a chance to win:</p>
<ul>
<li>
<p>Hosting, routers, and gift certificates from <a href="https://store.vikings.net/">Vikings GmBH</a>;</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>A LulzBot Mini 2 3D printer from <a href="https://www.alephobjects.com/">Aleph Objects</a>;</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>An S3 smartphone with Replicant and a Respects Your Freedom-certified T400s laptop from <a href="https://tehnoetic.com/">Technoethical</a>;</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>A gift certificate to <a href="https://www.thinkpenguin.com/">ThinkPenguin</a>;</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Subscriptions to <a href="https://jmp.chat/">JMP</a>;</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>ChaosKeys from <a href="https://altusmetrum.org/">Altus Metrum, LLC</a>; and more!</p>
</li>
</ul>
<p>All attendees get a gratis raffle ticket, FSF associate members get a second gratis ticket, and everyone can buy more chances to win at the GNU Press table during LibrePlanet, as well as at the Friday open house and Saturday evening social events! Buy one ticket for $2, 3 tickets for $5, one arm's length for $20, cash or credit. FSF staff and board members are not eligible to participate in the raffle. </p>
<h4>Weather</h4>
<p>Keep an eye on <a href="https://www.weather.gov/">the weather</a> and dress accordingly. </p>
<h4>Thank you to our sponsors!</h4>
<p>LibrePlanet 2019 is supported by several generous sponsors. Big thanks to Red Hat and Private Internet Access!</p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/licensing/about-musixs-removal-from-our-list-of-endorsed-distributions
title: About Musix's removal from our list of endorsed distributions
uri: About-Musix-s-removal-from-our-list-of-endorsed-distributions
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/licensing/about-musixs-removal-from-our-list-of-endorsed-distributions
content:
<p>In 2018 we updated our <a href="https://www.gnu.org/distros/free-distros.en.html">list of free GNU/Linux distributions</a> to add a "Historical" section. We retired <a href="https://www.fsf.org/blogs/licensing/about-blags-removal-from-our-list-of-endorsed-distributions">BLAG Linux and GNU</a> at that time, as it was no longer maintained. We are sad to announce today that Musix will also being moving to the Historical section, as it is likewise no longer maintained. Founded in 2004, Musix was on the list of free GNU/Linux distributions for over a decade. The list helps users to find operating systems that come with only free software and documentation, and that do not promote any nonfree software. Being added to the list means that a distribution has gone through a rigorous screening process, and is dedicated to diligently fixing any freedom issues that may arise.</p>
<p>Musix was maintained by a sole developer, Marcos Guglielmetti, as a volunteer effort, a truly impressive accomplishment. Maintaining a distribution is a difficult task. Dealing with technical and security issues across an entire system, as well as upholding the ethical standards required for inclusion on our list, takes a great deal of effort. </p>
<p>While it is sad that Musix will now reside in our Historical section, we can all still be thankful for the maintainer's work over the years, and for the fact that there are still many endorsed distributions available. Users of Musix should consider switching to another distro on our list to ensure that the security and freedom of their system is up to date.</p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/rms/rms-article-install-fests-what-to-do-about-the-deal-with-the-devil
title: RMS article: "Install fests: What to do about the deal with the devil"
uri: RMS-article-Install-fests-What-to-do-about-the-deal-with-the-devil
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/rms/rms-article-install-fests-what-to-do-about-the-deal-with-the-devil
content:
<p>In <a href="https://www.gnu.org/philosophy/install-fest-devil">"Install fests: What to do about the deal with the devil,"</a>
Richard Stallman issues both a caveat to free software novices who
would like to transition to using free software exclusively via an
install-fest, and a plea to install-fest organizers and volunteers not
to make injurious ethical decisions for the people availing themselves
of their help.</p>
<p>Stallman explains that, because of obstacles deliberately devised to
thwart back engineering, not all computers can function properly with
a <a href="https://www.gnu.org/distros/free-distros.html">completely free distro</a>. And that a choice, therefore, often has
to be made, between freedom and convenience, between installing a
fully free distro that won't function as intended, and installing a
nonfree distro that will.  He argues that this choice should be made
by the <em>informed</em> user alone, not silently by the install-fest
volunteer.</p>
