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07.16.11

IRC Proceedings: July 13th, 2011

Posted in IRC Logs at 4:23 am by Dr. Roy Schestowitz

GNOME Gedit

GNOME Gedit

GNOME Gedit

#techrights log

#boycottnovell log

#boycottnovell-social log

Enter the IRC channels now

ES: Google- -

Posted in Google at 4:16 am by Dr. Roy Schestowitz

(ODF | PDF | English/original)

Resumen: Google+ y Facebook deben evitarse por ser trampas de software propietario con peligro subestimado.

GOOGLE PLUS ha estado haciendo spam a la gente con el fin de ganar suscriptores. Además, se ha mentido a la opinión pública con el fin de crear una ilusión de escasez (Invita) y en muchos aspectos sigue siendo similar a Facebook. Ambos son propietarios y que se ejecutan en una pila LAMP. Basta con decir que la principal ventaja que vemos en que Google+ es que aumenta la competencia y recuerda a la gente que acaba de mover de un tirón más de una bandera booleana para indicar uno de los cientos de millones de personas es un “amigo” sólo se aplica a uno de los muchas (posiblemente muchos) bases de datos.

Techrights no suele ocuparse de las ciencias sociales y las prostitutas de atención a que acuden a Facebook a pesar de sus muchos abusos.

Hemos estado más interesados en las malas prácticas de negocio de Facebbook, que incluyen ASTROTURFING, LOCK-IN, AGRESION DE PATENTES, VIOLACIONES DE PRIVACIDAD, la CENSURA, y muchas más[http://techrights.org/wiki/index.php/Facebook].

No hace mucho tiempo que escribimos sobre como Facebook insulta a el Software Libre. Lo estamos viendo de nuevo[http://www.networkworld.com/community/facebook-bans-another-export-tool]:

Después de unos pocos días de la operación, Facebook ya ha cerrado la puerta para la herramienta de Open-Xchange de exportación OX.IO. De acuerdo con Facebook, la aplicación es una violación de sus términos de servicio – pero la compañía dice que “no estamos violando nada.”

Así que aquí está la primicia: La semana pasada, Open-Xchange (una empresa que ofrece un correo electrónico de Exchange compatible y suite de colaboración) lanzó OX.IO. El nuevo servicio se supone que debe ayudar a los usuarios consolidar los datos de contacto, y trabajó con Facebook, pero también trabaja con GMail, GMX.de, LinkedIn, Yahoo, SugarCRM, y algunos otros.

Recordemos lo que Facebook hizo a productos relacionados con KDE[http://techrights.org/2011/06/28/privacy-risk-at-microsoft/]. La forma en que acaba de bloquear el software por razones de competencia proporciona un vistaso a el peligro de confiar en las plataformas de terceras partes, incluyendo Google. No fue hace mucho tiempo que Google retiró las API que implícitamente se comprometió a apoyar.

Como escribimos hace algunos meses, Techrights la única “red social” está dispuesta a asumir es Identi.ca[http://techrights.org/2010/10/28/identica-and-techrights/] (cuentas de nombre aquí[http://techrights.org/twitter-and-identica/]). █

Traducción hecha por Eduardo Landaveri, Administrator of the Spanish portal of Techrights.

Translation produced by Eduardo Landaveri, the administrator of the Spanish portal of Techrights.

National Security Compromised by Microsoft Windows

Posted in Microsoft, Security, Windows at 4:11 am by Dr. Roy Schestowitz

Fortress

Summary: Documents relating to ballistic missile defense and star wars leaked to crackers owing to Windows, allegedly

AN anonymous poster found this blog item (“DoD: 24,000 files swiped in March from military contractor systems”) which suggests that “Because they use Windooze about 24.000 (!) classified documents got stolen by foreign state-backed hackers. The documents included information on, among other things, JSF and the ballistic missile defense.

“If they’d used Linux this probably wouldn’t have happened. Congress needs to legislate a government ban on using Windows, as it’s unreliable and insecure BY DESIGN.”

