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Tech Weekly podcast: Google's access plans, academic collaboration, innovation
<p>Aleks Krotoski is joined in the studio by Jemima Kiss, Robert Andrews and mendeley.com's Victor Henning for this week's packed programme. The team tackle the web: collaboration, governance and net neutrality before sliding smoothly into a discussion of social innovation with Charles Leadbeater.</p><p>First up, what does the Google-Verizon deal mean for how we access the web and who can build content for it? The team are divided. What do you think?</p><p>In other Google news, what happened to Wave? Jemima and Robert weigh in on why the search engine's aggregated email/instant message/collaboration service failed to live up to expectations, and what this means for the "iterate and iterate often" culture of web development.</p><p>Richard Buchanan phones in to talk about the Facebook users' union, a new group on the social network that seeks compensation from Mark Zuckerberg himself for the data the site keeps about its membership. Jemima throws in a bit of business advice, free of charge.</p><p>Victor pitches mendeley.com, a collaborative tool and social networking facility for researchers, and discusses the ways the web has challenged intellectual property and academic discourse. He proposes a few changes he'd like to see in how research is published and shared.</p><p>Finally, Charles Leadbeater, author of We Think, tells Aleks how important web openness is for social innovation.</p><p>All this, plus the team's predictions on who would win in a playground fight ? Apple, Facebook or Google ? on this week's Tech Weekly.</p><p><strong>Don't forget to ...</strong></p><p>? Comment below<br />? Mail us at <a href="mailto:tech@guardian.co.uk">tech@guardian.co.uk</a><br />? Get our <a href="http://www.twitter.com/guardiantw">Twitter feed</a> for programme updates or follow our <a href="http://twitter.com/guardiantw/guardian-tech-podders">Twitter list</a><br />? Join our <a href="http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=15548445443">Facebook group</a><br />? See our <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/guardiantechweekly/">pics on Flickr</a>/Post <a href="http://www.flickr.com/groups/guardiantechweekly/">your tech pics</a></p><div class="author"><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/profile/alekskrotoski">Aleks Krotoski</a></div><div class="author"><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/profile/jemimakiss">Jemima Kiss</a></div><div class="author"><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/profile/robert-andrews">Robert Andrews</a></div><div class="author"><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/profile/scottcawley">Scott Cawley</a></div><br/><p style="clear:both" />
My bright idea: Charles Leadbeater on net-powered social change
<div class="track"><img alt="" src="http://hits.guardian.co.uk/b/ss/guardiangu-feeds/1/H.20.4/72086?ns=guardian&pageName=My+bright+idea%3A+Charles+Leadbeater+on+net-powered+social+change%3AArticle%3A1434921&ch=Technology&c3=Obs&c4=Open+source+%28Technology%29%2CInternet%2CSocial+media%2CWeb+2.0%2CTechnology&c5=Media+Weekly%2CTechnology+Gadgets%2CCorporate+IT&c6=Aleks+Krotoski&c7=10-Aug-08&c8=1434921&c9=Article&c10=Feature%2CInterview&c11=Technology&c13=My+bright+idea+%28series%29&c25=&c30=content&h2=GU%2FTechnology%2FOpen+source" width="1" height="1" /></div><p class="standfirst">Author and social entrepreneur Charles Leadbeater says that new technology can give ordinary people the means to tackle social problems in direct, innovative ways</p><p>Charles Leadbeater is an online evangelist. The former <em>Financial Times </em>journalist has moved away from politics into a world of social entrepreneurs, amateur activists and grassroots campaigners who are exploiting digital technologies to develop solutions to problems that lie outside the interests of commercial and state institutions. He believes that online tools can be used to organise and galvanise. He produced a call-to-arms in <em>We-think: The Power of Mass Creativity</em> (Profile), a book that documents the rise of amateur activism in a time of information revolution. His research with digital activists who work with people in some of the world's most impoverished places shows how the web can galvanise support from around the globe ? using new applications, devices and social networks ? and what needs to be in place for this to happen.</p><p><strong>What exactly does a social entrepreneur do?</strong></p><p>Social entrepreneurs act to attack big social challenges that have been left unaddressed by the private sector, because there's not much money to be made, or left by government because it overlooks them or doesn't have the resources or interest to tackle them, or fails to create new ways of tackling issues such as providing clean water, inoculating babies, providing education and child care, or collecting refuse.</p><p></p><p><strong>What aspect of digital technologies facilitates social entrepreneurship?</strong></p><p>It's watching a video of Edmund Phelps accept the Nobel prize in economics, thinking: I didn't understand that, looking him up, emailing him and having a conversation with a Nobel laureate an hour later. That's staggering.</p><p>It's also the simple associative link: in three clicks you can start somewhere and end up somewhere you never dreamed of, with information, perspective or insight that you'd never have found. One of the joys of the internet is finding and reading something you think is wonderful that you'd never have found without it.</p><p><strong>How often are digital tools such as the web used by social entrepreneurs?</strong></p><p>The number using digital technology is low compared with non-digital technology. In the developing world, people often use quite basic technology. Many of the most imaginative schemes are using what we'd count as old tech. But you have to hope that in 10 years, when digital technology is all pervasive and meets both the huge need in the developing world and a body of social entrepreneurs, we will witness some flowering of social innovation to, for instance, provide education in new ways, to mobilise people to critical action in new ways, or allow poor people access to markets.</p><p></p><p><strong>What needs to be in place ? socially, technologically or commercially ? to ensure that this future occurs?</strong></p><p>Technologically, you have to have capability and openness. If you create open technology that people can use, adapt and play with, it builds capability and they teach themselves. But if you've got closed systems, where all the end-user can do is to use it to download stuff, that doesn't build capability. The significance of open systems is that they allow people to learn how to use them and to adapt them for their own uses. That is a really important connection. We're seeing people able to mobilise forms of knowledge and take action, finding other people without needing high-cost professional networks.</p><p>One example is an HIV/Aids activist network in Africa called Mothers to Mothers. It's HIV-positive mothers advising other HIV-positive mothers about how to take anti-retroviral drugs and how to cope with the stigma of HIV and Aids. In a way that will allow them to live a more normal life. It's not terribly technology-enabled ? it's organised using mobile phones and networks ? but it's completely peer-to-peer: it's mothers advising mothers.</p><p>It's just one example, but it demonstrates how technology is facilitating the power of the lateral connection: the important knowledge won't come from the professionals, but from other mothers who have had a similar experience or share a similar vantage point. That's becoming more possible. We can get things done together ? get knowledge, get advice in ways that in the past relied on very big, formal, often professional systems.</p><p>Commercially, companies will have to have an understanding of how you allow people to share stuff and make money from it. Only a small number of people will make money by completely controlling everything. Even Apple has allowed a limited amount of sharing, but I don't think it gets the open web. Google is an open world, but with a monstrous manipulation of advertising around search. Google will have to share revenue with content creators for the open ecology to continue to work.</p><p><strong>How will the developing world create its own amateur activist culture?</strong></p><p>It's all about access: the right tools, the right institutions, the right culture. Ten-year-olds are alike wherever you go; they just gobble this stuff up. I went to a school in a village three hours outside São Paulo, Brazil, 20km down a mud track. The parents of half of the kids in the school were illiterate, but I watched the kids make videos for YouTube. It's waiting to explode, but if it arrives pre-packaged or tied up or fenced off, then you won't get that.</p><p></p><p><strong>The author </strong><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2007/jul/20/computingandthenet.books" title="Andrew Keen argues"><strong>Andrew Keen argues</strong></a><strong> that amateur practices are detrimental to&nbsp;society.</strong></p><p>They could be if they become the only way to do things, completely replacing professional knowledge in places where professional knowledge is needed. But what Keen does is to paint an overly romantic picture of a nostalgic past.</p><p>You can go online now and find really thoughtful, in-depth, considered, well-informed communities around virtually any issue. If it's your issue, there are now new ways of mobilising knowledge that weren't there before. There are real bodies of significant knowledge on the web that are valuable that we haven't done nearly enough with.</p><p></p><p><strong>How can we ensure that the participants&nbsp;in this culture aren't exploited by commercial organisations or governments?</strong></p><p>There's a basic trade-off that's still important. The first precondition for survival is to be seen to do stuff well. But this raises an issue that demands an activist consumer culture. People may be prepared to buy services from Apple and Amazon if they feel these companies do a good job, but we need to ensure that we can speak up when our content is used by other people for their profit. An activist amateur culture will constantly challenge and say, "This is mine, you're not doing that with it".</p><p>The second precondition is that we'll need more effective forms of regulation to understand the web. Regulating a television company and regulating Facebook are completely different challenges, and Facebook may be our most important intermediary of information in 10 years.</p><div class="related" style="float: left; margin-right: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><ul><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/opensource">Open source</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/internet">Internet</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/social-media">Social media</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/web20">Web 2.0</a></li></ul></div><div class="author"><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/profile/alekskrotoski">Aleks Krotoski</a></div><br/><div class="terms"><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk">guardian.co.uk</a> &copy; Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our <a href="http://users.guardian.co.uk/help/article/0,,933909,00.html">Terms & Conditions</a> | <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/help/feeds">More Feeds</a></div><p style="clear:both" />
