= Heiki Lõhmus takes over FSFE vice-presidency from Alessandro Rubini =
[ Read online: https://fsfe.org/news/2016/news-20161031-01.nl.html ]
Alessandro Rubini has stepped down as Vice-president of the FSFE.
Alessandro, an electronic engineer with Ph. D. in a computer science,
brought invaluable insight to the internal discussions within the FSFE
and has worked tirelessly to push the Free Software envelope in Italy
and the rest of Europe.
Alessandro has left the vice-presidency to concentrate on his work with
the Free Software community in Italy, but he remains an active member of
the FSFE and continues contributing his time generously to the
organisation.
Taking over from Alessandro is Heiki Lõhmus, a student of aeronautical
engineering from Estonia. Heiki started collaborating with the FSFE when
he "discovered some Estonian-language gibberish on fsfe.org purporting
to be a translation of an English original, which it definitely was
not". He quickly became involved in the translation process and became
the translation coordinator.
He also represented the FSFE community in its board from 2013 to 2015.
During his time in the post, he managed the transition to a new way of
valuing contributions, ensuring volunteers and paying members of the
organisation enjoy the same benefits for their contributions.
Beyond his work at the FSFE, Heiki has actively lobbied the Estonian
government to publish the software used for the Estonian elections as
Free Software. "Estonia is the only country in the world where it is
possible to vote over the Internet" says Heiki, and relying on
proprietary software to do so is a security risk and does not inspire
much trust. Heiki works along with other activists to get the software
published under a free license.
Heiki is an enthusiastic member of the FSFE and we are sure he will
carry on Alessandro's excellent work.
--
Free Software Foundation Europe <https://fsfe.org>
FSFE News <https://fsfe.org/news/news.en.rss>
Upcoming FSFE Events <https://fsfe.org/events/events.en.rss>
Fellowship Blog Aggregation <https://planet.fsfe.org/en/rss20.xml>
Free Software Discussions <https://fsfe.org/contact/community.en.html>
== About the Free Software Foundation Europe ==
Free Software Foundation Europe is a charity that empowers users to
control technology. Software is deeply involved in all aspects of our
lives; and it is important that this technology empowers rather than
restricts us. Free Software gives everybody the rights to use,
understand, adapt and share software. These rights help support other
fundamental freedoms like freedom of speech, press and privacy.
The FSFE helps individuals and organisations to understand how Free
Software contributes to freedom, transparency, and self-determination.
It enhances users' rights by abolishing barriers to Free Software
adoption, encourage people to use and develop Free Software, and
provide resources to enable everyone to further promote Free Software
in Europe.
http://fsfe.org/
= Julia Reda, MEP: "Proprietary Software threatens Democracy" =
[ Read online: https://fsfe.org/news/2016/news-20160907-01.nl.html ]
Julia Reda ended the QtCon, a conference for the Free Software
community, with a closing keynote on, among other things, Free Software
in the European Public Sector.
Ms Reda, a member of the EU Parliament for the Pirate Party, explained
how proprietary software, software that forbids users from studying and
modifying it, has often left regulators in the dark, becoming a
liability for and often a threat to the well-being and health of
citizens.
An example of this, she said, is the recent Dieselgate scandal, in which
auto-mobile manufacturers installed software that cheated instruments
that measured fumes in test environments, only to spew illegal amounts
of toxic exhaust into the atmosphere the moment they went on the road.
Ms Reda also explained how medical devices running proprietary software
posed a health hazard for patients. She gave the example of a woman with
a pacemaker who collapsed while climbing some stairs due to a bug in her
device. Doctors and technicians had no way of diagnosing and correcting
the problem as they did not have access to the code.
Also worrying is the threat software with restrictive licenses pose to
democracy itself. The trend of substituting traditional voting ballots
with voting machines is especially worrying, because, as these machines
are not considered a threat to national security, their software also
goes unaudited and is, in fact, unauditable in most cases.
And, although voting machines are built and programmed by private
companies, they are commissioned by public entities and paid for with
public money, money taken from citizens' taxes. However, there are no
universal EU regulations that force companies, or, indeed, public
organisations, to make the source code available to the citizens that
have paid for it, said Ms Reda.
Furthermore, she noted that, despite the fact Free Software technologies
(web servers, CMSs, email servers, and so on) are used extensively
throughout the public administration, the public sector assumes very
little responsibility in the way of giving back to the community via
patches or even bug reports.
Ms Reda said that the solution to this very dismal state of affairs is a
multi-pronged one. She commended the Free Software Foundation Europe for
its work in advocating for all software commissioned by public entities
and paid with public money, be made available under free/libre licenses
for everyone. She also noted that to get governments on the side of Free
Software it is essential to make them see its merits.
Only like this, she said, would it be possible to make legislators
regulate coherently in favour of free/libre technologies.