Techrights wrote about the subject of Windows compromising many lives. It did so many times before, so to avoid repetition we’ll cite one of the earliest such posts and quote Jim Allchin of Microsoft as saying: “It is no exaggeration to say that the national security is also implicated by the efforts of hackers to break into computing networks. Computers, including many running Windows operating systems, are used throughout the United States Department of Defense and by the armed forces of the United States in Afghanistan and elsewhere.”

Yes, well done, Microsoft.

In other news, this time referring to Hotmail:

Did Microsoft Just Admit Hotmail Is the Most Hijacked Service?

[...]

Dick Craddock, Group Program Manager, Hotmail, writes in a company blog, “We released this feature a few weeks ago. Initially, it only let you report Hotmail accounts that were compromised. But it worked really well – we got thousands of reports of compromised accounts.”

Those “thousands of reports of compromised accounts” apparently “worked really well”. Priceless. As we pointed out some years ago, Hotmail is a top source of SPAM. Security there is an absolute joke and no wonder companies choose Google over Microsoft for such services.

As Microsoft continues its steady decline (as discussed in last night's show) it will be remembered as the company which did not take security seriously. The costs of getting cracked were simply passed to the customer. █

“Our products just aren’t engineered for security.”

–Brian Valentine, Microsoft executive

ES: Microsoft Patrocinó al Troll de Patentes Más Grande del Mundo (Vienen Más demandas), Paul/Troll Allen Pierde Caso

Posted in Microsoft, Patents at 4:08 am by Dr. Roy Schestowitz

Nathan Myhrvold

(ODF | PDF | English/original)

Resumen: ¿Cómo los peces gordos de Microsoft llegan a convertirse en trolls de patentes y atacan a la industria (incluyendo Linux), a veces en vano?

Uno de nuestros lectores ha encontrado y enviado evidencia que sugiere que el compadre de Bill Gates (a quien Gates financia) está demandando a más empresas[http://paidcontent.org/article/419-new-intellectual-ventures-suit-seeks-payment-from-chipmakers/], no dejando ninguna duda acerca de su condición del troll de patentes más grande del mundo[http://techrights.org/2008/09/18/patent-troll-by-proxy/], no sólo el ex director de tecnología de Microsoft. Se trata de operaciones como la suya, que ayudan a mostrar lo brutal y corrupto el sistema de patentes se ha convertido. El -Nathan Myhrvold- presiona a políticos, sin embargo, para mantener el sistema quebrado, en la condición actual, para enriquecerse a sí mismo y a su compadre Bill. Es posible que incluso las patentes de Torvalds están siendo utilizados por este troll de patentes y Groklaw añade: “. Tal vez sea hora de Silicon Valley para darse cuenta de que las patentes son el problema” El mismo lector también se encuentra este enlace[http://www.patentdocs.org/2011/05/napp-annual-meeting.html] sobre “La Asociación Nacional de Abogados de Patentes (ANPP), “que es un eufemismo para referirse a los trolls de patentes. Tenemos más de estas historias en los diarios enlaces de ayer[http://techrights.org/2011/07/13/pardus-linux-2011-1/].

Mientras que sobre el tema de los trolls de patentes de Microsoft (Microsoft con vínculos financieros), ¿Qué acerca de Interval[http://techrights.org/wiki/index.php/Interval] pertenecienta al co-fundador de Microsoft? Parece que va hacia abajo para Paul Allen[http://www.groklaw.net/article.php?story=2011071315075465]:

Allen versus el Mundo – RECONSIDERACIÓN NEGADA! Interval Abajo en Llamas

[...]

Cuando vez a un juez es que crítica a un partido y usa palabras más adelante en el orden como “sutilezas”, es una señal de que el juez está perdiendo la paciencia.

Así que esta acción es ahora oficialmente (incluso después de reconsideración) se quedó en espera del resultado de la reexaminaciones.

