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<title>Why We Must Fight UCITA - GNU Project |
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- Free Software Foundation</title> |
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<!--#include virtual="/philosophy/po/ucita.translist" --> |
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<h2>Why We Must Fight UCITA</h2> |
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wkotwica |
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<p> |
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webcvs |
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UCITA is a proposed law, designed by the proprietary software |
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developers, who are now asking all 50 states of the US to adopt it. |
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If UCITA is adopted, it will threaten the free software community |
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yavor |
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<a href="#Note1">(1)</a> with disaster. To understand why, please |
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read on.</p> |
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wkotwica |
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<p> |
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We generally believe that big companies ought to be held to a strict |
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standard of liability to their customers, because they can afford it |
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and because it will keep them honest. On the other hand, individuals, |
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amateurs, and good samaritans should be treated more favorably.</p> |
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<p> |
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webcvs |
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UCITA does exactly the opposite. It makes individuals, amateurs, and |
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good samaritans liable, but not big companies.</p> |
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<p> |
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webcvs |
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You see, UCITA says that by default a software developer or |
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distributor is completely liable for flaws in a program; but it also |
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allows a shrink-wrap license to override the default. Sophisticated |
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software companies that make proprietary software will use shrink-wrap |
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licenses to avoid liability entirely. But amateurs, and self-employed |
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contractors who develop software for others, will often be shafted |
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because they didn't know about this problem. And we free software |
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developers won't have any reliable way to avoid the problem.</p> |
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<p> |
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webcvs |
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What could we do about this? We could try to change our licenses to |
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avoid it. But since we don't use shrink-wrap licenses, we cannot |
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override the UCITA default. Perhaps we can prohibit distribution in |
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yavor |
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the states that adopt UCITA. That might solve the problem—for |
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the software we release in the future. But we can't do this |
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retroactively for software we have already released. Those versions |
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are already available, people are already licensed to distribute them |
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in these states—and when they do so, under UCITA, they would |
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make us liable. We are powerless to change this situation by changing |
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our licenses now; we will have to make complex legal arguments that |
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may or may not work.</p> |
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wkotwica |
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<p> |
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webcvs |
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UCITA has another indirect consequence that would hamstring free |
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yavor |
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software development in the long term—it gives proprietary |
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software developers the power to prohibit reverse engineering. This |
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would make it easy for them to establish secret file formats and |
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protocols, which there would be no lawful way for us to figure |
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out.</p> |
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wkotwica |
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<p> |
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webcvs |
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That could be a disastrous obstacle for development of free software |
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that can serve users' practical needs, because communicating with |
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users of non-free software is one of those needs. Many users today |
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feel that they must run Windows, simply so they can read and write |
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yavor |
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files in Word format. Microsoft's “Halloween documents” |
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announced a plan to use secret formats and protocols as a weapon to |
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obstruct the development of the GNU/Linux system |
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<a href="#Note2">(2)</a>.</p> |
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wkotwica |
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<p> |
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webcvs |
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Precisely this kind of restriction is now being used in Norway to |
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prosecute 16-year-old Jon Johansen, who figured out the format of DVDs |
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to make it possible to write free software to play them on free |
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operating systems. (The Electronic Frontier Foundation is helping |
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wkotwica |
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with his defense; see <a href="http://www.eff.org/">http://www.eff.org</a> |
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for further information.)</p> |
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<p> |
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webcvs |
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Some friends of free software have argued that UCITA would benefit our |
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community, by making non-free software intolerably restrictive, and |
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brett |
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thus driving users to us. Realistically speaking, this is unlikely, |
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because it assumes that proprietary software developers will act |
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against their own interests. They may be greedy and ruthless, but |
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wkotwica |
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they are not stupid.</p> |
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<p> |
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webcvs |
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Proprietary software developers intend to use the additional power |
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UCITA would give them to increase their profits. Rather than using |
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this power at full throttle all the time, they will make an effort to |
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find the most profitable way to use it. Those applications of UCITA |
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power that make users stop buying will be abandoned; those that most |
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wkotwica |