--
Free Software Foundation Europe <https://fsfe.org>
FSFE News <https://fsfe.org/news/news.en.rss>
Upcoming FSFE Events <https://fsfe.org/events/events.en.rss>
Fellowship Blog Aggregation <https://planet.fsfe.org/en/rss20.xml>
Free Software Discussions <https://fsfe.org/contact/community.en.html>
== About the Free Software Foundation Europe ==
Free Software Foundation Europe is a charity that empowers users to
control technology. Software is deeply involved in all aspects of our
lives; and it is important that this technology empowers rather than
restricts us. Free Software gives everybody the rights to use,
understand, adapt and share software. These rights help support other
fundamental freedoms like freedom of speech, press and privacy.
The FSFE helps individuals and organisations to understand how Free
Software contributes to freedom, transparency, and self-determination.
It enhances users' rights by abolishing barriers to Free Software
adoption, encourage people to use and develop Free Software, and
provide resources to enable everyone to further promote Free Software
in Europe.
http://fsfe.org/
= De Document Foundation en de FSFE versterken hun relatie =
[ Read online: https://fsfe.org/news/2016/news-20160817-01.nl.html ]
De Free Software Foundation (FSFE) neemt deel aan de adviesraad van de
Document Foundation[1]. Tegelijkertijd wordt de Document Foundation een
partnerorganisatie van de FSFE[2].
Het doel van de Free Software Foundation Europe is om mensen te helpen
om technologie te controleren in plaats van andersom. Dit is echter geen
doel dat een enkele organisatie alleen kan bereiken. Partnerorganisaties
zijn entiteiten die de visie van de FSFE delen en de stichting en Vrije
Software in het algemeen steunen door mensen aan te moedigen om Vrije
Software te gebruiken en te ontwikkelen, door organisaties te helpen te
begrijpen hoe Vrije Software bijdraagt aan vrijheid, transparantie en
zelfbeschikking, en door barrières tegen het gebruik van Vrije Software
neer te halen.
Met deze gezamenlijke uiting van steun versterken beide organisaties
elkaar in hun strijd om het algemene publiek in de technologische
bestuurdersstoel te houden. De FSFE belichaamt de principes van de
gemeenschap die in beweging is door te werken aan het gebruik van Vrije
Software binnen bedrijven en overheden en voor privépersonen; de
Document Foundation maakt op basis van principes en ethiek
daadwerkelijke producten en legt zo een eersteklas maar geheel vrij
productiviteitspakket met volledige mogelijkheden in de handen van
gebruikers.
"We zijn blij om de Free Software Foundation Europe te mogen verwelkomen
als lid van onze adviesraad. Samen zullen we in staat zijn om het
gebruik van Vrije Software binnen overheden en bedrijven in Europa
verder te ontwikkelen", zei Eike Rathke, een directeur van de Document
Foundation[3] en hacker die al lang Vrije Software verdedigt.
"We geloven dat het belangrijk is om samen te werken met alle
organisaties die in Europa actief zijn in Vrije Software", zei Matthias
Kirschner[4], voorzitter van Free Software Foundation Europe, "en om
samen te werken om onze gezamenlijke doelen te bereiken. Met onze
partnerorganisaties willen we laten zien dat we een sterke en
samenhangende beweging zijn en dat we eraan werken om gezamenlijke
doelen te bereiken. Daarom wisselen we ideeën uit, coördineren we
inspanningen, motiveren we elkaar en vinden we mogelijkheden om samen te
werken aan specifieke projecten. Dit is het geval met de Document
Foundation, beheerder van één van de meest succesvolle Vrije
Softwareprojecten: LibreOffice".
--
Free Software Foundation Europe <https://fsfe.org>
FSFE News <https://fsfe.org/news/news.en.rss>
Upcoming FSFE Events <https://fsfe.org/events/events.en.rss>
Fellowship Blog Aggregation <https://planet.fsfe.org/en/rss20.xml>
Free Software Discussions <https://fsfe.org/contact/community.en.html>
1. https://www.documentfoundation.org/governance/advisory-board/
2. https://fsfe.org/associates/associates.nl.html
3. https://www.documentfoundation.org/governance/board/
4. https://fsfe.org/about/kirschner/kirschner.nl.html
== About the Free Software Foundation Europe ==
The Free Software Foundation Europe (FSFE) is a non-profit
non-governmental organisation active in many European countries and
involved in many global activities. Access to software determines
participation in a digital society. To secure equal participation in
the information age, as well as freedom of competition, the Free
Software Foundation Europe (FSFE) pursues and is dedicated to the
furthering of Free Software, defined by the freedoms to use, study,
modify and copy. Founded in 2001, creating awareness for these issues,
securing Free Software politically and legally, and giving people
Freedom by supporting development of Free Software are central issues
of the FSFE.
http://fsfe.org/
= Free Software Foundation Europe Top 2016 – Geen technologieconferentie =
[ Read online: https://fsfe.org/news/2016/news-20160804-01.nl.html ]
Voorstanders van Vrije Software uit heel Europa zullen elkaar van 2 tot
4 september ontmoeten in Berlijn op de FSFE-top 2016. Naast het werken
aan het verder aannemen van Vrije Software in Europa zullen we ook
FSFE's vijftiende verjaardag vieren.
