OSWALD Newsletter Archives (by issue #, click to view)
The Open Source Law Weekly Digest or OSWALD first launched late in 2002. Since then it has been regularly providing updates on all things open source related. The focus of this newsletter is on business, rather than technical developments in open source. Another strong component of the newsletter is IP news, as it is of interest to me and has an effect on open source.
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OSWALD #374 Period ending 7 September 2010
Welcome to the Open Source Law Weekly Open Source Digest (OSWALD)
News this week that the H.264 people are indian giving with a free licence over one part of a video lifecycle. The Samsung Galaxy has also attracted a lot of attention. Also an nightful article by Bradley Kuhn on the Java palaver.
>From my blog: http://brendanscott.wordpress.com/2010/07/01/example-copyright-damages-australian-industry/
http://brendanscott.wordpress.com/2010/06/08/creative-commons-australia-v3-0-licences-go-live/
http://brendanscott.wordpress.com/2010/06/01/iinet-and-the-sinking-of-the-nbn/
http://brendanscott.wordpress.com/2010/05/19/words-in-copyright-act-vs-time/
Verbatim distribution with attribution ok.
Other distribution - email me.
Regards
Brendan
Brendan Scott
Open Source Law
***** Off Topic
Future Shock: Your House Is in an Arcade Fire Video http://www.thewrap.com/media/article/future-shock-your-house-arcade-fire-video-20518
The web technology behind the video uses Google Earth's overhead and street-level images, which are color-corrected so they appear seamless with the rest of the footage.
***** Government/Policy
Considerations For FLOSS Hackers About Oracle vs. Google http://ebb.org/bkuhn/blog/2010/08/16/oracle-google.html
Fourteen months ago, before the Oracle purchase of Sun, I wrote about the specific danger of language infrastructure developed by a single for-profit patent-holding entity (when such infrastructure is less than 20 years old).
***** Patent/CR/DRM News+Policy
Hold The Celebrations; H.264 Is Not The Sort Of Free That Matters http://blogs.computerworlduk.com/simon-says/2010/08/hold-the-h264-celebrations/index.htm
First, the H. 264-format video needs to be created - but that isn't free under this move. Then it needs to be served up for streaming - but that isn't free under this move. There then needs to be support for decoding it in your browser - but adding that isn't free under this move. Finally it needs to be displayed on your screen.
Patent troll or not, Paul Allen finds a friend in Steve Wozniak http://www.techflash.com/seattle/2010/08/woz_backs_patent_troll_paul_allen_for_standing_up_for_inventors.html
http://blogs.computerworlduk.com/open-enterprise/2010/08/what-larry-ellison-and-paul-allen-have-in-common/
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703369704575461964181065980.html
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-09-01/paul-allen-s-dog-ate-his-suit-against-apple-yahoo-ann-woolner.html
Asked about the lawsuit during a video interview with Bloomberg News, Wozniak says he's "not at all against the idea of patent trolls," and he believes Allen's suit represents the fact that inventors have rights under the U. S. patent system.
Microsoft Patents Operating System Shutdown http://www.conceivablytech.com/2530/products/microsoft-patents-operating-system-shutdown/
Microsoft just received confirmation of a patent that hands the company the intellectual property of shutting an operating system down.
Trade groups: policing our digital copyrights is just too hard http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/news/2010/08/trade-groups-policing-our-digital-copyrights-is-just-too-hard.ars
Eagles drummer and singer Don Henley has a world of trouble on his mind, and he hopes that Congress will lighten his load. . . by gutting the best part of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA).
Secretary Locke Meets with Music Industry Reps in Nashville to Discuss Piracy & IP Protecti http://www.commerce.gov/blog/2010/08/30/secretary-locke-meets-music-industry-representatives-nashville-discuss-piracy-and-gl
With the advent of the Internet and file-sharing technologies, consumers are spending less on recorded music in all formats, and total revenues for recorded music in the U. S. have dropped from a high of $14. 6 billion in 1999 to $7. 7 billion in 2008.
Second Newspaper Chain Joins Copyright Trolling Operation http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2010/08/copyright-troll-expanding/
The Electronic Frontier Foundation has received "several dozen" inquiries from Righthaven defendants seeking legal representation, said Eva Galperin, the EFF's referral coordinator. "We're up to our armpits in Righthaven defendants," she said in a telephone interview.
New Breed of Patent Claim Bedevils Product Makers http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703467004575463843289453872.html
Mr. Stauffer, who calls himself a "sharp-dressed man," also happens to be a patent lawyer. He sued Brooks Brothers Inc. in federal court, claiming it broke the law by marking its adjustable bow ties with patents that expired in the 1950s.
