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NikolaosVolanisFirstPaper 10 - 04 Dec 2009 - Main.NikolaosVolanis
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ready for review | | | The aforementioned cases indicate that the state may influence the supply of hardware and software by commercial entities, by effectively asserting indirect control over the commercial entities themselves. A final and more recent example may be that of Google and its political/business interaction with the Chinese government: Google adopts the technology mandated by brute political force; Chinese governmental concerns about information over the net are fully addressed (since they are embedded in computer code) and Google can access and profit from the Chinese market. It takes a couple of golden handshakes and historical or current politically sensitive issues like “Tiananmen Protests” or “Tibetan independence” are seamlessly purged from the Google search results. A similar story took place with Yahoo! in 2002, whereas Microsoft's Bing it the most recent example search engine that respectfully bowed down before Party propaganda. | |
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< | E. In this context, communications software and hardware acquires a meaning that surpasses the field of engineering. It becomes a form of control and thus a focus of political contest and choice (p. 28). And in such political contest, free software (“free as in free speech”) acquires its full potential
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> | E. In this context, communications software and hardware acquires a meaning that surpasses the field of engineering. It becomes a form of control and thus a focus of political contest and choice (p. 28). And in such political contest, free software (“free as in free speech”) acquires its full potential. In contrast to the top-down ("cathedral") model of organisational structure and production, where directives are set by the top and followed incontestably, the process behind free software production resembles more a "great babbling bazaar of different agendas and approaches", where authority follows and derives from responsibility and participation: the more an individual contributes to a project and takes responsibility for the pieces of software, the more decision authority that individual is granted by the community. This Aristotelian context of participation (in which the latter is perceived as a manifestation and reward of the highest virtue, underlines both the open source software production process and participatory democracy). | | |
# * Set ALLOWTOPICVIEW = TWikiAdminGroup, NikolaosVolanis | | | I enjoyed your essay. I agree that in the context you describe the tools of communication "surpass[] the field of engineering," and I also agree that the power of free software in such a domain, especially in light of governmental influence (as you describe), is significant. My only suggestion would be to consider drawing out E. just a bit more. Your discussion of C+D in light of A+B does a good job of painting a picture of the current situation, and in doing so your essay clearly conveys the dangers of the status quo. While I follow what you mean in E. and how you see it as a possible remedy, it would be helpful to add a sentence or two explaining it further. Otherwise, I appreciated the detailed links and careful historical discussion. I think the essay is nicely done.
-- BrianS - 03 Dec 2009 | |
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Thanks for your comment, Brian. I followed your advice, trying to stay within the word limit. I agree with you, point E. deserves more analysis than that found in this ending paragraph.
-- NikolaosVolanis - 04 Dec 2009 | | | |
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