Een van de belangrijkste missies van de Vrije Softwaregemeenschap in het
algemeen en de FSFE in het bijzonder is het om gebruikers terug in de
bestuurdersstoel te plaatsen en de mensen de controle over technologie
te laten hebben en niet andersom.
Dus hoewel deze conferentie het woord "software" in haar naam heeft, is
dit geen technologieconferentie 1[1] als zodanig. Het is meer een
conferentie over hoe we de technologiewereld gaan vormen, sterker nog,
hoe gaan we de levens van computer-, smartphone- en internetgebruikers
overal proberen te vormen?
Dit mag overkomen als een verheven doel, maar tijdens de 15 jaar van
haar bestaan is de FSFE instrumenteel geweest in een succesvolle
antitrustzaak tegen een groot softwarebedrijf[2] dat van plan was om de
markt van thuiscomputers te domineren; we hebben het klaargespeeld om
software in Europa vrij te te houden van patenteerbaarheid[3], waarbij
een werkelijke apocalyps voor kleine en middelgrote technologiebedrijven
kon worden voorkomen; en we hebben aan de kant van gpl-violations.org
gewerkt om vrije licenties in werking te laten treden in Duitse
gerechtshoven[4], waarmee we een grensverleggend precedent voor de hele
EU hebben geschapen.
Het zou geen overdrijving zijn om te zeggen dat de FSFE de funderingen
van IT heeft getransformeerd en dat we een diepe, positieve invloed
hebben gehad op iedereen die het afgelopen decennium voor een computer
heeft gezeten, een telefoon heeft gebruikt of met een tablet heeft
gespeeld.
Ieder jaar groeien het aantal leden en de invloed van onze gemeenschap.
We bereiken niet alleen ontwikkelaars, maar ook academici, liefhebbers,
advocaten, artiesten, mensen die beroepshalve aan marketing doen,
zakenmensen en journalisten.
Dus als u onze vorige evenementen hebt gemist dan zouden we u willen
uitnodigen om aanwezig te zijn bij de FSFE Top 2016[5]. We kijken ernaar
uit om u te verwelkomen en staan tot uw beschikking bij het helpen
organiseren van uw bezoek aan ons evenement.
Als deel van onze bewustmakingscampagne voorafgaand aan het evenement
mobiliseren we ook onze gemeenschap in uw regio. Als u wilt praten met
de mensen van de lokale en nationale teams in uw land, regio of stad
zodat u kan zien hoe zij een verschil hebben gemaakt, neem dan contact
met ons op zodat wij u kunnen helpen om met hen in contact te komen.
1. Als u ook geïnteresseerd bent in zeer vooruitstrevende geavanceerde
technologie-ontwikkeling: de FSFE-top zal plaatsvinden als deel van
QtCon[6]. Dit evenement brengt ontwikkelaars samen uit verschillende
Vrije Softwaregemeenschappen die hard werken aan het hervormen van
mensgerichte interfaces. Als lid van de pers zal u ook gratis toegang
hebben tot de hele QtCon. ↩[7]
--
Free Software Foundation Europe <https://fsfe.org>
FSFE News <https://fsfe.org/news/news.en.rss>
Upcoming FSFE Events <https://fsfe.org/events/events.en.rss>
Fellowship Blog Aggregation <https://planet.fsfe.org/en/rss20.xml>
Free Software Discussions <https://fsfe.org/contact/community.en.html>
1. https://fsfe.org/#fn1
2. https://fsfe.org/activities/ms-vs-eu/ms-vs-eu.nl.html
3. https://fsfe.org/campaigns/swpat/swpat.nl.html
4. https://fsfe.org/activities/ftf/activities.nl.html
5. https://fsfe.org/community/events/2016/summit/frontpage.en.html
6. https://qtcon.org/
7. https://fsfe.org/#fnref1
== About the Free Software Foundation Europe ==
The Free Software Foundation Europe (FSFE) is a non-profit
non-governmental organisation active in many European countries and
involved in many global activities. Access to software determines
participation in a digital society. To secure equal participation in
the information age, as well as freedom of competition, the Free
Software Foundation Europe (FSFE) pursues and is dedicated to the
furthering of Free Software, defined by the freedoms to use, study,
modify and copy. Founded in 2001, creating awareness for these issues,
securing Free Software politically and legally, and giving people
Freedom by supporting development of Free Software are central issues
of the FSFE.
http://fsfe.org/
= Compulsory Routers: what customers have to take care of now =
[ Read online: https://fsfe.org/news/2016/news-20160725-01.nl.html ]
Up until now, Internet service providers (ISPs) in Germany determined
the router users had to use to connect to the Internet. The user had no
say in this decision. This changes on August 1. A new law will allow
users choose the device that gets installed in their homes. The FSFE
wants to ensure everybody knows about their new rights and is asking
users to report cases in which ISPs try to avoid the new regulation.
"Compulsory Routers" are what we call the devices imposed on users,
forbidding them from using any other appliance to access the Internet.