John Naughton on WikiLeaks
<div class="track"><img alt="" src="http://hits.guardian.co.uk/b/ss/guardiangu-feeds/1/H.20.4/14185?ns=guardian&pageName=John+Naughton+on+WikiLeaks%3AArticle%3A1432825&ch=Technology&c3=Obs&c4=Wikileaks%2CInternet%2CTechnology%2COpen+source+%28Technology%29%2CCensorship+%28News%29&c5=Digital+Media%2CNot+commercially+useful%2CTechnology+Gadgets%2CCorporate+IT&c6=John+Naughton&c7=10-Aug-01&c8=1432825&c9=Article&c10=Comment&c11=Technology&c13=The+networker+%28series%29&c25=&c30=content&h2=GU%2FTechnology%2FWikiLeaks" width="1" height="1" /></div><p class="standfirst">Whistleblowers won't find a better place to spill the beans than WikiLeaks</p><p>In the annals of the net, one of the sacred texts is John Gilmore's aphorism that "the internet interprets censorship as damage and routes around it". <a href="http://www.toad.com/gnu/" title="">Mr Gilmore </a>is a celebrated engineer, entrepreneur and libertarian activist, who is regarded by the US Department of Homeland Security, the National Security Agency and men in suits everywhere as a pain in the ass. He was the fifth employee of Sun Microsystems, which meant that he made a lot of money early in life, and he has devoted the rest of his time to spending it on a variety of excellent causes. These include: creating the "alt" (for alternative) hierarchy in the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alt.*_hierarchy" title="">Usenet discussion fora</a>; open-source software; drugs law reform; philanthropy; and the Electronic Frontier Foundation (which last week <a href="http://www.eff.org/press/archives/2010/07/26" title="">won a notable concession</a> from the Library of Congress to legalise the "jailbreaking" of one's iPhone ? ie liberating it from Apple's technical shackles).</p><p>The Gilmore aphorism about censorship first saw the light of day in 1993 ? in a <em>Time</em> article about the internet ? and since then has taken on a life of its own as a consoling mantra about the libertarian potential of the network. "In its original form," Gilmore explains, "it meant that the Usenet software (which moves messages around in discussion newsgroups) was resistant to censorship because, if a node drops certain messages because it doesn't like their subject, the messages find their way past that node anyway by some other route." But, he continues, "The meaning of the phrase has grown through the years. Internet users have proven it time after time, by personally and publicly replicating information that is threatened with destruction or censorship."</p><p>The aphorism came up a lot last week following publication by the <em>Guardian</em>, the <em>New York Times</em> and <em>Der Spiegel</em> of extensive reports based on the stash of <a href="http://www.wikileaks.org/wiki/Afghan_War_Diary,_2004-2010" title="">classified US military reports published on the WikiLeaks</a> website. And of course in one sense this latest publishing coup does appear to confirm Gilmore's original insight. But at the same time it grossly underestimates the amount of determination and technical ingenuity needed to make sure that the aphorism continues to hold good.</p><p>The sad truth is that, in practice, it is now trivially easy to censor the web. In most jurisdictions all you need to do is pay a lawyer to send a threatening letter to the ISP that hosts an offending site. The letter can allege defamation, or copyright infringement or privacy violations or a host of other grounds. The details usually don't matter because, nine times out of 10, the ISP will immediately shut down the site, often <a href="http://memex.naughtons.org/archives/2004/10/10/1438" title="">without bothering to check whether your complaints have any validity</a>. The reason: a legal precedent set by the so-called <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Godfrey_v_Demon_Internet_Service" title="">"demon internet" case</a>, which established that an ISP may be held liable for damages if it fails to act on a complaint. Most companies won't want to take the risk, so they pull the plug. QED.</p><p>So if the WikiLeaks operation depended on simply putting stuff on a website, then the governments and corporations who feel threatened by its exposures would have easily wiped it out years ago. Its durability is a product not just of the commitment of the activists behind it, but also of a sophisticated technical infrastructure which uses cryptography to ensure that every node in its virtual pipeline except the final, public, site is <a href="http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2010/06/07/100607fa_fact_khatchadourian" title="">virtually impossible to identify</a>.</p><p>At the heart of this is <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tor_%28anonymity_network%29" title="">Tor</a>, an open-source implementation of a networking technology which uses cryptography to pass data from router (internet node) to router in such a way that the identity of each is hidden. (The technology is derived from an earlier, multi-layered approach known as "the onion router" ? hence the acronym.) As luck would have it, Tor is also a technology routinely used by governments to pass secret information around, so there's a nicely ironic side to WikiLeaks' deployment of it.</p><p>Tor provides a way of publishing information so that it's extremely difficult to trace content to a particular internet address. This is good news for WikiLeaks geeks, but less so for the average whistleblower because it requires a level of technical expertise most people don't possess. Which is why most whistleblowers will have to rely on the old-fashioned approach of putting stuff on lots of websites and social networks in the hope that it will be widely replicated. This may ensure that John Gilmore's aphorism continues to hold. But it will also mean that the whistleblowers' identities will be exposed. So if you have anything to reveal, try sending it to WikiLeaks first.</p><div class="related" style="float: left; margin-right: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><ul><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/wikileaks">WikiLeaks</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/internet">Internet</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/opensource">Open source</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/censorship">Censorship</a></li></ul></div><div class="author"><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/profile/johnnaughton">John Naughton</a></div><br/><div class="terms"><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk">guardian.co.uk</a> &copy; Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our <a href="http://users.guardian.co.uk/help/article/0,,933909,00.html">Terms & Conditions</a> | <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/help/feeds">More Feeds</a></div><p style="clear:both" />
Government hints at open source mandate for websites as £360,000 cost revealed
<div class="track"><img alt="" src="http://hits.guardian.co.uk/b/ss/guardiangu-feeds/1/H.20.4/51225?ns=guardian&pageName=Government+hints+at+open+source+mandate+for+websites+as+*360%2C000+cost+re%3AArticle%3A1408817&ch=Technology&c3=GU.co.uk&c4=Open+source+%28Technology%29%2CTechnology%2CUK+supreme+court&c5=Not+commercially+useful%2CTechnology+Gadgets%2CCorporate+IT&c6=Charles+Arthur&c7=10-Jun-08&c8=1408817&c9=Article&c10=Blogpost&c11=Technology&c13=&c25=Technology+blog&c30=content&h2=GU%2FTechnology%2FOpen+source" width="1" height="1" /></div><p class="standfirst">UK Supreme Court website cost £360,000 to build, FOI request shows, as Cabinet Office minister hints open source will be favoured in future</p><p>Is the government going to mandate open source for its websites?</p><p>That's certainly the most straightforward way to read the <a href="http://www.theyworkforyou.com/wrans/?id=2010-06-03a.17.h">response by Francis Maude</a>, the Cabinet Office minister, to a question by one of his predecessors, the Labour minister Tom Watson: </p><blockquote><p>Tom Watson (West Bromwich East, Labour):</p></blockquote><blockquote><p>"To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what plans he has for the future of the (a) Number 10 and (b) Cabinet Office website; and if he will make a statement. "</p></blockquote><blockquote><p>Francis Maude (Minister for the Cabinet Office; Horsham, Conservative):</p></blockquote><blockquote><p>"The Government believe that departmental websites should be hubs for debate as well as information-where people come together to discuss issues and address challenges-and that this should be achieved efficiently and, whenever possible using open source software. Any future development of websites run by the Cabinet Office will be assessed and reviewed against these criteria."</p></blockquote><p>As Simon Dickson, who does a lot of website development for the government, <a href="http://puffbox.com/2010/06/04/gov-websites-to-use-open-source-whenever-possible/">points out</a>, that's a move on from what it says in the <a href="http://programmeforgovernment.hmg.gov.uk/government-transparency/">Government Transparency documents</a>. Those only talk about a level playing field (specifically, "We will create a level playing field for open-source software and will enable large ICT projects to be split into smaller components"), but as Dickson says: </p><blockquote><p>"We've heard the 'hubs for debate' line before, <a href="http://puffbox.com/2010/03/11/tories-promise-it-skunkworks/">in the Conservative tech manifesto</a>, but the other part is quite startling. Open source software 'wherever possible'. An unqualified statement of policy. No caveats at all; not even financial. That takes us far, far beyond the 'level playing field'."