Los trolls de patentes todavía cuestan mucho en términos de honorarios de abogados, incluso si pierden, y el de la Gente Contra el Monopolio siente la necesidad[http://www.againstmonopoly.org/index.php?perm=72958000000000456] de poner fin a esto, incluyendo las patentes de métodos comerciales[http://www.againstmonopoly.org/index.php?perm=72958000000000452], que como hemos demostrado recientemente que algunos de los mayores grupos de presión (los banqueros, no sólo los trolls de patentes financiado por Microsoft) hacer lo que sea para empeorar las cosas[http://blogs.reuters.com/felix-salmon/2011/07/05/bringing-sense-to-business-method-patents/]. Se escribió acerca de esto últimamente[http://techrights.org/2011/06/20/algorithms-and-methods-as-monopoly/]. █

Traducción hecha por Eduardo Landaveri, Administrator of the Spanish portal of Techrights.

Translation produced by Eduardo Landaveri, the administrator of the Spanish portal of Techrights.

USPTO Drives American Software Developers Away to Other Countries

Posted in Patents at 3:50 am by Dr. Roy Schestowitz

Heart-shaped birds

Summary: Programmers fly away to other continents, far away from patent trolls and a system which harbours them

IT SHOULD be in the interests of US citizens to topple the USPTO, which serves nothing but monopolists, trolls, and patents lawyers these days. It is doing unbelievable harm to an already-suffering economy and according to this new report from The Guardian, it is true that software developers are moving to countries in Europe or distant places like New Zealand. They do not wish to be sued. Quoting the article:

App developers are withdrawing their products for sale from the US versions of Apple’s App Store and Google’s Android Market for fear of being sued by companies which own software patents – just as a Mumbai-based company has made a wide-ranging claim against Microsoft, Apple, Google, Yahoo and a number of other companies over Twitter-style feeds, for which it claims it has applied for a patent.

Software patent owners in the US have latched onto potential revenue streams to be earned from independent developers by suing over perceived infringements of their intellectual property – which can be expensive for developers to defend even if they are successful.

Now developers in Europe are retreating from the US to avoid the expense and concern such “patent trolls” are causing.

Well, here in the UK software patents and patent trolls are almost unheard of and those who are seeking software patents in the UK often just file for a patent overseas, in the USPTO that corresponds to one of the largest target markets.

The article above makes reference to this lawsuit on which CNET makes the following claims:

More than 30 companies, including the likes of Microsoft, Apple, and IBM have been targeted by India-based Kootol Software for allegedly violating technology covered in a patent application.

So far the list of targeted companies includes Amazon, AOL, Apple, Bebo, Bharti Airtel, ExactTarget, Facebook, Ford Motor, Foursquare, Google, IBM, The Iconfactory, LinkedIn, Microsoft, MySpace, Ning, Nokia, Peek, PopBox, Quora, Research In Motion, Salesforce, Seesmic, Siemens, Sina.com, StatusNet, TwitPic, Twitter, Ubermedia, Webaroo Technology, Yahoo, and Yammer.

Brad Feld, the US-based VC and co-founder of the Foundry Group, has been saying or at least implying that software patents may reduce incentive to invest in companies. In his new column he states that:

More specifically, I think that if the government completely left the software / Internet industry alone and software patents were abolished, the software / Internet industry would have even more vibrant competition.

Just watch what software patents are doing to Android these days. Google hires lawyers rather than developers and according to this update from Groklaw, software patents are also reducing productivity of managers, not just programmers:

So Oracle has asked the court’s permission [PDF] to depose Larry Page of Google along with three other Google employees. Exciting news?! Not really. In fact, if anything this strikes me as a bit of tit-for-tat. Google requested Larry Ellison’s deposition so Oracle is going to do the same with Page.