Compulsory routers are often the subject of critical security flaws
which users can't legally or technically fix themselves. They are also
known to be incompatible with certain network devices and standards,
like IPv6, or to support only a small number of important features.
However, the legal situation was ambiguous and ISPs defined the first
router or modem after the wall socket as part of their network. They
could thus bar users from controlling the technology installed within
their own homes, despite the fact that the users were even paying for
the electricity that run the devices.
The Free Software Foundation Europe took up the fight to outlaw
Compulsory Routers in 2013, and we have finally won a major landmark
victory[1]: from August 1 onwards, clients of German internet providers
are allowed by law to use any terminal device they choose. Regardless of
whether it is a DSL or cable connection, the ISP will have to supply the
information you need to connect an alternative router to use the
Internet and telephone network.
== Help us track the implementation ==
The law is very clear with regard to your new rights, but, based on past
behaviours of ISPs, the FSFE must assume many providers will ignore the
regulation and will continue to try and force their clients to use their
default router.
ISPs will probably make the argument that the law only applies to new
customers, or that a connection to the Internet with alternative devices
will be unstable, or denying support to clients with devices other than
the ones they provide.
We want to make sure that these misbehaviours are made public and we
need your help for that. If you are a client of a German internet
provider, we ask you exercise your new right and start using an
alternative device, ideally one that runs Free Software.
Once your new device is up and running, we need you to provide us with
feedback on whether you had any issues while running your new router. We
will collect this data and confront providers that are not in compliance
with the new law. We have also created a wiki page[2] where we report
information, testing procedures, results, and user experiences.
== Further information ==
For more information on Compulsory Routers and why they are bad, please
visit our campaign page[3]. Also see the timeline of the most important
events[4] related to this campaign. To contribute to this and other FSFE
campaigns that defend your freedom, you can support us with a
donation[5] or by becoming a sustaining member[6].
== FSFE Summit 2016 ==
If you're interested in knowing more about how Free Software helps
defend other important rights, we will be holding the FSFE yearly summit
at the beginning of September in Berlin[7]. Come along and discover how
you can also help return the control over technology to people.
--
Free Software Foundation Europe <https://fsfe.org>
FSFE News <https://fsfe.org/news/news.en.rss>
Upcoming FSFE Events <https://fsfe.org/events/events.en.rss>
Fellowship Blog Aggregation <https://planet.fsfe.org/en/rss20.xml>
Free Software Discussions <https://fsfe.org/contact/community.en.html>
1. https://fsfe.org/news/2015/news-20151105-01.nl.html
2. https://wiki.fsfe.org/Activities/CompulsoryRouters/Implementation/Germany
3. https://fsfe.org/activities/routers/index.nl.html
4. https://fsfe.org/activities/routers/timeline.nl.html
5. https://fsfe.org/donate/index.nl.html
6. https://fsfe.org/join
7. https://fsfe.org/summit16
== About the Free Software Foundation Europe ==
The Free Software Foundation Europe (FSFE) is a non-profit
non-governmental organisation active in many European countries and
involved in many global activities. Access to software determines
participation in a digital society. To secure equal participation in
the information age, as well as freedom of competition, the Free
Software Foundation Europe (FSFE) pursues and is dedicated to the
furthering of Free Software, defined by the freedoms to use, study,
modify and copy. Founded in 2001, creating awareness for these issues,
securing Free Software politically and legally, and giving people
Freedom by supporting development of Free Software are central issues
of the FSFE.
http://fsfe.org/
= Software Heritage initiative to create an archive of Free Software code =
[ Read online: https://fsfe.org/news/2016/news-20160629-01.nl.html ]
The Free Software Foundation Europe supports the creation of the
Software Heritage initiative, a platform for the distribution,
advancement, and, especially, long-term preservation and archiving of
Free Software code. The Software Heritage initiative collects and
collates vast amounts of free licensed code to protect it for future
generations.
The importance of software in the modern world cannot be overstated.
Software is at the crux of all contemporary technological development
and has become essential for all areas of scientific research. Software
plays a pivotal role in our daily lives, our industries and our society.
Software has become the reflection of our technological, scientific and
cultural progress.
However, software is prone to disappear, either because it stops being
profitable, or projects get cancelled, or the code is deemed obsolete
and gets erased, or is left to fade on storage that physically degrades
over time.
The Software Heritage[1] initiative is created and funded by Inria[2].
It collects programs, applications and snippets of code distributed
under free licenses from a wide variety of active and defunct sources,
its aim being to protect code from sinking into oblivion. The
distributed and redundant back-end hardens the system against a
potentially disastrous losses of data and guarantees its availability
for users.
Users can check if a certain file exists within the system and propose
new sources the Software Heritage engine can explore in search of more
code to store. Soon users will also be able to find out where the code
originated from using the Provenance information feature, browse the
stored code, run full-text searches on all files, and download the
content.
The Heritage stores only Free Software, in other words, software that
can be used, studied, adapted and shared freely with others; and this is
because the Software Heritage initiative relies on being able to share
the software it stores. The Software Heritage website is designed to be
a useful tool for professionals, scientists, educators and end-users.