</p></blockquote><p>Watch this space. And while you're watching it, consider this: the website for the UK Supreme Court and Judicial Committee of the Privy Council was £360,000. Or as it puts it: "The cost to create and develop the UKSC and Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (JCPC) websites was £360k in total. The development of both sites was treated as a single project and therefore the costs cannot be broken down by website."</p><p>Here's the <a href="http://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/website_costs_3#incoming-89947">FOI request</a>; and read the <a href="http://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/34561/response/89947/attach/html/3/Mr%20Kitt%20FOI%2064935%20UKSC%20website.doc.html">document response in HTML</a>.</p><p>Perhaps open source would be slightly cheaper. We can hope.</p><div class="related" style="float: left; margin-right: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><ul><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/opensource">Open source</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/law/uk-supreme-court">UK supreme court</a></li></ul></div><div class="author"><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/profile/charlesarthur">Charles Arthur</a></div><br/><div class="terms"><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk">guardian.co.uk</a> &copy; Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our <a href="http://users.guardian.co.uk/help/article/0,,933909,00.html">Terms & Conditions</a> | <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/help/feeds">More Feeds</a></div><p style="clear:both" />
Coalition announces commitment to open source and free data
<div class="track"><img alt="" src="http://hits.guardian.co.uk/b/ss/guardiangu-feeds/1/H.20.4/19429?ns=guardian&pageName=Coalition+announces+commitment+to+open+source+and+free+data%3AArticle%3A1403986&ch=Technology&c3=GU.co.uk&c4=Open+source+%28Technology%29%2CTechnology%2CLinux+%28Technology%29%2CFree+our+data&c5=Technology+Gadgets%2CCorporate+IT&c6=Charles+Arthur&c7=10-May-25&c8=1403986&c9=Article&c10=Blogpost&c11=Technology&c13=&c25=Technology+blog&c30=content&h2=GU%2FTechnology%2FOpen+source" width="1" height="1" /></div><p class="standfirst">In a commentable online site, the coalition government announces its main plans - which include plans to publish contracts with ICT suppliers and government data</p><p>The coalition government says that it will "create a level playing field" for open source software in government projects, and split large computing projects into smaller ones - which will give smaller companies a better chance to compete in tenders.</p><p>In details laid out in its Programme for Government, the coalition also outlines sweeping changes which will introduce a new "right to data" - and oblige government and councils to publish more data in standard forms so that they can be examined and analysed.</p><p>The programme's <a href="http://programmeforgovernment.hmg.gov.uk/government-transparency/">section on government transparency</a> - which also allows, and has attracted, comments - sets out a number of key steps that will be implemented under plans outlined in the Queen's Speech to Parliament.</p><p>The coalition says it will:<br />&bull; take steps to open up government procurement and reduce costs;<br />&bull; publish government ICT contracts online.<br />&bull; create a level playing field for open-source software and will enable large ICT projects to be split into smaller components.<br />&bull; require full, online disclosure of all central government spending and contracts over £25,000.<br />&bull; create a new 'right to data' so that government-held datasets can be requested and used by the public, and then published on a regular basis<br />&bull; require all councils to publish meeting minutes and local service and performance data<br />&bull; require all councils to publish items of spending above £500, and to publish contracts and tender documents in full<br />&bull; ensure that all data published by public bodies is published in an open and standardised format, so that it can be used easily and with minimal cost by third parties.</p><p>Although the previous Labour administration had set out an aim to encourage the use of open source software and methods in government projects, it gained little traction. Its <a href="http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/+/http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/government_it/open_source.aspx">statement in February 2009</a> (now archived) said that open source should be on an "equal footing" with proprietary systems. That said that "Procurement decisions will be made on the basis on the best value for money solution to the business requirement, taking account of total lifetime cost of ownership of the solution, including exit and transition costs, after ensuring that solutions fulfil minimum and essential capability, security, scalability, transferability, support and manageability requirements." It also added that the government "will, wherever possible, avoid becoming locked in to proprietary software".</p><p>The coalition does not specify which departments will be in charge of implementing each of the plans. However, the "right to data" would probably be most easily effected through the Office of Public Sector Information, which is part of the National Archives - which is in turn managed through the Ministry of Justice.</p><p>However data about contracts may be published through the Cabinet Office. Meanwhile the Department for Communities and Local Government may have to bring in the laws relating to local councils - and there is so far no clear agreement on the formats in which data should be published.</p><div class="related" style="float: left; margin-right: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><ul><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/opensource">Open source</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/linux">Linux</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/free-our-data">Free our data</a></li></ul></div><div class="author"><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/profile/charlesarthur">Charles Arthur</a></div><br/><div class="terms"><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk">guardian.co.uk</a> &copy; Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our <a href="http://users.guardian.co.uk/help/article/0,,933909,00.html">Terms & Conditions</a> | <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/help/feeds">More Feeds</a></div><p style="clear:both" />
Democracy Club: The MySociety project building debate from the bottom up
<div class="track"><img alt="" src="http://hits.guardian.co.uk/b/ss/guardiangu-feeds/1/H.20.4/36905?ns=guardian&pageName=Democracy+Club%3A+The+MySociety+project+building+debate+from+the+bottom+up%3AArticle%3A1389256&ch=Media&c3=GU.co.uk&c4=Media%2CDigital+media%2COpen+source+%28Technology%29%2CPolitics%2CGeneral+election+2010&c5=Digital+Media%2CNot+commercially+useful%2CMedia+Weekly%2CTechnology+Gadgets&c6=Jemima+Kiss&c7=10-Apr-22&c8=1389256&c9=Article&c10=Blogpost&c11=Media&c13=&c25=PDA+blog&c30=content&h2=GU%2FMedia%2FDigital+media" width="1" height="1" /></div><p>I spent a good hour on Monday night photographing and uploading <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/labour">Labour</a>, <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/conservative">Conservative</a> and Green Party campaign leaflets to a website called <a href="http://www.thestraightchoice.org/">TheStraightChoice</a>. </p><p>I'm not the only one either, because there are more than 6,100 volunteers signed up to what is called the <a href="http://www.democracyclub.org.uk">DemocracyClub</a> project, which wants people to help record candidates' election pledges on national and local issues and see how they perform once elected.</p><p><a href=":http://www.democracyclub.org""></a></p><p>Sound ambitious? That's because Democracy Club is a spin off from MySociety - the powerful, much-admired digital democracy project that has led some&nbsp; impressive web initiatives since it was founded by Tom Steinberg in 2003. <a href="http://writetothem.com/">WriteToThem</a>, <a href="http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/">No 10 Downing Street Petitions</a>, <a href="http://whatdotheyknow.com/">WhatDoTheyKnow</a> and <a href="http://www.mysociety.org/projects/mapumental/">Mapumental</a> are just a few of their projects - all with the mission to give the public tools to hold those in power to account.</p><p>Democracy Club started as a way of gathering national and local consensus among the electorate about important issues, and getting precise, unspun answers from every candidate in every UK seat. Work began in January last year when some of MySociety's team worked with new volunteers IT consultant Seb Bacon and student Tim Green on the Democracy Club site, while <a href="http://www.yournextmp.com/">YourNextMp</a> was built by Edmund von der Burg. And volunteers began springing up in every constituency, each fulfilling small but essential tasks that got the project off the ground - like the hard graft of gathering email address and candidates' details than even the parties often didn't have, or documenting the interesting battleground of promise-filled campaign leaflets. </p><p>Now that they have all those contacts and a list of local issues in every constituency, as well as national issues, Democracy Club has sent a brief email survey to each candidate. Around 10% responded to last week's first round of emails. The keenest of volunteers might even track down candidates in person to get their response.</p><p>National issues - candidates are asked how strongly they agree or disagree with 15 statements including 'immigration levels are too high', 'British troops should stay in Afghanistan as long as they are needed' and 'a married, heterosexual couple provide the best environment in which to raise a family'.</p><p>Perhaps not surprisingly, candidates for the main three parties have had the worst response rates, perhaps reflecting how their 'message' is more centrally controlled. Independents and UKIP had a 34% and 23% response rate, while the LibDems, Labour and Conservatives had 10%, 7% and 2%.