This is because of software patents. What is the US system doing to itself with this ludicrous patent office? Things are bad enough as they are. Software patents are a total distraction. █

07.15.11

Links 15/7/2011: Thunderbird In Ubuntu 11.10, Kubuntu With KDE SC 4.7

Posted in News Roundup at 7:31 pm by Dr. Roy Schestowitz

GNOME bluefish

Contents

GNU/Linux

Free Software/Open Source

  • Web Browsers

    • Mozilla

      • Redesign set to make Firefox more responsive

        Mozilla has begun turning the Firefox crank faster with a rapid-release development cycle. So what’s in store now that we can expect a new version every six weeks?

        A lot, including 64-bit support on Windows and a plan to reduce the open-source browser’s memory usage. But the most far-reaching change probably is a project called Electrolysis that splits Firefox into multiple somewhat-independent processes.

        Electrolysis holds the potential to improve responsiveness, smooth graphics performance, take better advantage of multicore processors, and tighten security. Mozilla already added one Electrolysis element to Firefox 3.6–the separation of plug-ins to their own patch of memory–but now programmers are spinning up the project again to tackle more.

      • Forget oAUTH?! Mozilla’s Browser ID

        Since the beginning of the Internet era, your email address and your ability to verify that it’s actually yours has been the lynchpin of Internet identity.

        You want to join a new site/service? Sure! Just verify your email address…

  • Funding

    • Jaspersoft Seals $11M

      Jaspersoft, a maker of business intelligence software, has inked $11 million in a round of venture capital led by Red Hat and SAP Ventures. New investor Quest Software joined in the round, which also included participation from existing shareholders Doll Capital Management, Morgenthaler Ventures, Partech International, Scale Venture Partners, and Adams Street Partners. The money will be used for expansion and potential acquisitions. Jaspersoft is based in San Francisco.

    • Will Red Hat Buy Jaspersoft?

      Amid its march toward $1 billion in annual revenues, Red Hat continues to invest more money in Jaspersoft — an open source business intelligence company. The VAR Guy has openly wondered — multiple times — if Red Hat will ever fully acquire Jaspersoft. Hmmm…

      No doubt, Jaspersoft is an attractive company. More than 14,000 commercial customers use Jaspersoft’s business intelligence software, which is available on premise and in the cloud. Backed by $11 million in new funding, Jaspersoft is considering “potential strategic acquisitions,” according to a prepared statement.

  • FSF/FSFE/GNU/SFLC

    • Stallman to give talks in Israel

      Free Software Foundation chairman Richard Stallman will give two talks in Israel next week, according to information supplied by him.

      Stallman will be giving a talk on Copyright vs Community in the Age of the Computer Networks at the Baladna Youth Club in Haifa on July 21 in Haifa

  • Licensing

  • Openness/Sharing

    • Interview: Thomas Thwaite, designer and technologist, peeks into the future

      Thomas Thwaite, designer and technologist, is perhaps best known through his Toaster Project. The Toaster Project was an attempt to build a toaster from raw, self-mined materials. The project exposed the complexity of seemingly simple and everyday technology. It leaves us to wonder how technology will change our lives in the future, and shows how we all need others to get even simple products.

  • Programming

Leftovers

  • FBI Probing News Corp Over 9/11 Victims Allegations

    The FBI has opened an investigation into whether reporters for Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp hacked into the phone records of 9/11 victims, according to the FBI’s New York office.

    A source with knowledge of the FBI investigation confirmed news of the probe to TPM, saying it’s been launched in part because of Rep. Peter King’s (R-NY) high-profile letter calling for an investigation.

  • Cablegate

    • How Wired Magazine Helped The US Government Try To Frame Julian Assange (And Failed)

      Firstly, and most importantly, it’s now clear that Julian Assange did NOT know if Bradley Manning was the source who leaked the US cables to WikiLeaks. Manning tells Lamo that Assange “knows little about me” and “he takes source-protections uber-seriously.” Furthermore, he says, Assange “won’t work with you if you reveal too much about yourself.” Assange even instructs Manning to lie about his identity!