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users tolerate will become the norm. UCITA will not help us.</p> |
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<p> |
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webcvs |
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UCITA does not apply only to software. It applies to any sort of |
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computer-readable information. Even if you use only free software, |
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you are likely to read articles on your computer, and access data |
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bases. UCITA will allow the publishers to impose the most outrageous |
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restrictions on you. They could change the license retroactively at |
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any time, and force you to delete the material if you don't accept the |
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change. They could even prohibit you from describing what you see as |
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wkotwica |
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flaws in the material.</p> |
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<p> |
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webcvs |
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This is too outrageous an injustice to wish on anyone, even if it |
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would indirectly benefit a good cause. As ethical beings, we must not |
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favor the infliction of hardship and injustice on others on the |
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grounds that it will drive them to join our cause. We must not be |
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wkotwica |
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Machiavellian. The point of free software is concern for each other.</p> |
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<p> |
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yavor |
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Our only smart plan, our only ethical plan, is…to defeat UCITA!</p> |
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wkotwica |
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<p> |
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webcvs |
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If you want to help the fight against UCITA, by meeting with state |
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legislators in your state, send mail to Skip Lockwood |
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yavor |
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<a href="mailto:dfc@dfc.org"><dfc@dfc.org></a>. He can tell you how to |
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wkotwica |
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contribute effectively.</p> |
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<p> |
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yavor |
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Volunteers are needed most urgently in Virginia and |
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Maryland <a href="#Note3">(3)</a>, but California and Oklahoma are |
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coming soon. There will probably be a battle in every state sooner or |
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later.</p> |
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wkotwica |
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<p> |
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webcvs |
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For more information about UCITA, see |
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rsd |
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<a href="http://web.archive.org/web/20000520080750/http://www.badsoftware.com/uccindex.htm">http://www.badsoftware.com |
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[Archived Page]</a> or read the UCITA page on |
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rsd |
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Wikipedia: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uniform_Computer_Information_Transactions_Act"> |
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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uniform_Computer_Information_Transactions_Act</a>. </p> |
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<!-- Link broken as of 21 Oct 2012 |
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InfoWorld magazine is also helping to fight |
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against UCITA; see |
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wkotwica |
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<a href="http://archive.infoworld.com/cgi-bin/displayStory.pl?/features/990531ucita_home.htm"> |
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rsd |
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http://archive.infoworld.com/cgi-bin/displayStory.pl?/features/990531ucita_home.htm</a> |
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--> |
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yavor |
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<h4>Notes</h4> |
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<ol> |
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<li id="Note1">Other people have been using the term “open |
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source” to describe a similar category of software. I use the |
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term “free software” to show that the Free Software |
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Movement still exists—that the Open Source Movement has not |
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replaced or absorbed us. |
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wkotwica |
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<p> |
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If you value your freedom as well as your convenience, I suggest you |
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yavor |
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use the term “free software”, not “open |
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source”, to describe your own work, so as to stand up clearly |
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for your values.</p> |
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<p> |
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If you value accuracy, please use the term “free |
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software”, not “open source”, to describe the work |
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of the Free Software Movement. The GNU operating system, its |
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GNU/Linux variant, the many GNU software packages, and the GNU GPL, |
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are all primarily the work of the Free Software Movement. The |
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supporters of the Open Source Movement have the right to promote their |
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views, but they should not do so on the basis of our achievements.</p> |
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wkotwica |
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<p> |
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mattl |
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See <a href="/philosophy/open-source-misses-the-point.html"> |
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http://www.gnu.org/philosophy/open-source-misses-the-point.html</a> for |
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more explanation.</p></li> |
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<li id="Note2">The system is often called “Linux”, but |
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properly speaking Linux is actually the kernel, one major component of |
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the system (see |
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<a href="/gnu/linux-and-gnu.html">http://www.gnu.org/gnu/linux-and-gnu.html</a>).</li> |
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yavor |
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<li id="Note3">The Maryland lower house has approved UCITA; there is a |
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push to get the state senate to approve it before the end of the |
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legislative session, on April 10. |
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<p> |
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To rush the consideration of this bill is even more obviously foolish |
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than the bill itself. So if you live in Maryland, please phone or |
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write to your state senator, saying the senate should at least defer |
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UCITA for summer study, if it is not rejected outright.</p> |