<br /> Rather than circumventing local or national media to get answers from politicians, the relationship is symbiotic, and is becoming increasingly more so with politicians themselves. </p><p>"It's exciting to give people an opportunity to do small things towards the goal of improving democracy, that will improve greater things," said Bacon. "We'd love to keep expanding this to more people - not people who are activist but people who are voting... especially with a local focus." </p><p>He said though Democracy Club could work as an organisational tool for a party - and could be used in that way now - it is more powerful to be politically independent as a tool that tries to reach out to people otherwise disillusioned by politics. </p><p>Bacon gave the example of a cab driver he'd met recently (always have the best anecdotes) who was enraged by the introduction of very bright, xenon headlights that he felt were dangerous. He'd gone from not using a computer to campaigning on Twitter and organising a petition No 10 Petition website - a good example of someone who can become engaged in political activity through a campaign they feel strongly about.</p><p>How has MySociety has become so successful and credible in using the web as a powerful political tool? Because they understand that it is most effective as a grassroots organisational tool that can empower individuals who become more powerful as part of a large and active group. They might not be the issues that win elections, but local issues <em>are</em> the way to directly involve and motivate more people.</p><p>Could this win an election? Probably not - but that's not the objective, said MySociety developer Francis Irving. "This is not really about how we use the web for elections because the interesting thing is how we use the web between elections for government. There are so many opportunities to improve people's lives... there's a deeper agenda about what to do next. What could be the eBay of online government? We want to build different communities, empower people to build those and to organise themselves."</p><p><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/epac_island/2725669751/"><br /><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3215/2725669751_efdca0b493.jpg" alt="seat of democracy by paintMonkey." width="460" /></a><br /><em>Photo by <a href="http://flickr.com/photos/epac_island/">paintMonkey</a> on Flickr. <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/deed.en">Some rights reserved</a></em></p><div class="related" style="float: left; margin-right: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><ul><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/digital-media">Digital media</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/opensource">Open source</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/general-election-2010">General election 2010</a></li></ul></div><div class="author"><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/profile/jemimakiss">Jemima Kiss</a></div><br/><div class="terms"><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk">guardian.co.uk</a> &copy; Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our <a href="http://users.guardian.co.uk/help/article/0,,933909,00.html">Terms & Conditions</a> | <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/help/feeds">More Feeds</a></div><p style="clear:both" />
Open innovation is coming of age | Victor Keegan
<div class="track"><img alt="" src="http://hits.guardian.co.uk/b/ss/guardiangu-feeds/1/H.20.4/86220?ns=guardian&pageName=Open+innovation+is+coming+of+age+%7C+Victor+Keegan%3AArticle%3A1384925&ch=Technology&c3=GU.co.uk&c4=Open+source+%28Technology%29%2CTechnology%2CInternet&c5=Technology+Gadgets%2CCorporate+IT&c6=Victor+Keegan&c7=10-Apr-16&c8=1384925&c9=Article&c10=Comment&c11=Technology&c13=&c25=&c30=content&h2=GU%2FTechnology%2FOpen+source" width="1" height="1" /></div><p class="standfirst">Companies need to open themselves up to collaboration if they want to stay competitive</p><p>Formula 1 has been at the awesome edge of innovation for decades, yet most of the time you would have been pushed to find the fruits of its research adopted elsewhere. Not any more. Technology developed by F1 engineers at McLaren ? in order, among other things, to speed up its pit stops ? is being used by air traffic control at Heathrow to predict aircraft movements two hours before they happen.</p><p>McLaren's pit stop technology has also been used at Great Ormond Street hospital in London to help streamline the handover between surgery and intensive care. These are but two examples of "open collaboration" between different industries which helped McLaren to win one of the five prizes ? for open innovation ? awarded in this year's Open Innovation competition <a href="http://www.nesta.org" title="organised by Nesta">organised by Nesta</a> and supported by the Guardian.</p><p>Open innovation is coming of age as companies and public sector bodies realise that if they want to stay competitive in future against the increasing global challenges, it makes absolute sense to collaborate with outsiders. Innovation is happening at a breathless pace in nearly every industry as the digital revolution demolishes the old business models.</p><p>But how do you know whether something being developed in an unrelated industry couldn't transform your own in the way <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/blog/2009/sep/16/last-fm-mendeley-victor-keegan" title="the principles of Last.fm have been applied to scientific research">the principles of Last.fm have been applied to scientific research</a> or how someone from the concrete industry <a href="http://www.ideaconnection.com/open-innovation-success/Open-Innovation-Exxon-Valdez-Cleanup-00030.html" title="solved the problem of getting rid of the oil from the Exxon Valdez oil disaster">solved the problem of getting rid of the oil from the Exxon Valdez oil disaster</a> 20 years on?</p><p>Being one of the judges of the competition opened my eyes ? not only to the huge potential of open collaboration as reflected in the winners, but also to some of the weaknesses of the model. First, the good news. We were required to choose winners from a shortlist of 100 divided into five sections. Winner of the crowdsourcing section was <a href="http://cloudmade.com/" title="Cloudmade">Cloudmade</a>, the company whose co-founder was responsible for starting OpenStreetMap, which is using volunteers to map the entire planet street by street with great success. The maps are free, but CloudMade has now built a company on top to employ people to exploit it commercially, a great example of how open innovation can be combined with a business model to create jobs for the future.</p><p>The admirable <a href="http://www.wikihow.com" title="wikihow.com">wikihow.com</a>, which uses crowdsourcing to generate "How to" videos that attract 25 million visitors a month, won the Co-creation award, while <a href="http://www.openoffice.org" title="Open Office">Open Office</a>, the open source alternative to Microsoft's Office, won the Open Source Software section in recognition of the progress that has been made over the years to make it more user-friendly. The winner of the Open Business award was <a href="http://www.zopa.com" title="Zopa">Zopa</a>, which provides a peer-to-peer lending and borrowing service that has grown strongly during the banking crisis although it is still a small organisation. If, and it is a big if, it can continue to provide a safe alternative to banks even though it doesn't have a government guarantee (it relies on spreading the risk of loans among dozens of different recipients), then customers will be satisfied and taxpayers could avoid future bailouts.</p><p>The weakness of the model? It was crystallised during an animated discussion about whether Apple should be considered for an award. Yes, of course, because its amazing store has generated more than 150,000 new apps in barely two years, creating a hotbed of innovation out of nothing. No, never, because of its control-freakishness in shutting out Flash animations (endemic on YouTube), exploiting a monopoly payments system and very strict take-it-or leave it rules about the process of making apps.</p><p>The trouble is that this Kremlinesque approach has resulted in such beautiful game-changing products as the iPhone and iPad that are a delight to use <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2010/apr/11/ipad-rusbridger-future-of-the-press" title="as reported in the Observer">as reported in the Observer</a>. Contrast that with Google's adoption of open source software for its Android phones. This is much better in theory as it allows developers to do their own thing but in practice, at least so far, this results in all sorts of different software versions that don't always work too well on the varying sizes and hardware of different Android phones. As Steven Johnson has pointed out, <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/11/technology/internet/11every.html" title="Steve Jobs has turned a walled garden into a rain forest">Steve Jobs has turned a walled garden into a rainforest</a>.</p><p>There is no doubt that open source solutions are on a roll and there are lots of areas where they will sweep all before them. The problem yet to be solved is how to harness the freedom and creativity that open collaboration offers with the need to have consumer friendly products that non-geeks will want to buy with their own money.</p><p>The free Linux operating system, devised by volunteers all over the world, is one of the wonders of the web but it still hasn't had much impact on Microsoft's near 95% domination of the market. Does the open innovation movement need a benevolent dictator like Steve Jobs or is that not possible because of its, laudable, democratic base?</p><p>? This article was amended on 16 April 2010. The original said that CloudMade was responsible for openstreetmap.org. This has been corrected.<br /></p><div class="related" style="float: left; margin-right: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><ul><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/opensource">Open source</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/internet">Internet</a></li></ul></div><div class="author"><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/profile/victorkeegan">Victor Keegan</a></div><br/><div class="terms"><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk">guardian.co.uk</a> &copy; Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our <a href="http://users.guardian.co.uk/help/article/0,,933909,00.html">Terms & Conditions</a> | <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/help/feeds">More Feeds</a></div><p style="clear:both" />
