Week 11 Questions

Richard Stallman on Free Software –youtube video

1) Stallman discuses how if users do not have control over the software they use this creates an imbalance of power, but if user’s have control over ever software program they use how what would the effect on the overall Internet be?  Wouldn’t this create a whole different type of imbalance of power, being the computer savvy people would have the knowledge to change these program and the people with limited computer skills would be put a disadvantage instead?

2) If developers could no longer restrict the use of the software they created through copyright law, would this slow innovation because people would have less incentive to create new software because they can’t protect it from others infringing on their ideas?

3) What are some current examples of programs that use ‘copyleft’ and have they been successful? If copyright laws did not protect educational material, how would the author and publisher make money on their work?  Wouldn’t this put authors, innovators, and creators at a disadvantage? 

What is Open Source? – Computer Floss

1) Even if all software was made to be open source and all the source code was available, wouldn’t only a small number of the population be able to understand the source code to make changes or fix problems?

2) Since companies currently consider source code to be a trade secret, what would be the effect on their competitive advantage if all this information were made public?

3) What was the effect of the GNU project to develop free software?  Was it successful, why or why not?

4) Is there a program to convert the machine code back to source code? A program that undoes what the ‘compiler’ did, which was discussed in the video. 

"Open Source vs Proprietary Software"

1) How is proprietary software designed to meet the needs of the user more than Open Source?  What are the advantages that come from the fact that Open Source does not have censorship and monitoring? 

2) The article states that open source is great for ‘DIY project’, what is a DIY project? 

3) One of the arguments against Open Source is that the quality is questionable and I think this relates to the other argument that there is no responsibility.  Is there a way to add accountability to increase quality, without connecting it to a single company? 

“Life on the Electric Frontier: An Interview with Howard Rheingold”  

1) Are there more dangers now in making the transition from an online to a face-to-face community? How can these dangers we prevented or overcome in our current society?

2) When The Well became part of the Internet and ‘went global’, do you think the types of relationships and communities formed using this platform changed?

3) What do you believe is the best way to overcome the isolation that technology has the potential to create?  Do you believe it depends on the individuals to use this advancing technology as a tool for increased personal community or further isolation?

“Howard Rheingold’s Virtual Community”

1) When discussing Japan, and why the Net does not automatically result in Internet, the article states that “people are waiting until the Net has acquired a more visual character…”  What does the author mean by a ‘visual character’?  And how can this be accomplished?

  

2) In relation to relationships and forming communities, what are your expectations for the Internet in the future?  What are your predictions about how it will progress?

3) Do you believe there is a solution for ‘disinformocracy’? Why do you believe this is such a big problem?