<p>Stallman appeals to install fests to forgo the "tacit deal with the
devil" that suppresses the free software movement's message about
freedom and justice, and to take advantage of the teachable moment, to
introduce the user to the "moral dimension" of their computing
choices. He suggests a number of things an install-fest could do
(implement visual demarcations that help users understand when they're
about to "forfeit their freedom," give technical advice regarding free
software and free hardware, encourage users to lobby offending
manufacturers) in order to "retain full moral authority when it talks
about the imperative for freedom." Better the devil you know than the
devil you don't, and, ultimately, better no devil at all.</p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/libreplanet-is-coming-in-two-days-heres-how-you-can-participate
title: LibrePlanet is coming in two days! Here's how you can participate
uri: LibrePlanet-is-coming-in-two-days-Here-s-how-you-can-participate
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/libreplanet-is-coming-in-two-days-heres-how-you-can-participate
content:
<p>It's almost time for <a href="https://fsf.org">LibrePlanet</a> -- the <a href="https://fsf.org">Free Software Foundation</a> annual conference and associate members' meeting -- and we couldn't be more excited! There is so much going on <a href="https://libreplanet.org/2019/program/">at the conference</a>, <a href="https://libreplanet.org/2019/fun/">great events in the evenings</a>, a <a href="https://libreplanet.org/2019/raffle">raffle</a>, an exhibit hall, and an amazing collection of free software enthusiasts from around the world. We hope to see you there! Registration may be closed, but you can still register for the conference on-site, space permitting.</p>
<p>In the event you can't make it to LibrePlanet, at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge, MA, there are ways to get involved! We have <a href="https://libreplanet.org/2019/live/">three ways to enable remote participation</a>: IRC, mumble, and, of course, the livestream. We provide these resources, along with video streaming, so that free software supporters who are unable to travel to the US for economic and/or political reasons are still able to participate.</p>
<p><strong>IRC</strong></p>
<p>You can log onto IRC through your  IRC client or our <a href="https://libreplanet.org/2019/live/">Web IRC interface</a>, powered by  <a href="https://kiwiirc.com/">Kiwi IRC</a>. You have four options for channels: A general #libreplanet chat, and then a chat for each of our three session rooms. Volunteers will be on hand at the conference to help you ask questions submitted over IRC during the Q&amp;A section of talks.</p>
<p><strong>Mumble</strong></p>
<p>If you prefer to talk over voice chat rather than typing, you can use Mumble to communicate with other free software supporters on-site or remotely. <a href="https://mumble.com">Mumble</a> is a free software voice chat system, and we're hosting our own <a href="https://mumble.fsf.org">Mumble server</a> for the duration of the conference. Rather than just typing to other in person and remote attendees, you can now chat over voice as well. There will be a dedicated computer that is set up and connected to Mumble in the exhibit hall at the conference, which you can use.</p>
<p><strong>Livestream</strong></p>
<p>As we do every year, we will be streaming and recording every session using our entirely free software system. <a href="https://libreplanet.org/2019/live/">You can watch the livestream online</a>. recordings will be available after the conference via <a href="https://media.libreplanet.org">GNU Media Goblin</a>.</p>
<p><strong>T-shirts</strong></p>
<p>Whether you're at the conference or watching from home, you can remember your LibrePlanet 2019 experience with <a href="https://shop.fsf.org/tshirts-hoodies/reserve-your-libreplanet-2019-t-shirt">this year's conference T-shirt</a>. If you'll be there, you can pick it up in person. If you won't be in attendance, we can still ship you a shirt after the conference. Please note that quantities are limited, and we won't know until after the conference if we can fulfill every order.</p>
<p><strong>Thank you to our sponsors!</strong></p>
<p>LibrePlanet 2019 is supported by several <a href="https://libreplanet.org/sponsors">generous sponsors</a>. Big thanks to Red Hat and Private Internet Access!</p>
<p>We look forward to seeing you this weekend, whether in person or online.</p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/libreplanet-day-1-trailblazing-free-software-together
title: LibrePlanet Day 1: Trailblazing free software together
uri: LibrePlanet-Day-1-Trailblazing-free-software-together
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/libreplanet-day-1-trailblazing-free-software-together
content:
<p><img src="media/6c385e0d.tarek.jpg" data-original-source="https://static.fsf.org/nosvn/libreplanet/2019/photos/tarek.jpg" alt="Tarek Loubani delivering opening keynote speech of LibrePlanet conference" style="float: right; width: 250px; margin: 10px 0px 10px 10px;" /> </p>
<p>On day one of <a href="https://libreplanet.org/2019/">LibrePlanet 2019</a>, we welcomed 264 attendees to the Stata Center at the Massachusetts Institute of Techology (MIT). The LibrePlanet conference has now entered its second decade, and as software infiltrates more and more of daily life, there are many new and important ethical, social, legal, and technological questions to answer. Today's sessions examined the theme of "Trailblazing Free Software" from many different angles, addressing how we can apply the practical advantages of free software while maintaining and defending the indispensable principles behind it.</p>
<p>LibrePlanet 2019 kicked off on Saturday, March 23rd with a moving, urgent
keynote by Tarek Loubani, an emergency physician who splits his time between Canada and the Gaza Strip, focusing on the production and proliferation of free medical devices. Loubani's work involves gaining self-sufficiency and local independence for medical systems through the use of free techniques. </p>
<p>Dr. Loubani described his journey from seeing change as the work of superheroes to a point of understanding change as built by millions of "tiny ants," working collaboratively to improve how we live. Beginning with stethoscopes, Dr. Loubani and other determined medical professionals and designers created free designs to 3D print cheap but high-quality medical devices, which can save lives in Gaza and other war-torn regions around the world. While many of the stories he told were tragic, Dr. Loubani's talk ended on a hopeful note, celebrating the dignity and ingenuity of the Palestinian people, and connecting it to the vibrancy and importance of the free software movement. </p>
<p>Videos of this
talk and others will be available soon, at <a href="https://media.libreplanet.org/">the LibrePlanet GNU
MediaGoblin page</a>.</p>
<p>Throughout the day, there were over two dozen talks, spanning a wide range of topics relating to software freedom and user freedom. Chris Lamb and Do Yoon Kim addressed the importance of copyleft licenses in their talks "Redis Labs and the tragedy of the Commons Clause" and "GPL enforcement and customer benefits: Evidence from OpenWRT." Speakers introduced attendees to global frontiers (and barriers) of free software with their talks on "Sharing global opportunities for new developers in the Wikipedia community," "Hackerspace Rancho Electrónico," and "Australia's decryption law and free software." A panel of organizers, developers, and collaborators explored the possibilities opened up by the Internet for large, decentralized groups of people from around the world to collaborate with each other in "Large-scale collaboration with free software." And longtime LibrePlanet contributor Andrew Oram explained what he describes as the "seemingly unstoppable ascendance of a few large corporations in computing" in his talk, "Technical drivers of "cloud" centralization and megacorporate domination."</p>
<p><img src="media/88b9faf2.three-friends.jpg" data-original-source="https://static.fsf.org/nosvn/libreplanet/2019/photos/three-friends.jpg" alt="Women in free software -- Molly de Blanc, Deborah Nicholson, and Shauna Gordon-McKeon" style="float: right; width: 250px; margin: 10px 0px 10px 10px;" /> </p>
<p>There was space for some more lighthearted discussion as well: in his talk "Free software for safe and happy chickens," Adam Monsen introduced the audience to his awesome free-software-powered chicken door, which of course utilizes only free software. You can, of course, purchase a light-activated chicken door online, but it's so much more fun to figure out how to make it work on your own, and get your kids involved too! Amanda Sopkin's talk on the colorful history of encryption methods was also full of fun factoids -- for instance, the <em>bombe</em> machine used by British and Polish cryptographers to decipher German messages during World War II weighed a ton and had 12 miles of wiring!</p>
<p>At the end of the day, Free Software Foundation (FSF) president Richard Stallman announced
<a href="https://www.fsf.org/news/openstreetmap-and-deborah-nicholson-win-2018-fsf-awards">the winners of the 2018 Free Software Awards</a>, celebrating
an individual's ongoing commitment to user freedom (the Award for
the Advancement of Free Software) and the work of a free software
project that has created significant social good (the Award for
Projects of Social Benefit).</p>
<p>Deborah Nicholson, dedicated community advocate and free software activist, received the Award for the Advancement of Free
Software. And OpenStreetMap chairperson and co-founder of the Humanitarian OpenStreetMap Team (HOT), Kate Chapman, accepted the Award for Projects of Social Benefit on behalf of <a href="https://www.openstreetmap.org/#map=15/42.3558/-71.0629&amp;layers=C">OpenStreetMap</a>.</p>