Tech Weekly podcast: Labour's technology plans
<p>Labour has announced its technology intentions for the next five years if re-elected in May. Gordon Brown unveiled the plans in a speech titled Building Britain's Digital Future, which decribes new public policy initiatives, a new web science institute and a promise of faster broadband. The Tech Weekly team dissect the details, while taking a look at the latest juicy details to fall out of the Viacom v YouTube court case, and some of the highlights from this year's South By Southwest interactive festival.</p><p>We also hear from Ken Banks of Frontline SMS, which has developed a text messaging application that allows non-governmental organisations to communicate with groups of people and recieve replies in areas where internet access is poor ? such as the developing world.</p><p><strong>Don't forget to ...</strong></p><p>? Comment below<br />? Mail us at <a href="mailto:tech@guardian.co.uk">tech@guardian.co.uk</a><br />? Get our <a href="http://www.twitter.com/guardiantw">Twitter feed</a> for programme updates<br />? Join our <a href="http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=15548445443">Facebook group</a><br />? See our <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/guardiantechweekly/">pics on Flickr</a>/Post <a href="http://www.flickr.com/groups/guardiantechweekly/">your tech pics</a></p><div class="author"><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/profile/alekskrotoski">Aleks Krotoski</a></div><div class="author"><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/profile/charlesarthur">Charles Arthur</a></div><div class="author"><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/profile/jemimakiss">Jemima Kiss</a></div><div class="author"><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/profile/kevinanderson">Kevin Anderson</a></div><div class="author"><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/profile/scottcawley">Scott Cawley</a></div><br/><p style="clear:both" />
Apple v Google: the gloves are starting to come off
<div class="track"><img alt="" src="http://hits.guardian.co.uk/b/ss/guardiangu-feeds/1/H.20.4/2344?ns=guardian&pageName=Apple+v+Google%3A+the+gloves+are+starting+to+come+off+%3AArticle%3A1372262&ch=Technology&c3=GU.co.uk&c4=Google+%28Technology%29%2CApple+%28Technology%29%2CiPhone%2CAndroid+%28technology%29%2CMobile+phones+%28Technology%29%2COpen+source+%28Technology%29%2CTechnology%2CGadgets+%28Technology%29&c5=Not+commercially+useful%2CTechnology+Gadgets%2CCorporate+IT&c6=Bobbie+Johnson&c7=10-Mar-16&c8=1372262&c9=Article&c10=Blogpost&c11=Technology&c13=&c25=Technology+blog&c30=content&h2=GU%2FTechnology%2FGoogle" width="1" height="1" /></div><p>When Apple decided to <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2010/mar/02/apple-sues-htc-iphone-patents">sue Taiwanese phone manufacturer HTC</a>, it was hard to see it as anything other than a broadside at Google. After all, HTC makes <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2010/jan/08/google-nexus-one-phone">Nexus One</a> handset, and Steve Jobs has previously told staff that he's angry because <a href="http://www.wired.com/epicenter/2010/01/googles-dont-be-evil-mantra-is-bullshit-adobe-is-lazy-apples-steve-jobs/#ixzz0iJCrwzB0">"We did not enter the search business... they entered the phone business"</a>.</p><p>The ever-growing conflict between the two is <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/blog/2010/mar/15/breakfast-briefing">something I mentioned on Monday</a>, and plenty of people have weighed in on the subject, including <a href="http://jonathanischwartz.wordpress.com/2010/03/09/good-artists-copy-great-artists-steal/">former Sun Microsystems boss Jonathan Schwartz</a>, who said that any company launching a software patent lawsuit was basically undertaking an "act of desperation".</p><p>But most of the action so far has been from Apple's side - the accusations about its rivals (including Nokia, <a href="http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9170378/Apple_practices_legal_alchemy_to_mask_IP_theft_claims_Nokia">which has in turn accused the iPhone maker of "legal alchemy"</a>); the <a href="http://daringfireball.net/2010/03/this_apple_htc_patent_thing">offended and aggrieved</a> statements by Jobs and so on.</p><p>So where's Google in this fight? Is it just staying quiet? Step forward <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tim_Bray">Tim Bray</a>, the Canadian technologist best known for his work on XML. Bray - <a href="http://www.tbray.org/ongoing/When/200x/2003/09/15/SWPatents">who has written eloquently on software patents before</a> and who left Sun himself last month - announced over the weekend that he was joining Google's Android team.</p><p>Oh yeah, then he immediately <a href="http://www.tbray.org/ongoing/When/201x/2010/03/15/Joining-Google">poured fuel onto the fire with an extremely strong broadside</a> about why he dislikes Apple's approach:</p><blockquote><p>The iPhone vision of the mobile Internet's future omits controversy, sex, and freedom, but includes strict limits on who can know what and who can say what. It's a sterile Disney-fied walled garden surrounded by sharp-toothed lawyers. The people who create the apps serve at the landlord's pleasure and fear his anger.<br />I hate it.<br />I hate it even though the iPhone hardware and software are great, because freedom's not just another word for anything, nor is it an optional ingredient.</p></blockquote><p><br />Strong words, and proof that Googlers <em>are</em> prepared to fire back from time to time. It will be interesting to see how long Bray is allowed to speak his mind like this (staff commenting, even obliquely, on lawsuits is something most corporate lawyers dislike intensely) but it's refreshing to see somebody on either side speaking openly and on the record.</p><div class="related" style="float: left; margin-right: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><ul><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/google">Google</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/apple">Apple</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/iphone">iPhone</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/android">Android</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/mobilephones">Mobile phones</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/opensource">Open source</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/gadgets">Gadgets</a></li></ul></div><div class="author"><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/profile/bobbiejohnson">Bobbie Johnson</a></div><br/><div class="terms"><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk">guardian.co.uk</a> &copy; Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our <a href="http://users.guardian.co.uk/help/article/0,,933909,00.html">Terms & Conditions</a> | <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/help/feeds">More Feeds</a></div><p style="clear:both" />
BBC's iPlayer verification blocks open source software
<div class="track"><img alt="" src="http://hits.guardian.co.uk/b/ss/guardiangu-feeds/1/H.20.4/45153?ns=guardian&pageName=BBC%27s+iPlayer+verification+blocks+open+source+software+%3AArticle%3A1365874&ch=Technology&c3=GU.co.uk&c4=BBC%2CiPlayer%2COpen+source+%28Technology%29%2CTechnology%2CVideo+on+demand&c5=Not+commercially+useful%2CTechnology+Gadgets%2CCorporate+IT%2CTelevision+Media&c6=Jack+Schofield&c7=10-Mar-01&c8=1365874&c9=Article&c10=Blogpost&c11=Technology&c13=&c25=Technology+blog&c30=content&h2=GU%2FTechnology%2Fblog%2FTechnology+blog" width="1" height="1" /></div><p class="standfirst">The BBC seems to have started using a Flash player verification service that stops the iPlayer from streaming for more than a minute or two to unauthorised media players, hitting users of the open source XBMC</p><p>The BBC has reportedly started using the SWF Verification routine -- aimed at protecting copyright content -- with its iPlayer streaming video service. It could be an attempt to stop third-party software from downloading videos, which usually only last for seven days. However, it has the side effect of dropping the video stream after one or two minutes when used with unauthorised players. This includes <a href="http://forum.xbmc.org/showthread.php?t=51322&page=33 ">open source media players such as XBMC</a>.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.h-online.com/open/news/item/BBC-activates-iPlayer-Flash-verification-Locking-out-open-source-Update-940515.html">H-Online</a> notes that: "Some open source plug-ins get around SWF verification by transparently dropping the stream, reopening it and seeking to where it was before the 'ping' came in, though this is potentially punishing on servers."</p><p>The BBC supported Linux (OpenSuSE and Ubuntu) and Mac OS X by creating <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/install/">a desktop version of the iPlayer that uses Adobe AIR</a> (Adobe Integrated Runtime) software. Windows users can also install it.</p><p>iPlayer content reaches a wide audience not just via PCs but through the Nintendo Wii and Sony PlayStation 3 games consoles and some mobile phones. But while the BBC aspires to universal access, it doesn't guarantee to deliver all its content to everyone in the UK (DAB radio coverage being particularly limited) let alone deliver it in the format that any particular group of users may choose for their own reasons.</p><p>However, as is often the case, the BBC's move may have unforeseen consequences. <a href="http://www.theregister.co.uk/2010/02/24/iplayer_xbmc_adobe_swf_verification/">According to a report in The Register</a>:</p><blockquote><p>Reg reader, Tom Rouse, who alerted us to the SWF verification tweak to the iPlayer, wondered if the BBC was simply satisfying the demands of Adobe's content licence desires. <br />"It would seem that this move is likely [to] impact users of platforms not supported by Flash, with an unsatisfactory implementation (eg too resource intensive for the platform, with video tearing, etc.), or those who just wish to use an open source player," he said.<br />"Ironically, third party utilities that download files (which presumably the verification is there to prevent) still work fine. It is possible that this move will actually increase the occurrence of downloading files which will not be time limited, or torrenting of copyrighted material."</p></blockquote><p>A spokeswoman for the BBC Trust told <a href="http://www.theregister.co.uk/2010/03/01/no_bbc_trust_probe_iplayer_swf_verification/">The Register</a>: "The decision to block open source plugins is a matter for BBC Management. The Trust has not received any complaints on this issue and has no plans to look into it further at present." </p><p>There's no way of knowing how many UK-based iPlayer users have PCs but can't or won't run the Adobe AIR version, but it's probably not a large percentage of 61.4 million.</p><div class="related" style="float: left; margin-right: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><ul><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/bbc">BBC</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/iplayer">iPlayer</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/opensource">Open source</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/video-on-demand">Video on demand</a></li></ul></div><div class="author"><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/profile/jackschofield">Jack Schofield</a></div><br/><div class="terms"><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk">guardian.co.uk</a> &copy; Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our <a href="http://users.guardian.co.uk/help/article/0,,933909,00.html">Terms & Conditions</a> | <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/help/feeds">More Feeds</a></div><p style="clear:both" />