Users must be allowed to re-use the code in other products, cutting
development time and costs; engineers should be able to discover how
others solved certain problems; or compare the efficiency of different
solutions to the same problem. And, of course, researchers must have
explicit permission to study the evolution of code over time. This is
only possible if the code is distributed under a Free and Open Source
license.
Matthias Kirschner, President of the Free Software Foundation Europe,
says: "Software is the most important cultural technology of today's
society; it frames what we can and what we cannot do. Software shapes
our communication and culture, our economy, education and research, as
well as politics. It is important to preserve our collective knowledge
about how software has influenced humankind. Collecting source code
makes Software Heritage a valuable resource to understand how our
society worked at any given time, and to build upon knowledge from
humankind." The Software Heritage intiative ensures today's code will
be around for everybody in the future.
=== About Inria ===
Inria[3], the French National Institute for computer science and applied
mathematics, promotes "scientific excellence for technology transfer and
society". Graduates from the world's top universities, Inria's 2,700
employees rise to the challenges of digital sciences. With this open,
agile model, Inria is able to explore original approaches with its
partners in industry and academia and provide an efficient response to
the multidisciplinary and application challenges of the digital
transformation. Inria transfers expertise and research results to
companies (startups, SMEs and major groups) in fields as diverse as
healthcare, transport, energy, communications, security and privacy
protection, smart cities and the factory of the future.
--
Free Software Foundation Europe <https://fsfe.org>
FSFE News <https://fsfe.org/news/news.en.rss>
Upcoming FSFE Events <https://fsfe.org/events/events.en.rss>
Fellowship Blog Aggregation <https://planet.fsfe.org/en/rss20.xml>
Free Software Discussions <https://fsfe.org/contact/community.en.html>
1. https://www.softwareheritage.org/
2. http://www.inria.fr/en/
3. http://www.inria.fr/en/
== About the Free Software Foundation Europe ==
The Free Software Foundation Europe (FSFE) is a non-profit
non-governmental organisation active in many European countries and
involved in many global activities. Access to software determines
participation in a digital society. To secure equal participation in
the information age, as well as freedom of competition, the Free
Software Foundation Europe (FSFE) pursues and is dedicated to the
furthering of Free Software, defined by the freedoms to use, study,
modify and copy. Founded in 2001, creating awareness for these issues,
securing Free Software politically and legally, and giving people
Freedom by supporting development of Free Software are central issues
of the FSFE.
http://fsfe.org/
= EU jeopardises its own goals in standardisation with FRAND licensing =
[ Read online: https://fsfe.org/news/2016/news-20160428-02.nl.html ]
On 19 April, the European Commission published a communication on "ICT
Standardisation Priorities for the Digital Single Market"[1]
(hereinafter 'the Communication'). The Digital Single Market (DSM)
strategy[2] intends to digitise industries with several legislative and
political initiatives, and the Communication is a part of it covering
standardisation. In general, the Free Software Foundation Europe (FSFE)
welcomes the Communication's plausible approach for integrating Free
Software and Open Standards[3] into standardisation but expresses its
concerns about the lack of understanding of necessary prerequisites to
pursue that direction.
== Acknowledging the importance of Free Software ==
The Communication starts with acknowledging the importance of Open
Standards for interoperability, innovation and access to media, cultural
and educational content, and promotes "community building, attracting
new sectors, promoting open standards and platforms where needed,
strengthening the link between research and standardisation". The latter
is closely linked to the "cloud", where the Communication states that
the "proprietary solutions, purely national approaches and standards
that limit interoperability can severely hamper the potential of the
Digital Single Market", and highlights that "common open standards will
help users access new innovative services".
As a result, the Commission concludes that by the end of 2016 it intends
to make more use of Free Software elements by better integrating Free
Software communities into standard setting processes in the standards
developing organisations.
In the Internet of Things (IoT) domain, the Communication acknowledges
the EU need for "an open platform approach that supports multiple
application domains ... to create competitive IoT ecosystems". In this
regard, the Commission states that "this requires open standards that
support the entire value chain, integrating multiple technologies ...
based on streamlined international cooperation that build on an IPR
["intellectual property rights"] framework enabling easy and fair access
to standard essential patents (SEPs)".
FSFE welcomes this direction taken in the Communication, as well as the
Commissioner Günther Oettinger's position, highlighted in his keynote at
the Net Futures 2016[4], that "easy reuse of standard and open
components accelerates digitisation of any business or any industry
sector." Furthermore, according to the Commissioner Oettinger, Free
Software standards "enable transparency and build trust."
== EC putting good efforts at risk ==
However, the attempts of the Commission to promote Open Standards and a
more balanced approach towards "intellectual property rights" policies
in standardisation may be seriously hampered by the Commission's stance
towards FRAND licensing. In particular, the Commission sets the goal to
"clarify core elements of an equitable, effective and enforceable
licensing methodology around FRAND principles" which is seen as striking
the right balance in standardisation and ensuring the "fair and non-
discriminatory" access to standards. Furthermore, it is a well-known
fact that FRAND licensing terms that in theory stand for "fair,
reasonable, and non-discriminatory" terms, in practice are incompatible
with most of Free Software[5].