***** Applications/Gadgets
Samsung's Android-Based Galaxy S Eclipses 1M Shipments http://www.enterprisemobiletoday.com/news/article.php/3901196/Samsungs-Android-Based-Galaxy-S-Eclipses-1M-Shipments.htm
http://www.linuxfordevices.com/c/a/News/Samsung-Galaxy-Tab-announced
http://edition.cnn.com/2010/TECH/gaming.gadgets/09/02/cnet.samsung.galaxy.tab/index.html
Samsung Electronics this week confirmed that it has shipped more than 1 million of its Galaxy S smartphones since the line debuted in mid-July, an impressive debut that indicates Android-based devices pose a serious threat to both Apple and Research In Motion in the hotly contested and extremely profitable smartphone market.
Customizable Linux tablet features 10.1-inch multitouch display http://www.linuxfordevices.com/c/a/News/RealEase-Shogo-Tablet/
Aside from its rather modest ARM11 processor, the device appears to stack up well against other high-end tablets, especially among non-Android Linux models. While Redstar launches retail sales for the device, RealEase appears to be offering the tablet primarily to OEM firms.
ViewSonic ViewPad 7 Android Tablet announced http://www.linuxuser.co.uk/news/viewsonic-viewpad-7-android-tablet-announced/
http://www.enterprisemobiletoday.com/news/article.php/3901341/Dual-boot-Android-Tablet-Confirmed-Samsung-Tab-Coming-on-V
ViewSonic have today announced the ViewPad 7, the world's first 7'' Android tablet with phone capability.
Froyo Five-pack of Android Tablets from Archos http://www.enterprisemobiletoday.com/features/hardware/article.php/3901591/Froyo-Five-pack-of-Android-Tablets-from-Archo
Archos today introduced five Android-powered tablets, two due out this month and three later in the fall, ranging in price from $100 to $349, all shipping with Android 2. 2.
Solar-powered OpenBTS systems costs pennies a day and operates in the farthest outreaches http://www.networkworld.com/news/2010/083010-open-source-voip-cell-phones-at-burning-man.html?hpg1=bn
A full-power base station with software costs around $10,000. Compare that to the typical $50,000 - $100,000 investment for base station controllers, mobile switching centers and "a whole lot of plumbing" to bring in power, backhaul, etc. , in a traditional cellular network.
Strong early sales of $140 Android tablet surprise retailer http://www.linuxfordevices.com/c/a/News/LightInTheBoxcom-aPad-Android-Tablet/
Beijing-based international online reseller LightInTheBox. com announced it has had two months of surprisingly strong sales of a seven-inch, $140 Android tablet.
***** Reports
Should Open Source Communities Avoid Contributor Agreements? http://blogs.computerworlduk.com/simon-says/2010/08/on-contributor-agreements/index.htm
http://webmink.com/2010/09/01/copyright-aggregation/?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter
Contributor agreements that aggregate the copyrights of open source code in favour of a single corporate sponsor are a sure sign of a community where one member has more rights than the rest. And equality is the key to success.
Hey, Android People, Is It True That The All-In Cost Of Android Is Much Higher Than $15 Per Unit? http://www.businessinsider.com/android-costs
http://www.enterprisemobiletoday.com/news/article.php/3901736/Microsoft-Argues-That-Android-Isnt-Free.htm
Well, a person familiar with Microsoft's mobile strategy immediately squawked, arguing that Android comes with all sort of hidden costs that drive up the per-unit expenses such that Microsoft's $15 per unit actually seemed like a better deal.
Android: the return of the Unix wars? http://lwn.net/Articles/401527/
The first of those, quite simply, is that Android is still not run like a free software project. Work is done behind closed doors at Google, with the code being "dropped" into the public repository on occasion. It is not uncommon for the code to show up some time after the software starts shipping on handsets. Outsiders have little visibility into what is going on and little say over the direction of Android development; there is no easy way (or incentive) for them to contribute back.
Google sticks Wave in a box, puts a bow on top http://arstechnica.com/web/news/2010/09/google-sticks-wave-source-in-a-box-sticks-a-bow-on-top.ars
Wave will work (or not work, depending on how you look at it) as it always has, but with the new app, developers can run their own wave servers and host waves from their own machines.