<p>In addition to her role as the director of community operations at the <a href="https://sfconservancy.org/">Software Freedom Conservancy</a>, Deborah has served as the membership coordinator for the Free Software Foundation. She’s done outstanding volunteer work with GNU MediaGoblin, a federated media-publishing platform, and OpenHatch, free software's welcoming committee, and she continues her work as a founding organizer of the Seattle GNU/Linux Conference, an annual event dedicated to surfacing new voices and welcoming new people to the free software community. Plus, she has delivered some truly terrific LibrePlanet talks, including last year's keynote speech, <a href="https://media.libreplanet.org/u/libreplanet/m/free-software-forever-with-slides/">"Free software forever."</a></p>
<p>OpenStreetMap is a collaborative project to create a free editable map of the world. Founded by Steve Coast in the UK in 2004, <a href="https://www.openstreetmap.org">OpenStreetMap</a> is built by a community of over one million community members and has found its application on thousands of Web sites, mobile apps, and hardware devices. OpenStreetMap is the only truly global service without restrictions on use or availability of map information.</p>
<p>At the end of the Free Software Awards presentation, we presented raffle prize bundles to three lucky winners, which included a Technoethical S3 smartphone and a Technoethical T400S laptop! Congratulations, and thank you Technoethical, Vikings, and ThinkPenguin for donating these <a href="https://libreplanet.org/2019/raffle/">terrific prizes</a>!</p>
<p>Don't forget, if you're not attending tomorrow, you can still participate via IRC through your IRC client or our <a href="https://libreplanet.org/2019/live/">Web IRC interface</a>, powered by <a href="https://kiwiirc.com/">Kiwi IRC</a>, or via voice chat on our <a href="https://mumble.fsf.org">Mumble server</a>. You can also tune in to watch all of the LibrePlanet sessions at our <a href="https://libreplanet.org/2019/live/">livestream page</a>.</p>
<p>We're so grateful to our amazing little army of volunteers, our <a href="https://libreplanet.org/2019/sponsors/">exhibitors</a>, and our generous sponsors, Red Hat and Private Internet Access, for helping us put on this yearly celebration of free software. We hope that all of our participants, both on-site at MIT and watching from afar, are having a fun and educational time at LibrePlanet. See you tomorrow!</p>
<p><em>Photo credits: Copyright © 2019 Free Software Foundation, by Madi Muhlberg, photos licensed
 under <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC-BY
 4.0.</a></em></p>


title: LibrePlanet Day 2: Welcoming everyone to the world of free software
uri: LibrePlanet-Day-2-Welcoming-everyone-to-the-world-of-free-software
feed_id:
http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/libreplanet-day-2-welcoming-everyone-to-the-world-of-free-software

url:
http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/libreplanet-day-2-welcoming-everyone-to-the-world-of-free-software

content:
<p><img src="media/77799f42.LibrePlanet_3.24.2019_Speakers_1.jpg" data-original-source="https://static.fsf.org/nosvn/libreplanet/2019/photos/sunday/LibrePlanet_3.24.2019_Speakers_1.jpg" alt="Bdale Garbee with a microphone speaking at a podium at the LibrePlanet 2019 conference" style="float: left; height: 300px; margin: 10px 10px 10px 0px;" /> </p>
<p>One of the most important questions that free software is facing in the year 2019 is: how do we make the world of free software accessible to broader audiences? Vast numbers of people are using software every day -- how do we relate our message to something that is important to them, and then welcome them into our community? In order to achieve our mission, we need to invite people and get them to use, create, and proliferate ethical software, until it replaces until all technology is free. </p>
<p>Many of the best talks at <a href="https://libreplanet.org/2019/">LibrePlanet 2019</a> echoed a message for the free software community to focus on building a culture that's respectful and encouraging for new people, respecting a wide variety of personalities and values. The first way to get people invested in the culture of free software is to make it fun, and that was the focus of the morning keynote, "Freedom is fun!", delivered by free software veteran Bdale Garbee. A prominent name in the free software world for decades, Bdale talked about how he has a habit of turning all of his hobbies into free software projects, starting with model rockets. </p>
<p><img src="media/a83e6ee7.LibrePlanet_3.24.2019_Speakers_30.jpg" data-original-source="https://static.fsf.org/nosvn/libreplanet/2019/photos/sunday/LibrePlanet_3.24.2019_Speakers_30.jpg" alt="Bdale Garbee with giant model rocket" style="float: right; height: 300px; margin: 10px 10px 10px 0px;" /> </p>