In conclusion, whilst the Communication sets a positive direction
towards the promotion of Open Standards and the inclusion of Free
Software communities into the standardisation, this direction may be
seriously limited if the Commission fails to acknowledge the
incompatibility of FRAND licensing terms with Free Software licenses.
This in return can in practice make a proper Free Software
implementation of the standard impossible. As a result, the attempts of
the Commission to achieve truly "digital single market" based on
interoperability, openness and innovation will not be achieved as the
significant part of innovative potential found in Free Software will be
in practice excluded from standardisation.
In line with our recommendations on the DSM initiative[6] that got well
received by the Commission, FSFE believes that in order to achieve the
adequate integration of Free Software communities, and the overall
plausible approach towards appropriate use of Open Standards the
Commission needs to avoid the harmful consequences of FRAND licensing to
Free Software, and instead pursue the promotion of standards that are
open, minimalistic and implementable with Free Software. These standards
will give the substance to the Commission's promises to encourage Free
Software communities to participate in standardisation.
--
Free Software Foundation Europe <https://fsfe.org>
FSFE News <https://fsfe.org/news/news.en.rss>
Upcoming FSFE Events <https://fsfe.org/events/events.en.rss>
Fellowship Blog Aggregation <https://planet.fsfe.org/en/rss20.xml>
Free Software Discussions <https://fsfe.org/contact/community.en.html>
1. https://ec.europa.eu/digital-single-market/en/news/communication-ict-standa…
2. https://fsfe.org/activities/policy/eu/digital-single-market-comments.en.html
3. https://fsfe.org/activities/os/index.nl.html
4. https://ec.europa.eu/commission/2014-2019/oettinger/announcements/keynote-s…
5. https://fsfe.org/activities/os/why-frand-is-bad-for-free-software.en.html
6. https://fsfe.org/activities/policy/eu/digital-single-market-comments.en.html
== About the Free Software Foundation Europe ==
The Free Software Foundation Europe (FSFE) is a non-profit
non-governmental organisation active in many European countries and
involved in many global activities. Access to software determines
participation in a digital society. To secure equal participation in
the information age, as well as freedom of competition, the Free
Software Foundation Europe (FSFE) pursues and is dedicated to the
furthering of Free Software, defined by the freedoms to use, study,
modify and copy. Founded in 2001, creating awareness for these issues,
securing Free Software politically and legally, and giving people
Freedom by supporting development of Free Software are central issues
of the FSFE.
http://fsfe.org/
= Joint Statement on the Radio Lockdown Directive =
[ Read online: https://fsfe.org/news/2016/news-20160411-01.nl.html ]
23 organisations including the Free Software Foundation Europe (FSFE)
joined up in proposing measures[1] to EU institutions and EU member
states to avoid negative implications on users' rights and Free Software
imposed by the EU Radio Equipment Directive 2014/53/EU.
The ‘ Radio Lockdown Directive[2] ’ that will be applicable in the EU
since 13 June 2016 threatens software freedom, users' rights, fair
competition, innovation, environment, and volunteering – without
comparable benefits for security. It introduces disproportionate
‘essential requirement’ in the form of forcing device manufacturers to
prove radio regulatory compliance for every possible software able to
run on every product using the radio frequency spectrum. In practice,
this means that in the future only particular software authorised by the
manufacturers can be installed on any device connecting through wireless
and mobile networks or GPS: e.g. routers, mobile phones, WiFi cards and
the laptops they are built in, or almost all devices including network
functionality.
This requirement will lock users to hardware manufacturers, and will
also disadvantage businesses based on Free Software or any other
alternative software not installed by default by the manufacturer of the
device. Thereby it will have negative implications on fair competition
and freedom to conduct business. The requirement to assess every
possible hardware and software combination to be compliant with the RED
– which is envisaged to enhance security of radio devices – disables
users and businesses to choose software whose security problems can be
fixed by everybody without having to relay on the vendor.
The FSFE and the other signatories, therefore, ask the EU institutions
and the EU member states to safeguard rights of users and businesses to
use and install Free Software and any other alternative third-party
software on their devices; to avoid the lockdown of the devices to the
software provided by the hardware manufacturer; and refrain from
shifting the responsibility for the software's regulatory compliance
from the users to the manufacturers when making changes to the default
configuration. Software and hardware should not be treated differently
in that respect. The EU Commission has been entitled to adopt delegated
acts which can make these vitally needed adjustments.
The joint statement on the Radio Lockdown Directive is open to more
signatures. Whether a user, a charity project, or a business, the Radio
Lockdown Directive affects everyone. We ask other organisations and
companies to support our statement and make sure that the Radio Lockdown
Directive will not place blanket, unnecessary and disproportionate
restrictions on the rights of consumers and businesses when implementing
the Directive into national legislations.
