Earlier quoted context omitted.
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jesus dude get a grip
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New Hampshire on the cusp of enshrining software freedom into law
61–70 of 111 posts
Re: New Hampshire on the cusp of enshrining software freedom into law
#62As the state whose official motto is "live free or die", this might be the only place in the US where things like this may get noticed.
That said, given how I've been mainly on the Windows side for the past decades and that hasn't stopped me from learning or being in control (although that is increasingly being taken away by the excuse of "security"), maybe enshrining the right to reverse-engineer and modify proprietary software is more important.
Ironically, the Libreboot logo is remarkably reminiscent of John Deere's.
Re: New Hampshire on the cusp of enshrining software freedom into law
#63Calling this “libre software” instead of “free software” seems very self-serving > You can’t become a competent programmer by using Windows or MacOS. Linux or BSD are your only real choice, because that’s where all the interesting development happens. uh excuse me?
He's not wrong. Certainly when it comes to the full scope of being a programmer, Linux and BSD are your only real options. You can't easily add a new filesystem or screw with the kernel on macOS/windows without having to buy hundreds of dollars worth of their books and attend conferences. There isn't really any good detailed up to date documentation online about either. The docs for linux/bsd aren't perfect either bu…
You can't easily add a new filesystem or screw with the kernel on macOS/windows without having to buy hundreds of dollars worth of their books and attend conferences.
There isn't really any good detailed up to date documentation online about either.
That's not true, at least for Windows. MS has published a lot of docs on their site, e.g.:
https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-hardware/drivers/i...
What does get in the way with newer versions of Windows is driver signing, but that's not a huge obstacle.
Re: New Hampshire on the cusp of enshrining software freedom into law
#64Programmers have got to be the stupidest profession with regard to money. Every single profession, be they doctors, lawyers, actors, artists, tries to increase the value of their work. Programmers go out of their way to devalue the result of their work (software), with the result that the main ways to make money from software is either to use it to power ads, use it to power commerce (Amazon), or use it to power hard…
The purpose of a profession is to add useful value to the world not to extract as much value from it and give as little as possible. People don't need "software" they need services and products that in turn are enabled by software which is why in general why the production of software is highly paid.
Re: New Hampshire on the cusp of enshrining software freedom into law
#65Was a NH resident for years (recent ones, even). Can't think of a single time I had to interact with a state agency that required proprietary software. It would stand out if I had. The closest I can even think of is if they're using Zoom for remote hearings? Never had to have a hearing about anything. This seems like a solution in search of a problem.
>The closest I can even think of is if they're using Zoom for remote hearings?
As a Linux user, I don't even have a problem with this personally. Zoom is a free download, or you can use it in a browser (the native application works a lot better though). It may not be FOSS, but it doesn't keep me from using Linux, or require me to pay anything to attend a meeting. The FOSS alternatives to Zoom honestly are not good, especially if you're dealing with some kind of meeting with dozens or hundreds of participants. Even MS Teams works OK for Linux users; you just use it in a browser window.
With so much stuff working in browsers these days, OS choice just isn't the problem it used to be 15-20 years ago. The only thing I can think of offhand where I had a problem was with a fillable PDF form I had to use for work a year or two ago: only actual Adobe software would work. I ended up having to use Wine, and even then had a lot of trouble.
Re: New Hampshire on the cusp of enshrining software freedom into law
#66A hearing for a bill will take place in New Hampshire on February 16th, 2023, for a bill that, if passed, will require state agencies to accommodate libre software users in public-facing applications, so that people do not have to use proprietary software to access state services on the internet. Your help is needed. More information is available in the linked article.
>Your help is needed. With all due respect, speaking as someone not in New Hampshire, your (and the article's) request to me and others like myself is a subversion of democracy. This New Hampshire state bill is being deliberated in the New Hampshire state legislature, to be eventually voted on by New Hampshire state legislators voted in by and representing the people of the state of New Hampshire. As a strictly state…
It's not asking us to falsify votes or commit fraud or anything, just asking for people to sing the virtues of this approach.
As an analogy, say Colorado passed a law that New Hampshire is also considering passing. In that case would you consider it interference for people from Colorado to speak in New Hampshire saying "You guys shouldn't pass this, it worked out poorly for us in Colorado"?
Re: New Hampshire on the cusp of enshrining software freedom into law
#67Earlier quoted context omitted.
I'm not sure of New Hampshire's stage agencies, but the most common problem I've experiences interacting with government agencies is PDFs. The format is fairly well-designed to be easy to read so many libre software alternatives can view PDFs, but forms are another story. If a PDF form hasn't been tested in libre readers, it would be unwise to assume that it works in libre readers (or even some proprietary readers).…
The problem is new style PDF forms implemented with JS. Old style PDF forms should be handled by open source readers.
Truly had no idea there was JS in PDF forms now. Wild.
Re: New Hampshire on the cusp of enshrining software freedom into law
#68Earlier quoted context omitted.
I read the article, but didn’t see a list of the proprietary software that’s required to interact with New Hampshirite state agencies. Are there examples of this problem?
I'm not sure of New Hampshire's stage agencies, but the most common problem I've experiences interacting with government agencies is PDFs. The format is fairly well-designed to be easy to read so many libre software alternatives can view PDFs, but forms are another story. If a PDF form hasn't been tested in libre readers, it would be unwise to assume that it works in libre readers (or even some proprietary readers).…
That hadn't even occurred to me, thank you!
Re: New Hampshire on the cusp of enshrining software freedom into law
#69This feels like a case that I really need an article explaining this not from their prospective. On here https://libreboot.org/news/usa-libre.html one of the examples given: "Bans state agencies from using proprietary software - maybe this could include schools, in the future!" "Bans state agencies from purchasing proprietary software if libre software exists, for a given task" That seems... excessive and way to heav…
Requiring people to use any particular software is bad. The government wanting to use libre software and passing a bill saying that it shall use libre software is not that.
How is it not given those 2 quotes?
This sounds like it is requiring the use libra software even if the alternative is superior.
Re: New Hampshire on the cusp of enshrining software freedom into law
#70> … alongside the rest of humanity in a collective development effort, as opposed to the alternative where we would be restricted by companies like Microsoft or Apple, who only care about controlling us to make money. I was optimistic until I read this sentence. So, does this bill mean that products like MS Office can’t be used in schools because it would force students to use proprietary software? Is it just targeti…
>So, does this bill mean that products like MS Office can’t be used in schools because it would force students to use proprietary software? Is it just targeting websites that use extensions that are only usable in a certain browser? Wouldn't that be sensible though? If the software is gratis and FOSS, then all the children can use it in whatever context they want. This is not true for MacOS or Windows. People may not…
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