***** Snippets
Operating System Support: How Long Does Yours Last? http://itmanagement.earthweb.com/features/article.php/3901031/Operating-System-Support-How-Long-Does-Yours-Last.htm
CouchDB - The Open Source NoSQL Database http://www.databasejournal.com/features/article.php/3900156/CouchDB---The-Open-Source-NoSQL-Database.htm
Canonical's X Gesture Extension Being Re-Evaluated http://www.phoronix.com/scan.php?page=news_item&px=ODU1MQ
There IS a Linux for you. http://it.toolbox.com/blogs/locutus/there-is-a-linux-for-you-40908
VMware should buy Novell http://blogs.computerworld.com/16847/vmware_should_buy_novell
General Hugh Shelton Elected Chairman of Red Hat Board of Directors http://www.redhat.com/about/news/prarchive/2010/shelton.html
Why Microsoft is Being Nicer to Open Source http://www.itworld.com/open-source/119054/why-microsoft-being-nice-open-source
Five Reasons Linux Beats Windows for Servers http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/article/204423/five_reasons_linux_beats_windows_for_servers.html
The People Who Support Linux: It's a Family Affair http://www.linux.com/news/featured-blogs/185-jennifer-cloer/354855-the-people-who-support-linux-its-a-family-affair
Novell Disappoints as Ownership Concerns Continue http://itmanagement.earthweb.com/osrc/article.php/3900991
OpenOffice saves a company budget http://blogs.techrepublic.com.com/opensource/?p=1778
Corporate America's Cruel Linux Hoax http://www.linuxinsider.com/story/70724.html
Are these Developer and IT Salaries Believable? http://itmanagement.earthweb.com/features/article.php/3901151/Are-these-Developer-and-IT-Salaries-Believable.htm
The Last Temptation of the Linux Application Developer http://www.itworld.com/open-source/118924/the-last-temptation-linux-application-developer
Motorola Rolls Out Three New Smartphones in China http://www.enterprisemobiletoday.com/news/article.php/3901426/Motorola-Rolls-Out-Three-New-Smartphones-in-China.htm
Torvalds Causes Mob Scene at LinuxCon Brazil http://www.linux.com/news/featured-blogs/185-jennifer-cloer/356920-torvalds-causes-mob-scene-at-linuxcon-brazil
Photography with Open Source and Linux http://blog.worldlabel.com/2010/photography-with-open-source-linux.html
Unigine Announces Its OilRush Game For Linux http://www.phoronix.com/scan.php?page=article&item=unigine_oilrush_game&num=1
Startup Offers Angry FB Users an Alternative http://www.internetevolution.com/author.asp?section_id=1047&doc_id=196318&
7 Providers of Pre Installed Linux Laptops/PCs http://www.techdrivein.com/2010/09/7-providers-of-pre-installed-linux.html
A story about updates and people http://mairin.wordpress.com/2010/09/01/a-story-about-updates-and-people/
Comment: The hype is over http://www.h-online.com/open/features/Comment-The-hype-is-over-1070147.html
Oracle offers student coders free access to JavaOne http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9183219/Oracle_offers_student_coders_free_access_to_JavaOne?taxonomyId=11
Valve is Looking For Someone Who Can "Port Windows Games to Linux" http://www.techdrivein.com/2010/09/valve-is-looking-for-someone-who-can.html
SCO gets more time to file appeal brief regarding its loss to Novell http://www.groklaw.net/article.php?story=20100901013538161
The People Who Support Linux: At Work and at Home http://www.linux.com/news/featured-blogs/185-jennifer-cloer/357528-the-people-who-support-linux-at-work-and-at-home
Does the Fate of OpenSolaris Tell Us Where Unix Is Headed? http://www.enterprisenetworkingplanet.com/linux_unix/article.php/3901946
CodeWeavers open invitation to Wine-Doors and other closed projects users http://wine-reviews.net/wine-reviews/news/codeweavers-open-invitation-to-wine-doors-and-other-closed-projects-users.html
Finally We Get to Read the Mobility Assets Sale Agreement with Darl McBride http://www.groklaw.net/article.php?story=2010090209355689
Linux: A Double Edged Sword for Open Source http://www.networkworld.com/community/blog/linux-double-edged-sword-open-source
WeTab is based on MeeGo http://www.h-online.com/open/news/item/WeTab-is-based-on-MeeGo-1071957.html
Beleaguered Novell Buoyed by VMware Linux Deal http://www.eweek.com/c/a/Linux-and-Open-Source/Beleaguered-Novell-Buoyed-by-VMware-Linux-Deal-394411/?kc=rss&utm_source=
Open Source: No one is working for free http://www.networkworld.com/community/blog/open-source-no-one-working-free
Amnesia: The Dark Descent Demo Released! http://linuxgamingnews.org/2010/09/03/amnesia-the-dark-descent-demo-released/
Are You Intimidated By Breakfast Cereal? http://broadcast.oreilly.com/2010/09/are-you-intimidated-by-breakfa.html
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