Please also read our detailed analysis[3], and feel free to contact us
if you have any questions.
--
Free Software Foundation Europe <https://fsfe.org>
FSFE News <https://fsfe.org/news/news.en.rss>
Upcoming FSFE Events <https://fsfe.org/events/events.en.rss>
Fellowship Blog Aggregation <https://planet.fsfe.org/en/rss20.xml>
Free Software Discussions <https://fsfe.org/contact/community.en.html>
1. https://fsfe.org/activities/radiodirective/statement.nl.html
2. https://fsfe.org/activities/radiodirective/radiodirective.nl.html
3. https://fsfe.org/activities/radiodirective/radiodirective.nl.html
== About the Free Software Foundation Europe ==
The Free Software Foundation Europe (FSFE) is a non-profit
non-governmental organisation active in many European countries and
involved in many global activities. Access to software determines
participation in a digital society. To secure equal participation in
the information age, as well as freedom of competition, the Free
Software Foundation Europe (FSFE) pursues and is dedicated to the
furthering of Free Software, defined by the freedoms to use, study,
modify and copy. Founded in 2001, creating awareness for these issues,
securing Free Software politically and legally, and giving people
Freedom by supporting development of Free Software are central issues
of the FSFE.
http://fsfe.org/
= I love Free Software-dag 2016 =
[ Read online: https://fsfe.org/news/2016/news-20160208-01.nl.html ]
Het is tijd om "dank je wel" te zeggen op 14 februari, de " I love Free
Software[1] "-dag 2016. Free Software Foundation Europe vraagt aan alle
Vrije Software-gebruikers om deze traditionele dag van de liefde te
gebruiken om te denken aan de hardwerkende mensen die bijdragen aan de
Vrije Software waar we allemaal van afhankelijk zijn. Zoals ieder
jaar[2] zijn er veel velschillende manieren waarop mensen deel kunnen
nemen aan deze online campagne, die vijf jaar geleden voor het eerst is
gevierd.
Binnen de Vrije Software-gemeenschap wisselen we veel kritiek uit. We
schrijven foutrapporten, vertellen anderen hoe ze de software kunnen
verbeteren, vragen hen om nieuwe functies en zijn in het algemeen niet
verlegen om kritiek te hebben op anderen. Daar is niets verkeerds aan.
Het helpt ons om constant te verbeteren. Maar soms vergeten we om onze
waardering te laten zien aan de hardwerkende mensen achter de software.
We zouden niet de macht van een eenvoudig "dank je wel" moeten
onderschatten bij het motiveren van Vrije Software-medewerkers voor hun
belangrijke werk voor de samenleving. 14 Februari (dit jaar op een
zondag) is de ideale dag om dat te doen.
== Toon je liefde voor Vrije Software ==
Vrije Software is de basis van een enorm aantal apparaten in ons
dagelijks leven. Het verzekert onze vrijheid, onze veiligheid,
burgerrechten en privacy. Het stelt iedereen in staat om deel te nemen
aan een faire samenleving. Maar zoals mensen nu eenmaal zijn, hebben ze
allemaal andere redenen om van Vrije Software te houden. Laten we deze
verscheidenheid aan de wereld zien!
Valentijnsdag is de traditionele dag om je waardering aan mensen te
tonen en daarmee is het de perfecte mogelijkheid om *dank je wel* te
zeggen tegen de medewerkers van de Vrije Software waar je van houd:
ontwikkelaars, testers, of documentatieschrijvers van enorme of kleinere
projecten. Zij werken allemaal aan het Vrije Software-ecosysteem waar we
iedere dag van kunnen genieten.
== Maak deel uit van #ilovefs ==
Het maakt niet uit wie je bent, waar je bent en wat je doet: iedereen
kan op veel verschillende manieren deelnemen aan de "I love Free
Software"-dag:
- *Afbeeldingen*: Stuur enkele koele video's of foto's van jezelf of van
je vrienden, een meme-afbeelding of iets geheel anders; het
belangrijkste is creativiteit! En met iedere video en iedere
afbeelding neem je automatisch deel aan onze *#ilovefs-wedstrijd*.
(bezoek onze website voor meer informatie). Bekijk de afbeeldingen van
de afgelopen jaren[3] ter inspiratie.
- *Postkaarten*: Bedank jouw favoriete medewerkers voor hun werk op een
individuele manier. Bijvoorbeeld door het sturen van een van onze
postkaarten[4].
- *Vertel het verder* Toon publiekelijk je waardering door gebruik te
maken van sociale netwerken of van je blog om aan de wereld te
demonstreren hoeveel mensen van Vrije Software houden; en daarmee
anderen te motiveren om hetzelfde te doen. Gebruik gewoon de hashtag
*#ilovefs* op GnuSocial[5], Twitter[6], of andere platforms.
- *Doe het zelf* Kon je niet vinden wat je zocht? Geen probleem, doe
gewoon iets anders! Maak kleine chocoladerepen, ontwerp nieuw
promotiemateriaal,... ontdek hoe je #ilovefs met jouw bijdrage[7]
unieker kan maken.