When using open source makes you an enemy of the state
<div class="track"><img alt="" src="http://hits.guardian.co.uk/b/ss/guardiangu-feeds/1/H.20.4/50407?ns=guardian&pageName=When+using+open+source+makes+you+an+enemy+of+the+state%3AArticle%3A1363466&ch=Technology&c3=GU.co.uk&c4=Open+source+%28Technology%29%2CIntellectual+property+%28Technology%29%2CSoftware+%28Technology%29%2CPiracy+%28Technology%29%2CFile+sharing%2CTechnology&c5=Technology+Gadgets%2CCorporate+IT%2CConsumer+Electronics&c6=Bobbie+Johnson&c7=10-Feb-23&c8=1363466&c9=Article&c10=Blogpost&c11=Technology&c13=&c25=Technology+blog&c30=content&h2=GU%2FTechnology%2FOpen+source" width="1" height="1" /></div><p class="standfirst">The US copyright lobby has long argued against open source software - now Indonesia's in the firing line for encouraging the idea in government departments</p><p>It's only Tuesday and already it's been an interesting week for the world of digital rights. Not only did the British government <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2010/feb/23/mandelson-decide-internet-suspension">changed the wording around its controversial 'three strikes' proposals</a>, but the secretive anti-counterfeiting treaty, Acta, <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/blog/2010/feb/22/breakfast-briefing">was back in the headlines</a>. Meanwhile, a US judge is still deliberating over the <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2010/feb/17/google-books-copyright">Google book settlement</a>.</p><p>As if all that wasn't enough, here's another brick to add to the teetering tower of news, courtesy of <strong>Andres Guadamuz</strong>, a lecturer in law at the University of Edinburgh.</p><p>Guadamuz <a href="http://www.technollama.co.uk/encouraging-open-source-could-land-you-in-trouble">has done some digging</a> and discovered that an influential lobby group is asking the US government to basically consider open source as the equivalent of piracy - or even worse.</p><p>What?<br /><br />It turns out that the <a href="http://www.iipa.com/">International Intellectual Property Alliance</a>, an umbrella group for organisations including the MPAA and RIAA, has requested with the US Trade Representative to consider countries like Indonesia, Brazil and India for its "Special 301 watchlist" because they use open source software.</p><p>What's Special 301? It's a report that examines the "adequacy and effectiveness of intellectual property rights" around the planet - effectively the list of countries that the US government considers enemies of capitalism. It often gets wheeled out as a form of trading pressure - often around pharmaceuticals and counterfeited goods - to try and force governments to change their behaviours.</p><p>Now, even could argue that it's no surprise that the USTR - which is intended to encourage free market capitalism - wouldn't like free software, but really it's not quite so straightforward.</p><p>I know open source has a tendency to be linked to socialist ideals, but I also think it's an example of the free market in action. When companies can't compete with huge, crushing competitors, they route around it and find another way to reduce costs and compete. Most FOSS isn't state-owned: it just takes price elasticity to its logical conclusion and uses free as a stick to beat its competitors with (would you ever accuse Google, which gives its main product away for free, of being anti-capitalist?).</p><p>Still, in countries where the government has legislated the adoption of FOSS, the position makes some sense because it hurts businesses like Microsoft. But that's not the end of it.</p><p>No, the <em>really</em> interesting thing that Guadamuz found was that governments don't even need to pass legislation. Even a recommendation can be enough.</p><p>Example: last year the Indonesian government sent around a circular to all government departments and state-owned businesses, pushing them towards open source. This, says the IIPA, "encourages government agencies to use "FOSS" (Free Open Source Software) with a view toward implementation by the end of 2011, which the Circular states will result in the use of legitimate open source and FOSS software and a reduction in overall costs of software".</p><p>Nothing wrong with that, right? After all, the British government <a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/7910110.stm">has said it will boost the use of open source software</a>. </p><p>But the IIPA suggested that Indonesia deserves Special 301 status because encouraging (not forcing) such takeup "weakens the software industry" and "fails to build respect for intellectual property rights".</p><p>From the recommendation:</p><blockquote><p>"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. </p><p>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. </p><p>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.</p></blockquote><p>Let's forget that the statement ignores the fact that there are plenty of businesses built on the OSS model (RedHat, Wordpress, Canonical for starters). But beyond that, it seems astonishing to me that anyone should imply that simply recommending open source products - products that can be more easily tailored without infringing licensing rules - "undermines" anything. </p><p>In fact, IP enforcement is often <em>even more strict</em> in the open source community, and those who infringe licenses or fail to give appropriate credit are often pilloried.</p><p>If you're looking at this agog, you should be. It's ludicrous.</p><p>But the IIPA and USTR have form here: <a href="http://www.michaelgeist.ca/content/view/3911/125/">in recent years they have put Canada on the priority watchlist</a>.</p><div class="related" style="float: left; margin-right: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><ul><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/opensource">Open source</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/intellectual-property">Intellectual property</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/software">Software</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/piracy">Piracy</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/file-sharing">File sharing</a></li></ul></div><div class="author"><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/profile/bobbiejohnson">Bobbie Johnson</a></div><br/><div class="terms"><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk">guardian.co.uk</a> &copy; Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our <a href="http://users.guardian.co.uk/help/article/0,,933909,00.html">Terms & Conditions</a> | <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/help/feeds">More Feeds</a></div><p style="clear:both" />
Symbian makes its smartphone software open source
<div class="track"><img alt="" src="http://hits.guardian.co.uk/b/ss/guardiangu-feeds/1/H.20.4/29122?ns=guardian&pageName=Symbian+makes+its+smartphone+software+open+source%3AArticle%3A1355098&ch=Technology&c3=GU.co.uk&c4=Mobile+phones+%28Technology%29%2COpen+source+%28Technology%29%2CSoftware+%28Technology%29%2CNokia+%28Technology%29%2CGoogle+%28Technology%29%2CApple+%28Technology%29%2CAndroid+%28technology%29%2CBlackBerry+%28Technology%29%2CMicrosoft+%28Technology%29%2CTelecommunications+industry+%28Business+sector%29%2CNokia+%28Business%29%2CSymbian&c5=Business+Markets%2CNot+commercially+useful%2CTechnology+Gadgets%2CCorporate+IT&c6=Richard+Wray&c7=10-Feb-04&c8=1355098&c9=Article&c10=News&c11=Technology&c13=&c25=&c30=content&h2=GU%2FTechnology%2FMobile+phones" width="1" height="1" /></div><p class="standfirst">Mobile phone operating system can now be modified by anyone as Nokia's platform struggles to compete with Apple and Google</p><p></p><p>Symbian, the operating system used in the majority of the world's smartphones, is now available as an open source platform four months ahead of schedule as it looks to compete with Apple and Google's Android.</p><p>In a move widely seen as a desperate attempt to prevent Google and Apple from grabbing an ever-larger slice of the smartphone pie, <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2008/jun/25/nokia.google" title="Nokia took control ofUK-based Symbian in the summer of 2008">Nokia took control of the UK-based Symbian in the summer of 2008</a>, announcing plans to make its mobile phone software free of charge.</p><p>Nokia helped create Symbian with the UK-based Psion more than a decade ago and it is installed in some 330m mobile phones across the world. But its share of the smartphone market has come under attack. Two years ago, Symbian devices accounted for almost 60% of the market, but now account for less than 50%. Industry experts Ovum reckon that figure will fall to below a third by 2015, in part because of the influence of Android, which is also open source.</p><p>The Symbian Foundation, which runs the platform, said the switch from a paid-for proprietary model, where developers had to pay a licence fee to create devices using the software, to a free open source model is the largest in software history.