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<p> |
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If you know anyone in Maryland who works with computers, please |
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forward this message to that person and ask for per support.</p></li> |
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yavor |
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</ol> |
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|
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<hr /> |
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<p style="text-align:center"> |
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If you support the anti UCITA campaign, <em>please make prominent links to |
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this page, http://www.4cite.org [closed].</em> |
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wkotwica |
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</p> |
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|
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wkotwica |
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<hr /> |
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yavor |
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<h4>Links to other articles</h4> |
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wkotwica |
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<ul> |
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ineiev |
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<li><a href="http://www.ieeeusa.org/policy/issues/UCITA/">IEEE |
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wkotwica |
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supports the movement to oppose UCITA</a></li> |
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rsd |
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|
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joeko |
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<li><a href="http://www.computerworld.com/article/2593115/app-development/cios-join-fight-to-kill-ucita.html">CIOs |
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rsd |
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join fight to kill UCITA</a></li> |
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<li><a href="http://web.archive.org/web/20010818101424/http://interlog.com/~cjazz/bnews7.htm">Anti |
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UCITA, and other interesting links maintained by Citizens on the Web |
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[Archived Page]</a> |
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</li> |
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wkotwica |
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</ul> |
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yavor |
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</div><!-- for id="content", starts in the include above --> |
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<!--#include virtual="/server/footer.html" --> |
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<div id="footer"> |
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ineiev |
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<div class="unprintable"> |
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wkotwica |
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|
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<p>Please send general FSF & GNU inquiries to |
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<a href="mailto:gnu@gnu.org"><gnu@gnu.org></a>. |
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There are also <a href="/contact/">other ways to contact</a> |
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the FSF. Broken links and other corrections or suggestions can be sent |
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to <a href="mailto:webmasters@gnu.org"><webmasters@gnu.org></a>.</p> |
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<p><!-- TRANSLATORS: Ignore the original text in this paragraph, |
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replace it with the translation of these two: |
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We work hard and do our best to provide accurate, good quality |
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translations. However, we are not exempt from imperfection. |
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Please send your comments and general suggestions in this regard |
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to <a href="mailto:web-translators@gnu.org"> |
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<web-translators@gnu.org></a>.</p> |
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<p>For information on coordinating and submitting translations of |
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our web pages, see <a |
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href="/server/standards/README.translations.html">Translations |
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README</a>. --> |
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Please see the <a |
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href="/server/standards/README.translations.html">Translations |
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README</a> for information on coordinating and submitting translations |
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of this article.</p> |
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</div> |
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|
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<!-- Regarding copyright, in general, standalone pages (as opposed to |
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files generated as part of manuals) on the GNU web server should |
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gnun |
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be under CC BY-ND 4.0. Please do NOT change or remove this |
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ineiev |
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without talking with the webmasters or licensing team first. |
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Please make sure the copyright date is consistent with the |
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document. For web pages, it is ok to list just the latest year the |
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document was modified, or published. |
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If you wish to list earlier years, that is ok too. |
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Either "2001, 2002, 2003" or "2001-2003" are ok for specifying |
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years, as long as each year in the range is in fact a copyrightable |
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year, i.e., a year in which the document was published (including |
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being publicly visible on the web or in a revision control system). |
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There is more detail about copyright years in the GNU Maintainers |
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Information document, www.gnu.org/prep/maintain. --> |
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|
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gnun |
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<p>Copyright © 2000, 2008, 2013, 2016 Free Software Foundation, Inc.</p> |
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|
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jturner |
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<p>This page is licensed under a <a rel="license" |
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gnun |
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href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">Creative |
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Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License</a>.</p> |
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wkotwica |
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|
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<!--#include virtual="/server/bottom-notes.html" --> |
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<p class="unprintable">Updated: |
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bkuhn |
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<!-- timestamp start --> |
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ineiev |
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$Date: 2016/05/02 11:00:38 $ |
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bkuhn |
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<!-- timestamp end --> |
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wkotwica |
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</p> |
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</div> |
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yavor |
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</div> |
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wkotwica |
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</body> |
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sinuhe |
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</html> |