Qi Hardware’s tiny, hackable Ben NanoNote now shipping
Continue reading Qi Hardware’s tiny, hackable Ben NanoNote now shipping
Qi Hardware’s tiny, hackable Ben NanoNote now shipping originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 15 Mar 2010 01:41:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
North Korea’s Red Star OS takes the ‘open’ out of ‘open source’
Gallery: North Korea’s Red Star OS
North Korea’s Red Star OS takes the ‘open’ out of ‘open source’ originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 04 Mar 2010 15:14:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Lobby Group Says Open-Source Threatens Capitalism
Does advocating the use of open-source software make one an enemy of capitalism? Yes, according to a U.S. intellectual property lobby group.
The Guardian reports that the International Intellectual Property Alliance, a lobby group broadly representing the RIAA, MPAA and others, has requested that the U.S. government put countries including Indonesia, Brazil and India on the “Special 301 watchlist.” Special 301 is a report that concerns the “adequacy and effectiveness of intellectual property rights” around the globe. Being put on the associated watchlist effectively puts those countries on a shortlist of governments considered “enemies of capitalism” who aren’t doing enough to protect intellectual property abroad.
The reason the IIPA is so concerned about the aforementioned countries? They apparently have the audacity to either use or advocate the use of open-source software either in government departments or in state-owned businesses. The lobby group has asked the U.S. Trade Representative to accord countries like Indonesia Special 301 status because it feels that encouraging the use of open-source threatens the software industry and devalues intellectual property rights. The IIPA’s recommendation to the USTR includes the following text:
“The Indonesian government’s policy… simply weakens the software industry and undermines its long-term competitiveness by creating an artificial preference for companies offering open source software and related services, even as it denies many legitimate companies access to the government market.
Rather than fostering a system that will allow users to benefit from the best solution available in the market, irrespective of the development model, it encourages a mindset that does not give due consideration to the value to intellectual creations.
As such, it fails to build respect for intellectual property rights and also limits the ability of government or public-sector customers (e.g., State-owned enterprise) to choose the best solutions.”
Countries apparently don’t even have to officially legislate the use of open-source software; Indonesia has drawn the ire of the IIPA for merely recommending open-source software in a circular to government departments.
We’re somewhat astonished at the implications of this. What do you think: Does open-source software somehow inherently threaten intellectual property? Should countries who make use of it in government departments be sanctioned for weakening the software industry?
[img credit: David Erickson]
[via Computer World UK]
Tags: Brazil, india, Indonesia, intellectual property, mpaa, open source, piracy, Political, riaa, software, special 301, trade, trending
Microsoft and Amazon announce open-source patent agreement, trinkets in exchange for air kisses
Mention “Microsoft” and “open-source” in the same breath and you’re guaranteed to create a suspicion interrupt within the Linux community. Toss in “patent agreement” and out come the irate spokesmen. So imagine the response to the announcement that Microsoft and Amazon have reached a cross-patent agreement that gives Amazon the right to use open-source software in its Kindle in exchange for an undisclosed tithe to Redmond. Microsoft also gains rights to Amazon’s patent portfolio.
The move prompted Jim Zemlin, executive director of the Linux Foundation, to claim that Microsoft appears to be trying to, “create uncertainty around Linux.” Mind you, this isn’t just tin-foil worry from the wire colander collective, Microsoft claims that free and open-source software violates some 235 Microsoft patents. A big enough stick to coax a number of companies — like Novell, Linspire, Xandros, Apple, and HP — into striking agreements with Microsoft or risk litigation as was the case with TomTom. Agreements that Canonical’s Mark Shuttelworth called, “Trinkets in exchange for air kisses,” or “patent terrorism” if you prefer Sun Microsystems’ take.
Microsoft and Amazon announce open-source patent agreement, trinkets in exchange for air kisses originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 23 Feb 2010 01:51:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Ubuntu Hardy Heron 8.04 gets ported onto Sony Ericsson’s Xperia X1
Not even a fortnight after we saw Android 2.0.1 slapped onto Sony Ericsson’s all-but-forgotten Xperia X1, along comes a port that makes the other look like child’s play. A dedicated coder over at XDA Developers has managed to stuff Ubuntu Hardy Heron 8.04 onto an X1, and while the functionality is limited (as you’d expect), the amount of fun to be had is restrained only by your imagination (and available vacation time). Go on and peek that source link to join the discussion — but be warned, you’ll be sucking down over a gigabyte worth of data before the first installation process.
[Thanks, Jules]
Ubuntu Hardy Heron 8.04 gets ported onto Sony Ericsson’s Xperia X1 originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 17 Feb 2010 02:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Symbian S^3 officially announced, previewed on video
The time has finally come for us to see Symbian’s milestone shift toward finger-friendly operation in motion. Firstly, to allay any fears that it’d lack all the modern amenities, we’ll note that kinetic scrolling, swiping, and pinch-to-zoom are all present and accounted for, while a “visual multi-tasking” option allows you to see the open applications in an interface not a million miles away from the Pre’s card implementation. Customization is also a big deal in the S^3 UI, with multiple Home Screen pages available, accompanied by a litany of widgets you can add and manage. The media player application looks like a homage (read: copy) of Apple’s Cover Flow UI, right down to the album covers flipping around to reveal the track listing. We’re not complaining, we consider that a very intelligent and pleasing way to browse through music. Go check out the moving picture show after the break.
Continue reading Symbian S^3 officially announced, previewed on video
Symbian S^3 officially announced, previewed on video originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 15 Feb 2010 04:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
ASUS planning a ‘killer product’ for June, Eee Pad noise grows louder
ASUS CEO Jonney Shih has been speaking on the subject of the now finalized Pegatron spin-off and delivered a couple of teasing tidbits of info about the company’s future direction. Naturally, most interest will be piqued by the “killer product” he has said is coming in June, but Jonney also mentions his company’s intent to be “another Apple” — only with a focus on open source — and he specifically points out ARM and Google as a preferred hardware / software combination, while obviously not ruling out Wintel offerings where the market demands it. Taken as a whole, his words mesh perfectly with what we’ve heard of the Eee Pad so far, namely that it’ll be powered by NVIDIA’s Tegra 2 (which utilizes ARM CPUs), probably run Android, and arrive in early June. We still don’t know whether that sub-$500 price will hold, but it’s good to put a bit of CEO-level meat on those rumor bones anyway.
ASUS planning a ‘killer product’ for June, Eee Pad noise grows louder originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 10 Feb 2010 09:22:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.