Als iedereen een klein deel bijdraagt dan kunnen we samen genieten van
een prachtige "I love Free Software"-dag. Laten we video's en
afbeeldingen delen, postkaarten sturen en onze liefde individueel tonen.
Vrolijk I love Free Software-dag iedereen!
--
Free Software Foundation Europe <https://fsfe.org>
FSFE News <https://fsfe.org/news/news.en.rss>
Upcoming FSFE Events <https://fsfe.org/events/events.en.rss>
Fellowship Blog Aggregation <https://planet.fsfe.org/en/rss20.xml>
Free Software Discussions <https://fsfe.org/contact/community.en.html>
1. http://ilovefs.org
2. https://fsfe.org/news/2015/news-20150303-01.nl.html
3. https://fsfe.org/campaigns/ilovefs/whylovefs/gallery.nl.html
4. https://fsfe.org/contribute/spreadtheword.nl.html#ilovefs-postcard
5. http://gnu.io/
6. https://twitter.com/hashtag/ilovefs
7. https://wiki.fsfe.org/ILoveFS-2016
== About the Free Software Foundation Europe ==
The Free Software Foundation Europe (FSFE) is a non-profit
non-governmental organisation active in many European countries and
involved in many global activities. Access to software determines
participation in a digital society. To secure equal participation in
the information age, as well as freedom of competition, the Free
Software Foundation Europe (FSFE) pursues and is dedicated to the
furthering of Free Software, defined by the freedoms to use, study,
modify and copy. Founded in 2001, creating awareness for these issues,
securing Free Software politically and legally, and giving people
Freedom by supporting development of Free Software are central issues
of the FSFE.
http://fsfe.org/
= FSFE signs association joint letter for terminal device freedom =
[ Read online: https://fsfe.org/news/2015/news-20151028-01.nl.html ]
Together with 9 other civil and economic organisations the Free Software
Foundation Europe (FSFE) sent a letter to numerous members of the German
Bundestag concerning the compulsory routers issue at the present
Wednesday. The letter is supposed to highlight the importance of passing
the bill for freedom of terminal devices in telecommunication.
On the 4th of November the four parliament committees Economy and
Energy, Law and Consumer Protection, Traffic and Digital Infrastructure,
and Digital Agenda will consult about the bill „for selection and
connection of telecommunication terminal devices“. The 132
representatives who sit in the committees will bear a special
responsibility since it is in their power to save the rights of
consumers and protect small and medium-sized businesses.
„We welcome the Federal Government drafting a bill which can
effectively eradicate compulsory routers“, says Matthias Kirschner,
FSFE's President. „The current status of compulsory routers is
harmful for both citizens and economy. This fact has to be known to
all representatives cross-party. Now we need a quick and unmodified
implementation of the drafted law.“
The bill is the outcome of a long discussion about so-called compulsory
routers. These forbid internet users to use a terminal device of their
choice and force them to always have the provider's device in the own
home network. This widespread practise is a threat to security, privacy,
and independence of all internet users and has negative effects on free
and fair competition of manufacturers.
Despite the unanimous opinion of experts, consumer protectors, and
politicians some members of the Federal Council aligned with the few
current bill's opponents. In doing so they adapted technically
inconsistent and long-disproved arguments of internet providers and
network carriers. Up to now the Federal Government rejected the
Council's criticism as not reasonable.
„Today's letter shall prevent a repetition of the Council's
disappointing reaction. With a broad alliance of many-faceted
supporters of terminal device freedom we ask the committees' members
to put those basic user rights as soon as possible and without any
rotten compromises into law“, says Max Mehl, FSFE's Germany
Coordinator. „As of today no representative can plead lack of
knowledge of the importance of terminal device freedom for the
independent usage and security of the internet.“
You can view the depersonalised version of the sent association joint
letter here[1]. Additionally we listed all important events in the
course of the compulsory routers debate seperately on our website[2].
--
Free Software Foundation Europe <https://fsfe.org>
FSFE News <https://fsfe.org/news/news.en.rss>
Upcoming FSFE Events <https://fsfe.org/events/events.en.rss>
Fellowship Blog Aggregation <https://planet.fsfe.org/en/rss20.xml>
Free Software Discussions <https://fsfe.org/contact/community.en.html>
1. https://fsfe.org/activities/routers/files/20151027_Verbaendeschreiben.pdf
2. https://fsfe.org/activities/routers/timeline.nl.html
== About the Free Software Foundation Europe ==
The Free Software Foundation Europe (FSFE) is a non-profit
non-governmental organisation active in many European countries and
involved in many global activities. Access to software determines
participation in a digital society. To secure equal participation in
the information age, as well as freedom of competition, the Free
Software Foundation Europe (FSFE) pursues and is dedicated to the
furthering of Free Software, defined by the freedoms to use, study,
modify and copy. Founded in 2001, creating awareness for these issues,
securing Free Software politically and legally, and giving people
Freedom by supporting development of Free Software are central issues
of the FSFE.
http://fsfe.org/