      This blows apart the US government’s protracted efforts to suggest that Assange actively enticed Manning to hand over the cables, and thereby charge the Australian with criminal activity. In fact, it was only through his own protracted sleuth work that Manning even knew who HE was talking to: “it took me four months to confirm that the person i was communicating [with] was in fact assange”.

  • Finance

  • Intellectual Monopolies

    • Copyrights

      • Classic Horror Films You Can Legally Watch for Free

        The Internet Archive is home to gigabytes of media that anyone can view or download for free. Finding what you’re looking for can often prove problematic however, mainly because there’s just so much to see. Those of you who are fond of suspense, thrills, blood and guts will be pleased to know we’ve hacked and slashed our way through the tripe to find some of the best scary films available in the public domain.

TechBytes Episode 55: Google’s Growth, Sabayon Linux 6, and Sony-Microsoft

Posted in TechBytes at 6:38 pm by Dr. Roy Schestowitz

TechBytes

Direct download as Ogg (1:12:17, 16.0 MB) | High-quality MP3 (26.8 MB) | Low-quality MP3 (8.3 MB)

Summary: Tim and Roy do the first show where an outline of topics was prepared in advance by both sides

Tim and Roy speak about a variety of subjects ranging from Nortel’s patents, Google’s amazing Android growth, and Google Plus to Ubuntu decline in the news, Sabayon Linux 6, Mozilla versions, and KDE 4.7 (RC). Roy mentions his Argos/Archos revelations from yesterday while Tim brings up a Microsoft rumour and ACS:Law news. Update: the show notes are out.

The show features “Love Is A Dirty Word” by Jason Collett, “Luxury” by Tigersapien, and “Divide & Conquer” by Vandaveer. We hope you will join us for future shows and consider subscribing to the show via the RSS feed. You can also visit our archives for past shows. If you have an Identi.ca account, consider subscribing to TechBytes in order to keep up to date. █

As embedded (HTML5):

Read the rest of this entry »

Kappos is Granting More Monopolies (or Rejecting a Lot More)

Posted in Patents at 1:49 pm by Dr. Roy Schestowitz

Probably not the latter

Summary: The head of the USPTO celebrates the news of backlogs receding and Peer to Patent is apparently equally jubilant

IN THE freaky world of patent lawyers, good patents are broad patents that can get everyone sued. In the world of OIN, a “good” patent is one that would be hard to invalidate. In the USPTO, all patents are “good” because they are a source of income. In principle, the USPTO under Kapos is a lost cause and according to this new post from Kappos, despite the recession/depression, they are speeding up the processing of monopoly applications. This is the last thing the United States needs right now, especially given how hard patent trolls and patent cartels are hitting. The reaction from Peer to Patent is a foolish remark to say the least. The person fielding their Twitter account says:

Looks like the signs of progress at the USPTO! Backlog receding!

Unless it’s sarcasm, this is bad because we generally see that the number of patents increases over time. So the news above may be indicative of matters getting worse, not better, except from the USPTO’s point-of-view because patents are just business to these people. The president of the FFII responded by writing “More patents!”

Yes, this is probably what the USPTO considers to be “success”. If the USDOJ wants to clean up the anti-competitive mess, a good place to start would be a rethink of the USPTO. As one person pointed out some hours ago:

the uspo just approves patents now days, they are a gigantic money hole. They let litigation test the validity of patents.

Claudio from Linux Basement replied with

Talk about a waste of money on paying those salaries if they aren’t going to do their job of properly approving patents.

What a waste of productivity and what a toll on everyone. Citizens of the United States would be up in arms if they understood the ramifications that are kept hidden from them (like artificially elevated cost on everything in the market). The backlogs used to be a symptom and an argument for overhaul of the USPTO; by throwing more people at the problem, the USPTO helps ensure it keeps doing its rancid things, granting yet more monopolies on yet more walks of life. People need to get up and protest. █

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