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    Free as in Freedom

    faif.us · Publication · on HN since 2012

    Bradley Kuhn and Karen Sandler of Software Freedom Conservancy host this podcast on free software, licensing, DRM, and software freedom.

    Visit blogHN submissions
    Open Source & LinuxPrivacy & PolicyCulture & Society
    What HN says

    HN commenters repeatedly recommend the podcast, calling it great and pointing to episodes as a frank, interesting discussion of free software issues.

    Stats for nerds
    19HN people shared it
    16linked in comments
    34story points
    May 2020last shared
    2012people per year2020

    Top posts on HN

    1. 1
      Free as in Freedom 0x6C: Even More DMCA Exemption Requests
      1 person · 8 points · first shared 2021 · Discussion on HN
    2. 2
      Free as in Freedom Oggcast: Episode 0x57: Support Conservancy Now
      2 people · 6 points · first shared 2015 · Discussion on HN
    3. 3
      Free as in Freedom
      8 people · 3 points · first shared 2012 · Discussion on HN
    4. 4
      FaiF Episode 0x5E: Software Freedom Conservancy's ContractPatch Initiative
      2 people · 3 points · first shared 2016 · Discussion on HN
    5. 5
      Can Anyone Live in Full Software Freedom Today?
      2 people · 2 points · first shared 2019 · 1 comments on HN
    6. 6
      Free as in Freedom 0x6B: GPL Enforcement Investigation DMCA Exemption Request
      1 person · 2 points · first shared 2021 · Discussion on HN
    7. 7
      Free as in Freedom 0x69: Microsoft's E-book platform and other DRM disasters
      1 person · 2 points · first shared 2019 · Discussion on HN
    8. 8
      FaiF 0x5D: Conference Report, First Half of 2016
      1 person · 2 points · first shared 2016 · Discussion on HN
    9. 9
      Free as in Freedom: Episode 0x59: Audio Killed the Video Star
      1 person · 1 points · first shared 2016 · Discussion on HN
    10. 10
      Why Free Software Phone Doesn't Exist [oggcast]
      1 person · 1 points · first shared 2014 · Discussion on HN

    What HN people wrote when they linked it

    • bkuhnDec 2012

      I was waiting for your reply and couldn't wait anymore. I have to work tomorrow, you see -- I work 7 days a week on Free Software, so I just can't stay up late.

      Anyway, I did hit reload one last time and saw your reply, but I assure you this has to be the last one but I welcome you to email me if you'd like.

      The reason I used that political way of interacting with him was that I have been one of Canonical, Ltd.'s critics for a long time -- back before it was popular to "pile onto" Mark Shuttleworth, Ubuntu, etc. (I noted that in my blog post in the section I talk about why I stopped; they'll be more on the next episode of Free as in Freedom audcast [0] released next week.)

      I've found that there are a lot of people out there in the Ubuntu community who really do treat Mark like he is, as his title insists, a Dictator for Life and simply are his proxies out defending him. Again, I'm using a politicians' word -- proxies -- and a politician's analysis. But, the fact is, there are a lot of people out there, and many on identi.ca, who proxy for @sabdfl.

      I admit that I incorrectly assumed that fellow was one of them. I think you're taking that one conversation and attempting, in a confirmation bias [1] sort of way, to extrapolate that it shows some principle that's always at work in conversations with people like me. Fact is, despite that I suspected the fellow was acting like a proxy, I still engaged with him in multiple threads in parallel, just in case I was wrong…

    • dalkeApr 2014

      There have been many cases. See "12 Years of Compliance: A Historical Perspective" with sound at http://faif.us/cast/2011/sep/13/0x18/ and the slides at http://ebb.org/bkuhn/talks/LinuxCon-Europe-2011/GPL-Compliance/compliance.html .

      Linksys distributed GNU software in their routers, in violation of the license. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Free_Software_Foundation_v._Cisco_Systems for details. It links to the FSF's complaint at http://www.fsf.org/licensing/complaint-2008-12-11.pdf if you want to see the low-level legal details.

      That WP page ends "On May 20, 2009 the parties announced a settlement which includes Cisco appointing a director to ensure Linksys products comply with free software licenses, and Cisco making an undisclosed financial contribution to the FSF."

    • ilikepiApr 2019

      I recommend a recent set of episodes (0x60 - 0x63) of the Free As In Freedom podcast[0]. The show is hosted by Bradley Kuhn and Karen Sandler of Software Freedom Conservancy, both long-time free software advocates. It's a really frank and interesting discussion of their own struggles over this issue. The discussion surrounds their keynote of FOSDEM this year, the audio of which is included in the final installment.

      [0]: http://faif.us/

      EDIT: additional clarification

    • kevinoidSep 2014

      In addition to several of the ones already mentioned by others, I'd include Free as in Freedom - http://faif.us/ - It covers legal and policy issues in technology (particularly FOSS), rather than technology directly, but I think it fits your question. I find it provides some good depth on issues that aren't covered as fully or as often as on other podcasts, if you are interested in legal issues.

    • BuuQu9huDec 2016

      SFC is working on a project called ContractPatch to show that it is possible to (re-)negotiate your employment agreements so that you own copyright on your work and to help developers go through that process. Some information about ContractPatch is in this recent podcast episode and the show notes:

      http://faif.us/cast/2016/nov/01/0x5E/

    • slashdotaccountJul 2014

      Free as in Freedom (http://faif.us/) is an oggcast, hosted and presented by Bradley M. Kuhn and Karen Sandler. The discussion includes legal, policy, and many other issues in the Free, Libre, and Open Source Software (FLOSS) world. Occasionally, guests join Bradley and Karen to discuss various topics regarding FLOSS.

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