It's All Geek To Me - July 27th 2005

Open Source isn't a Religion, and There's no Admission Fee by Ross Lasley Here at KISS we gets lots of questions about open source technology, and we are admittedly big fans. One of the things pretty consistent about the people asking the questions is that they have read some article about open source and are wondering what is required to make “the switch.”

The answer, quite simply, is nothing – there is no “switch” and some of the best open source programs available today run on the computer you have now.

One of my favorite examples of a simple way to try open source and look like a hero in your organization at the same time? Open Office.

Open Office is a free program that replaces Microsoft Office. In an age where a new complete computer is being sold by Dell for less than $500, you are asked for an additional $349 for Office. Youch!

This article is being written with Open Office Writer – I abandoned Word years ago and never looked back. One of the great things about Open Office is its full compatibility with all major office suites, including Microsoft. That means I can use this free software to open any “word” document you might send me, as well as Lotus, Works, Wordperfect, Star Writer, etc – and I can create “word” documents, as well.

Some of the advanced features of Microsoft Office can occasionally justify the price – merging documents, drawing, stuff like that – but if you simply need to type like I do, why not save yourself some serious moola.

What do you think the boss will say when you present your plan to reduce the software costs for every employee by 50% ?

If you download the program (and yes it has versions of excel and powerpoint as part of the program) and you don't like it, you've lost nothing – just stop using it.

There are a wide array of open source programs that replace “standards” - like Adobe's Acrobat program. You probably are familiar with PDF files – the IRS uses them for forms, and lots of manuals come in this format. If you've ever wanted to create PDFs of your own, you probably priced Acrobat – it's $ 450.

I'd like to introduce you to a free open source program called PDFCreator
If you're using the most advanced features of Acrobat, this probably isn't the best replacement. But, if you are using it like 99% of us do - just to make PDFs out of documents already on our computer - this is a wonderful solution.

Commercial software is a bit like a car with the hood welded shut. Open Source functionality is software that never says no. Anything is possible in this secure and scalable environment. It's like the difference between hiring an architect to design your home and buying a modular home unit – anything is possible with an architect. If you aren't happy with the way a particular program works, you can change it (or pay someone to do it for you).

I'd encourage you to give it a try – it's just getting better all the time.

As the RIAA returns to its lawsuits, so is a fool who repeats his folly
by Josiah Cole

Today The Register displayed a look at some breaking technology news from exactly 5 years ago today. The story was about how on July 27, 2000, San Fransisco judge Marilyn Hall Patel ordered Napster to shut down and stop their “massive infringement”. Quoted in the article, the judge said "Napster wrote the software, it's up to them to write software that will remove from users the ability to copy copyrighted material. They created a monster".

The interesting part of the news article was the mention of how earlier the RIAA also sued Diamond Rio to stop the roll-out of one of the first MP3 players on the market (the PMP 300). This, of course, just displays the type of tactics we all know and love, and that the RIAA uses in order to keep their grip on music distribution and creation. The following is a quote from RIAA President Hillary Rosen "We sincerely doubt that there would be a market for the MP3 portable recording devices but for the thousands and thousands of illegal songs on the Internet." Ouch, Hillary, I bet you wish you could take that one back right about now.

The RIAA didn't recognize at the time and still doesn't recognize that suing to keep an MP3 player (or any other technology with a legitimate use) off the market #1, doesn't work (thanks to thousands of passionate geeks who keep making new file sharing apps) and, #2, is not in their best interests financially. Legal MP3 downloading is at an all time high and the companies that the RIAA represents are making money hand over fist. The thought of any company suing the makers of a music playing device is a little looney these days. What isn't looney is that the RIAA is still up to it's old bag of tricks. They are still suing individual fans, oops - I mean 'pirates', and trying to sue every P2P software maker on the planet (thankfully, pro-corporate US laws still don't apply in every country quite yet).

I sincerely hope that one day we will look back and see these lawsuits in the same manner as the one against Diamond Rio. You would think with all those lawyers, consultants, smart executives and, of course, all that money, the RIAA would learn from their lessons, embrace the new technology and see it as a way to make even more money. This really should appeal to them as it's pretty much all they're about (and don't say they're about “the music”).