</p><p>Any individual or organization can now take, use and modify the code for any purpose, whether for a mobile device or another piece of kit.</p><p>Lee Williams, executive director of the Symbian Foundation, said: "The development community is now empowered to shape the future of the mobile industry, and rapid innovation on a global scale will be the result.</p><p>"When the Symbian Foundation was created, we set the target of completing the open source release of the platform by mid-2010 and it's because of the extraordinary commitment and dedication from our staff and our member companies that we've reached it well ahead of schedule."</p><p>The hope is that allowing any developer to use Symbian will speed up the development of new and innovative devices, which will help the platform to see off the threat of Apple and Android.</p><p>But it is competing in an increasingly crowded market. Handset manufacturers from LG and Samsung to Sony Ericsson have their own proprietary operating systems, as do RIM, maker of the BlackBerry, Palm and Apple. Microsoft is still trying to gain traction for its Windows phone operating system, while a slew of handsets with Android installed will be launched this year.</p><p>All 108 packages containing the source code of the Symbian platform can now be downloaded from Symbian's <a href="tiny.symbian.org/open" title="developer web site">developer website</a> under a public licence. Also available for download are the complete development kits for creating applications and mobile devices.</p><div class="related" style="float: left; margin-right: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><ul><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/mobilephones">Mobile phones</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/opensource">Open source</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/software">Software</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/nokia">Nokia</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/google">Google</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/apple">Apple</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/android">Android</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/blackberry">BlackBerry</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/microsoft/">Microsoft</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/telecoms">Telecommunications industry</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/nokia">Nokia</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/symbian">Symbian</a></li></ul></div><div class="author"><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/profile/richardwray">Richard Wray</a></div><br/><div class="terms"><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk">guardian.co.uk</a> &copy; Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our <a href="http://users.guardian.co.uk/help/article/0,,933909,00.html">Terms & Conditions</a> | <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/help/feeds">More Feeds</a></div><p style="clear:both" />
Meet the Wikipedia of the mapping world | Victor Keegan
<div class="track"><img alt="" src="http://hits.guardian.co.uk/b/ss/guardiangu-feeds/1/H.20.4/59983?ns=guardian&pageName=Meet+the+Wikipedia+of+the+mapping+world+%7C+Victor+Keegan%3AArticle%3A1354715&ch=Technology&c3=GU.co.uk&c4=Internet%2CTechnology%2COpen+source+%28Technology%29%2CGoogle+%28Technology%29%2CGPS+%28Technology%29%2CHaiti+%28News%29%2CMapping+technologies&c5=Not+commercially+useful%2CTechnology+Gadgets%2CCorporate+IT&c6=Victor+Keegan&c7=10-Feb-10&c8=1354715&c9=Article&c10=Comment&c11=Technology&c13=&c25=&c30=content&h2=GU%2FTechnology%2FInternet" width="1" height="1" /></div><p class="standfirst">Thanks to its team of volunteers, OpenStreetMap has now mapped most of the world ? including Haiti</p><p>If you want to find an up-to-date map of Haiti, then there is only one place to go. It is not Google Maps or any of its competitors. It is the admirable <a href="http://www.openstreetmap.org/" title="OpenStreetMap.org">OpenStreetMap.org</a> (OSM), which is being updated even as I write by volunteers all over the world.</p><p>It is the Wikipedia of the mapping world, and is used by millions of people. Started a little over five years ago in London by Steve Coast, it has steadily built up its database to the point where most of the world has now been mapped by a formidable team of volunteers which is doubling every six months: there were 212,000 at the last count, of whom 10% are active during any one month. At the end of January there were 239 people rebuilding the map of Haiti. For a bird's eye view of operations, go to the <a href="http://haiti.ushahidi.com/main" title="Ushahidi">Ushahidi</a> site.</p><p>When the earthquake happened it was a signal for OSM members around the globe to start downloading satellite images (either freely available or donated by Yahoo) and then to start tracing the outlines of streets on top <a href="http://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/WikiProject_Haiti" title="so a map emerged">so a map emerged</a>. Volunteers on the ground in Haiti, often using Garmin GPS locators, added vital local information ? such as which roads were passable, where the hospitals were situated, where refugee camps were, or walls, pharmacies, hedges and so forth ? so rescue workers had an invaluable tool. The result is a new, detailed map that is updated frequently, unlike most commercial maps.</p><p>This is only one of a number of open projects operating in Haiti in what may come to be seen as a seminal moment in the harnessing of the web to help those in need. Others include <a href="http://crisiscommons.org/" title="CrisisCommons">CrisisCommons</a>, <a href="http://www.wehaveweneed.org/" title="WeHaveNeed">WeHaveNeed</a>, <a href="http://haiti-orgs.sahanafoundation.org/prod/" title="Sahana">Sahana</a>, <a href="http://blogs.zdnet.com/open-source/?p=5685" title="open source medical">open source medical software</a> and numerous others, not to mention Twitter tags such as #haiti. One of the problems of using appropriate technology in disaster regions is that bricklayers in Haiti don't know of innovations that might have been pioneered in remote parts of Africa, a problem that <a href="http://www.akvo.org/" title="Akvo">Akvo</a> is trying to solve with regard to water. There are also signs that <a href="http://hexayurt.com/" title="Hexayurt">Hexayurt</a> low-cost housing projects are starting to seed in Haiti.</p><p>OpenStreetMaps is itself at a turning point as it tries to progress from a techie-driven project to one that the ordinary consumer can not only understand but contribute to as well. It suffers from what might be dubbed "open source syndrome", a complaint that also affects other OS projects including the Linux operating system ? the involvement of skilled volunteers can make the early stages a bit difficult to understand for laypeople.</p><p>However, they have been working on it and it is now much easier to do. A few days ago I added my local curry house to the map (next to a post box someone else had already inserted). All I needed to do was to drag a symbol of a restaurant from the bottom of the screen to where I wanted to put it and then add the words "Indian Diner". That in a nutshell is the comparative advantage that OpenStreetMap claims over other online maps. Users can add whatever detail interests them such as <a href="http://www.opencyclemap.org/" title="cycle routes">cycle routes</a>, skateboarding areas, cycle parks, paths through parks ? the parts Google can't reach. You have to register (it's free) as a member to alter the map. There is an iPhone app, Mapzen, produced by <a href="http://cloudmade.com/" title="Cloudmade">Cloudmade</a> (company founded by Coast and Nick Black to exploit mapping opportunities) that enables you to insert places of interest you have found on the move. If that takes off, it could lift the project to a new level.</p><p>Often volunteers create maps where there was nothing before as in <a href="http://www.mapkibera.org/" title="Kibera">Kibera</a> in Kenya where basic amenities such as drinking water sources and latrines as well as churches are located to improve living standards and combat illness (eg, where latrines are located too near water sources). The Kibera team have been asked by Ushahidi and Google to include mapping of the slums of Port-au-Prince as part of the relief effort, something that hasn't been done before.</p><p>Gordon Brown, the UK prime minister, has just rediscovered cooperativism as a way of galvanising people to vote Labour. He would have been much more in tune with the times if he had widened it to include the open source movement in all its different aspects. It is one of the most interesting phenomena of our times, a kind of global mutual society. While the likes of Apple and Amazon, though producing fantastic products, are becoming ever more controlling and proprietary, it is sobering to be reminded that one of the basic instincts of human nature ? mutual cooperation for no cost ? is thriving on a global scale.</p><p><a href="http://twitter.com/vickeegan" title="Folllow Vic Keegan on Twitter"><em>Follow Vic Keegan on Twitter</em></a></p><div class="related" style="float: left; margin-right: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><ul><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/internet">Internet</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/opensource">Open source</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/google">Google</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/gps">GPS</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/haiti">Haiti</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/mapping-technologies">Mapping technologies</a></li></ul></div><div class="author"><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/profile/victorkeegan">Victor Keegan</a></div><br/><div class="terms"><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk">guardian.co.uk</a> &copy; Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our <a href="http://users.guardian.co.uk/help/article/0,,933909,00.html">Terms & Conditions</a> | <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/help/feeds">More Feeds</a></div><p style="clear:both" />
Breakfast briefing: YouTube's rental experiment, Facebook goes HipHop
