[dot] aKademy Interview: Bernhard Reister, FSFE

[Dot Stories]

URL: http://dot.kde.org/1094035674/

From: Tom Chance <akademy-team at kde.org>
Dept: free-your-software
Date: Wednesday 01/Sep/2004, @12:47

aKademy Interview: Bernhard Reister, FSFE
=========================================

   In his speech
[http://conference2004.kde.org/cfp-userconf/bernhard.reiter-social.political.aspects.free.software.php]
at aKademy [http://conference2004.kde.org/], Bernhard Reiter of the Free
Software Foundation Europe [http://www.fsfe.org/] (FSFE) both celebrated
Software Freedom Day and reminded the KDE community of what freedom in
software means. The FSFE was founded in 2001 to promote and defend Free
Software, and to coordinate national Free Software organizations,
throughout Europe. Bernhard is the Chancellor of the German Chapter and
has been involved since the FSFE's inception. Interested in what he had
to say to the KDE community, I caught up with him after his talk to ask
him a few questions. Read on for his responses.

     You mentioned in your presentation the threats of software patents
and DRM  (Damn Restriction Management, as you described it). What other
areas do you  think the Free Software movement will need to address in
the next few  years?

     Well to begin with, the issues of software patents and DRM will be
huge and so  will be keeping us all busy for many years yet. Other
issues do exist but  they are generally ongoing as opposed to short-term
projects. We expect that  there will be more legislative and political
attacks on Free Software, but we cannot  predict what they will be.

     The most important point I want to emphasize is that we must
continue to educate people, and especially politicians, about Free
Software. We must  convey what it means to the whole world, in terms of
who controls technology  and how it affects our lives. If we can do
that, we won't have to spend so  much time defending against attacks
because more people will help us.


 In Europe in particular, Governments are now driving a lot of the Free 
Software adoption. What part can projects like KDE and organizations
like the  FSFE play in this process?

     Not everybody takes a huge interest in politics and I believe that
it is normal that some people stay of the technical side of things and
just develop software. On the other hand we need more people to engage
themself politically for Free Software. Others should at least be
responsible and keep their eyes open for events and developments where
they can do their share. So they should, for example, be aware of
demonstrations and lobbying efforts on issues like software patents.

     In terms of development, members of the Free Software community
should also  bear in mind that code can shape laws. If the code doesn't
allow a person to  perform a particular action, then the code is
controlling that person. In  projects like KDE, which are reaching a
fairly mature stage, developers  should be focussing on the users and
trying to make Free Software more usable  for them. Even development can
be political issue.


 An important aspect of freedom in software is the ability to use it.
Yet  although KDE is currently translated into over 80 languages, there
are  hundreds more that are commonly used and that aren't yet covered.
How can a  community of volunteers, both in KDE and the FSFE, help this?

     KDE developers already do help, in that they are part of a process
of gradual  improvements in internationalization and localization. In
terms of Free  Software organizations, apart from the FSFE in Europe and
the FSF in North  America there aren't any well established
organizations. We are hoping to  change that, but we don't want to take
money and help from Governments and  companies, even if it would help
with internationalization, if that were to  harm our independence and
our ability to promote Free Software. We need to be  careful about where
we use our money, and what the specific focus of our  investments are.

     In general the direction that Free Software takes ought to be
driven by competition and user demand, not interference from government.


 But do you not think that there is a role for government in areas where
the  market cannot yet supply full internationalization, especially
where a large  proportion of the population cannot speak English?

     Well yes, of course government should be interested in preserving
the cultural  and linguistic heritage of their country. Where the market
cannot provide, it  is their duty to do so.


 Moving back to software, are there any areas in particular on the Free 
Software desktop that you think developers need to address most
urgently?

     It is hard to say what is missing before we try deploying our
software in the  target markets, and so we will know a lot more when
GNU/Linux is deployed in more corporations. I am worried that many
desktops are adding proprietary  software to their systems where Free
Software isn't yet available or good  enough, usually because it is more
convenient. Proprietary PDF readers and  the MP3 format are an example
where Free alternatives exist (KGhostView and  Ogg Vorbis, for example).
Any many proprietary tools are being used to  develop Free desktops;
proprietary vector editing applications, for example, are used by many
of the icon artists. We ought to be working to stop this being necessary
or even desirable.

     Personally I would like to see more attention to businesses, with a
good  business model for private desktop users. The FSFE has an 
initiative called the GNU  Business Network
[http://www.fsfeurope.org/projects/gbn/] which could help in this area
if we received more  funding. Society needs businesses, but it shouldn't
be driven by business  interests. Rather, society should be laying down
the ethics by which  businesses operate. Free Software desktops can be
part of the development of  such an ethical business model for Free
Software.


 Should projects like KDE be more proactive in promoting Free Software
then, including more protective licenses like the GNU GPL?

     It is a matter of strategy. Yes, the KDE Project should promote
freedom both  by choosing free licenses (e.g. the GNU GPL) and by
talking to partners and  the public about it, but there are also times
when it is more strategic to  use a license with less protection (using
the GNU LGPL, for example, to spread  adoption).

     Qt on Windows remains a problem for us, since it is not available
under a Free  license. KDE goes to some lengths to allow proprietary KDE
software to  be developed by releasing its libraries under the LGPL.
This may be a good  strategy - I don't want to condemn it in general -
but it poses practical problems for KDE development as they cannot
accept GNU GPL code for the core libraries and the modules that require
a Qt licensing exception when using GNU GPL. Which code goes into which
module within KDE is governed by this requirement that only benefits
proprietary KDE applications.

     The KDE Project ought to recognize how much it has given Trolltech,
whose  success is based to a large extent on the success of KDE. Maybe
the KDE  Project could encourage Trolltech to GPL the Windows version of
its toolkit?  The current arrangement is not unreasonable, but the KDE
Project should be  aware that it can talk to Trolltech on an equal
level.


 Bernhard, thank you for this conversation.


 It's no problem, it is always good to educate more users about Freedom.
I  would like to note that it is a good sign that the FSFE were invited
to  aKademy, and that the KDE Project and the FSFE have a good
relationship. We  welcome all future cooperation.