<p>He detailed how some of the most prominent changes made to free software are made by people working through one particular problem and creating a unique solution that is valuable to them. The joy of experimenting and the magic of constantly improving systems through "people scratching their unique itches" 
provide far greater benefits than any company could ever create through the closed model of proprietary software. Bdale also stressed the value of inviting new people, as well as thanking people for their contributions. He urged all free software users and contributors to have fun, use your hobbies and interests as a way to experiment and develop, and to not hoard these new ideas... instead, share them! </p>
<p><img src="media/0aa93ed1.LibrePlanet_3.24.2019_1.jpg" data-original-source="https://static.fsf.org/nosvn/libreplanet/2019/photos/sunday/LibrePlanet_3.24.2019_1.jpg" alt="close-up of an exhibitor table with computer parts laid out" style="float: left; height: 300px; margin: 10px 10px 10px 0px;" /> </p>
<p>Other morning sessions included Kate Chapman's presentation on the history and future of <a href="https://www.fsf.org/news/openstreetmap-and-deborah-nicholson-win-2018-fsf-awards">Free Software Award-winning OpenStreetMap</a>, as well as Micah Altman's introduction to the important possibilities presented by the free software redistricting application <a href="http://www.districtbuilder.org/">DistrictBuilder</a>. In another talk, on "Right to Repair and the DMCA," Nathan Proctor outlined how our <a href="https://massrighttorepair.org">right to repair</a> and maintain products is a free software issue as well as an environmental issue. The throwaway culture is a direct consequence of the manufacturer's choice to restrict diagnostics and repair of any product owned by the individual. </p>
<p>In her talk on the "meta-rules for codes of conduct," Katheryn Sutter returned to the theme of inclusiveness by prying open many distinctions in the ways that free software enthusiasts and other communities can communicate well, and communicate poorly, and enumerating some of the ways we can come together in respectful and productive ways. Although we all agree on many values within the free software community, we may disagree on others, and it's hard to create codes of conduct that will satisfy everyone, across a variety of experiences and backgrounds. The idea of the code of conduct, then, is not to eliminate all disagreement or stifle participants; Sutter emphasized that the goal is to "create and protect safe places for conflict." </p>
<p><img src="media/defde942.LibrePlanet_3.24.2019_14.jpg" data-original-source="https://static.fsf.org/nosvn/libreplanet/2019/photos/sunday/LibrePlanet_3.24.2019_14.jpg" alt="FSF board member Kat Walsh and speaker Alexandre Oliva posing on a bench" style="float: left; height: 300px; margin: 10px 10px 10px 0px;" /> </p>
<p>Sunday afternoon, Free Software Award winner and community-building champion Deborah Nicholson delivered a talk on "Free software/utopia," using examples from her work on <a href="https://mediagoblin.org/">GNU MediaGoblin</a>, <a href="https://www.outreachy.org/">Outreachy</a>, and other free software initiatives to demonstrate how to create and maintain projects that attract and welcome newcomers, and reward the time and care invested by contributors. She highlighted her efforts to consciously sustain a positive development environment; in her opinion, it's better for a project to lose one big contributor whose behavior is detrimental to the community than any small contributor who treats others with consideration.</p>
<p>Next came the Lightning Talks session, which provided attendees with an opportunity to give a five-minute presentation on their work and their ideas. Topics ranged from how we're facing an existential crisis because fewer hardware and firmware products fully support the use of free software, to how <a href="http://puri.sm">Purism</a> managed to design a fully functioning Librem 5 Dev Kit with 100% free software. Projects shared included <a href="https://musicblocks.sugarlabs.org">Mission Possible</a>, a primary school program teaching children the four freedoms the FSF promotes, and <a href="https://www.voadi.com">Vegan on a Desert Island</a>, a free software video game project answering the common question of what a vegan would do when stranded on a desert island. <a href="https://calblueprint.org">Blueprint</a>, a team of UC Berkeley students working pro bono for nonprofits, talked about the mobile app that they're building for the Free Software Foundation. All of these talks gave a glimpse into the knowledge and creativity shared by the free software community -- the scheduled conference talks only scratch the surface of all of the multifaceted work that our supporters do every day! </p>