<div class="track"><img alt="" src="http://hits.guardian.co.uk/b/ss/guardiangu-feeds/1/H.20.4/71936?ns=guardian&pageName=Breakfast+briefing%3A+YouTube%27s+rental+experiment%2C+Facebook+goes+HipHop%3AArticle%3A1346201&ch=Technology&c3=GU.co.uk&c4=YouTube+%28Technology%29%2CDigital+video+%28Technology%29%2CFacebook%2COpen+source+%28Technology%29%2CProgramming+%28Technology%29%2CTechnology&c5=Digital+Media%2CTechnology+Gadgets%2CCorporate+IT&c6=Bobbie+Johnson&c7=10-Feb-03&c8=1346201&c9=Article&c10=Blogpost&c11=Technology&c13=&c25=Technology+blog&c30=content&h2=GU%2FTechnology%2FYouTube" width="1" height="1" /></div><p>&bull; There's been plenty of talk in recent years about <strong>YouTube</strong> - more specifically <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/blog/2009/apr/07/youtube-video-losses">whether it makes money</a>, deals with <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2008/nov/08/youtube-film-technology-business">movie studios</a> and potential entry into video rentals. That last idea may be on ice, after figures that suggest that the company <a href="http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/02/02/youtubes-take-from-movie-rentals-1070916/">made little more than $10,000</a> during a short experiment in movie rentals. Not exactly chump change (if you can spare $10k, let me know) but certainly a long way from where Google would have wanted it.</p><p>&bull; <strong>Facebook</strong> has been doing more work with the open source community of late, but its latest effort sounds pretty interesting: <a href="http://developers.facebook.com/news.php?blog=1&story=358">HipHop</a>, a PHP compiler that it says reduces CPU load by an average of 50% (at least for Facebook itself). Actually, it's not really a compiler, but a system that converts PHP into C++ and <em>then</em> compiles it... will it make a real difference to web developers? Or will it only really make a difference to Facebook-style operations?</p><p>&bull; And it's time for another episode of our <strong>Tech Weekly</strong> - and apologies to anyone who is iPadded out, but we couldn't ignore the Apple - so we drag along Nick Carr to help us ponder what it all means. We also hear from a top-ranking literary agent <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2010/feb/01/amazon-defeat-macmillan-ebook-row">on Amazon's tussle with Macmillan</a>. Thirty-three minutes of aural excitement <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/blog/audio/2010/feb/02/tech-weekly-ipad-amazon-ebook">at the click of a button</a>.</p><p><em>You can follow our links and commentary each day through Twitter (<a href="http://www.twitter.com/guardiantech">@guardiantech</a>, or our <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/page/2007/dec/10/1">personal accounts</a>) or by watching our <a href="http://delicious.com/guardianista">Delicious feed</a>.</em></p><div class="related" style="float: left; margin-right: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><ul><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/youtube">YouTube</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/digitalvideo">Digital video</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/facebook">Facebook</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/opensource">Open source</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/programming">Programming</a></li></ul></div><div class="author"><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/profile/bobbiejohnson">Bobbie Johnson</a></div><br/><div class="terms"><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk">guardian.co.uk</a> &copy; Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our <a href="http://users.guardian.co.uk/help/article/0,,933909,00.html">Terms & Conditions</a> | <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/help/feeds">More Feeds</a></div><p style="clear:both" />
Apple iPad will choke innovation, say open internet advocates
<div class="track"><img alt="" src="http://hits.guardian.co.uk/b/ss/guardiangu-feeds/1/H.20.4/28276?ns=guardian&pageName=Apple+iPad+will+choke+innovation%2C+say+open+internet+advocates%3AArticle%3A1344202&ch=Technology&c3=GU.co.uk&c4=Apple+%28Technology%29%2CTablet+computers%2COpen+source+%28Technology%29%2CDRM+%28Technology%29%2CIntellectual+property+%28Technology%29%2CSoftware+%28Technology%29%2CTechnology%2CiPad&c5=Technology+Gadgets%2CCorporate+IT&c6=Bobbie+Johnson&c7=10-Feb-01&c8=1344202&c9=Article&c10=News&c11=Technology&c13=&c25=&c30=content&h2=GU%2FTechnology%2FApple" width="1" height="1" /></div><p class="standfirst">The Apple iPad's closed, iPhone-like environment could shut out the next computing revolution, say industry veterans</p><p>Apple's new iPad tablet computer could hamper innovation and cause long-term damage if it becomes a hit, according to experts.</p><p>Just as Steve Jobs tries to wow the world with the "magical" new device - unveiled on Wednesday <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2010/jan/27/apple-ipad-tablet-computer-kindle" title="at a media-saturated launch event in San Francisco">at a media-saturated launch event in San Francisco</a> ? leading industry figures have told the Guardian that the machine marks a fundamental shift in the way the computer industry works.</p><p>The iPad, a 10-inch touchscreen computer that will cost upwards of £300, was greeted by many admirers as a significant step forward. But in developing it using the closed model of the iPhone, industry insiders said, Apple could wrestle even more power away from its rivals and partners.</p><p>"It's chilling," said Brewster Kahle, a technology veteran and director of the <a href="http://www.archive.org" title="Internet Archive">Internet Archive</a>. "We may be seeing the iPhone-ification of the Macintosh."</p><p>The concerns come because ? contrary to the predictions of many pundits ? the iPad is more like a scaled-up version of the iPhone than a scaled-down laptop computer. That means it can only run one program at a time, and even then those applications must be approved by Apple before they can be loaded on to the machine. This is the opposite of the traditional model used by the computer industry, where the makers of operating systems have little or no control over what software their users buy or download.</p><p>Kahle told the Guardian that such a lockdown would prevent major innovation from software developers.</p><p>"They really control the horizontal and the vertical by going with the iPhone platform... I think it's discouraging," he said. "The future is controlled, and it's controlled by Apple."</p><p>Referring to some major innovations like web browsers, email and instant messaging, he added that Apple could easily block in favour of developing a competing product or simply limiting new ideas.</p><p>"All of those started out as independent applications by independent organisations that were not in the plan of any of the platform makers," he said. "If you were to come up with these now on the iPhone, you couldn't even get out of the starting gate."</p><p>Kahle, whose organisation is trying to assemble a vast library of digital assets for access by the public, is not the only person concerned that the move to what Harvard professor Jonathan Zittrain calls "<a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2008/may/01/internet.gadgets" title="tethered appliances">tethered appliances</a>" could have long-lasting effects on modern culture.</p><p>The Free Software Foundation staged a protest at the launch event and argued that the iPad could set a precedent that would fundamentally change the way we related to technology.</p><p>"This past year, we have seen how human rights and democracy protesters can have the technology they use turned against them by the corporations who supply the products and services they rely on," said Peter Brown, executive director of the FSF.</p><p>"Your computer should be yours to control. By imposing such restrictions on users, Steve Jobs is building a legacy that endangers our freedom for his profits."</p><p>Apple has previously come in for criticism for its seemingly arbitrary approval policy for applications submitted for use on the iPhone ? a system that has seen <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/blog/2009/may/21/apple-iphone" title="some applications banned from going on sale for containing "sexual content"">some applications banned from going on sale for containing "sexual content"</a>, while allowing others get through.</p><p>Last summer, <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2009/aug/22/google-apple-iphone" title="Google accused its Silicon Valley neighbour">Google accused its Silicon Valley neighbour</a> of unfairly blocking rival companies from putting their software on the iPhone, a claim that led to an investigation by US regulators.</p><p>Kahle, who oversees <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2009/jul/01/internet-open-library" title="the OpenLibrary project">the OpenLibrary project</a> that aims to put millions of books online, also said that he hoped Apple's iTunes model would not become as dominant as it has in the music world ? and that the company would open up the system to benefit everyone.</p><p>"Apple is going towards having a single store and aggregating everyone into that store. That is not the web, that is a pre-web world. We think that you not only want interesting applications that weren't predicted and weren't previously approved by Apple, but you want people to be able to set up and sell and lend books. Does this do that? I see no indications yet."</p><div class="related" style="float: left; margin-right: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><ul><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/apple">Apple</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/tablet-computer">Tablet computers</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/opensource">Open source</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/drm">Digital rights management</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/intellectual-property">Intellectual property</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/software">Software</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/ipad">iPad</a></li></ul></div><div class="author"><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/profile/bobbiejohnson">Bobbie Johnson</a></div><br/><div class="terms"><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk">guardian.co.uk</a> &copy; Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our <a href="http://users.guardian.co.uk/help/article/0,,933909,00.html">Terms & Conditions</a> | <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/help/feeds">More Feeds</a></div><p style="clear:both" />

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