<p>Finally, the day ended on a bracing and sobering note with a keynote speech from Micky Metts, a prominent free software activist and member of the Agaric Design Collective, the MayFirst.org leadership committee, and Drupal. In her speech "How can we prevent the Orwellian <em>1984</em> digital world?", Micky talked about what's truly at stake if we fail in our efforts to make all software free: corporate technological entities already are intruding into our private lives in some truly terrifying ways, and the situation will only get worse if our movement doesn't grow and change for the better. Ultimately, free software must form the foundation of a movement to regain our personal power. </p>
<p><img src="media/10eff816.LibrePlanet_3.24.2019_11.jpg" data-original-source="https://static.fsf.org/nosvn/libreplanet/2019/photos/sunday/LibrePlanet_3.24.2019_11.jpg" alt="LibrePlanet volunteer captain Matt Lavallee posed in front of a staircase with a large group of LibrePlanet volunteers in matching purple LibrePlanet shirts" style="float: left; height: 300px; margin: 10px 10px 10px 0px;" /> </p>
<p>Over 289 people participated in LibrePlanet 2019, which was powered by 53 amazing volunteers, who ensured that everything from video streaming to IRC chats went smoothly. We also gave away raffle prizes generously donated by Vikings GmBH, Technoethical, Aleph Objects, ThinkPenguin, JMP, Altus Metrum, LLC, and Aeronaut, and we're extremely grateful to our generous <a href="https://libreplanet.org/2019/sponsors/">sponsors</a>, including Red Hat and Private Internet Access. </p>
<p>Between Saturday and Sunday, there were 66 speakers and over 40 sessions. Videos will be posted soon at <a href="https://media.libreplanet.org">https://media.libreplanet.org</a>, so keep an eye out for announcements -- whether you were here in Cambridge, watched the livestream, or missed LibrePlanet entirely, there's so much more you'll want to see! And if you were at the conference, please fill out <a href="https://my.fsf.org/node/22">the feedback form</a>, so we can make next year's LibrePlanet even better.</p>
<p><em>Photo credits: Copyright © 2019 Free Software Foundation, by Madi Muhlberg, photos licensed
 under <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC-BY 4.0.</a></em></p>


feed_id: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/gnu-spotlight-with-mike-gerwitz-13-new-gnu-releases-1
title: GNU Spotlight with Mike Gerwitz: 13 new GNU releases!
uri: 2019-03-28-GNU-Spotlight-with-Mike-Gerwitz-13-new-GNU-releases
url: http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/gnu-spotlight-with-mike-gerwitz-13-new-gnu-releases-1
content:
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/coreutils/">coreutils-9.31</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/ddrescue/">ddrescue-1.24</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/dr-geo/">dr-geo-19.2</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/health/">gnuhealth-3.4.1</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/gnupg/">gnupg-2.2.15</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/help2man/">help2man-1.47.10</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/librejs/">librejs-7.19</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/linux-libre/">linux-libre-5.0-gnu</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/mit-scheme/">mit-scheme-10.1.6</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/nano/">nano-4.0</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/octave/">octave-5.1.0</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/parallel/">parallel-20190322</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/unifont/">unifont-12.0.01</a></li>
</ul>
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mailing list: <a href="https://lists.gnu.org/mailman/listinfo/info-gnu">https://lists.gnu.org/mailman/listinfo/info-gnu</a>.</p>
<p>To download: nearly all GNU software is available from
<a href="https://ftp.gnu.org/gnu/">https://ftp.gnu.org/gnu/</a>, or preferably one of its mirrors from
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(hopefully) nearby and up-to-date mirror.</p>
<p>A number of GNU packages, as well as the GNU operating system as a
whole, are looking for maintainers and other assistance: please see
<a href="https://www.gnu.org/server/takeaction.html#unmaint">https://www.gnu.org/server/takeaction.html#unmaint</a> if you'd like to
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<p>If you have a working or partly working program that you'd like
to offer to the GNU project as a GNU package, see
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<p>As always, please feel free to write to us at <a href="mailto:maintainers@gnu.org">&#109;&#97;&#105;&#110;&#116;&#97;&#105;&#110;&#101;&#114;&#115;&#64;&#103;&#110;&#117;&#46;&#111;&#114;&#103;</a>
with any GNUish questions or suggestions for future installments.</p>


