Tsikbal: from my perspective

Open source and open standards may well be our most powerful tools to keep our freedom. With open source software, one can see the source code of what he is using, and how it works. So, any one can modify it in order to make it work according to what the individual needs. Being able to check code can be important, since this gives everyone the same degree of control over what is going on within, and how should it work. And since everyone can check what it's on, it becomes harder to make the product do things that the owner doesn't want it to do. With proprietary software, one has to blindly trust the vendor. But with open source software, anyone can check that the code really do what the coder said it does. Also, if a feature that one wants or needs isn't included in the package, adding it is as easy as coding into it the feature, or hiring some one else to do so. Open standards are an important companion to open source. Open standards give users a common w...

How long it has to be before it is understood that information should be free to be accessed by anyone who either wants, or needs that information. Information is not something that can be owned in the sense you own a car, a computer, or things of that nature. Informations is more of a platform on which individuals, and societies, relay to take decisions or make things happen. The value is more valuable depending on its use. And is more valuable in direct proportion to how many people can use it, or put it to work on a way that is beneficial to them. So, information is a resource that should be at the disposal of the society at large in a way it can be used by any member of the society. It should be allowed to flow freely among all, with any restriction on the flow being imposed by each individual as he sees fit. No one else should decide who access, and how, any piece of information. All informations should be stored in open standards, so that no single entity has the...

It's important to realize the that open standards are crucial to innovation, and to keep vested interests from monopolizing the information. Information is at it's valuable when it's available to all who need it, or use it. No restrictions should be placed to the free flow of the information. It's on the interest of everyone, that we can be able to access and use any information as we see fit. It's our right to be able to use the information, and to share it how and with whom we want. To restrict the information is not something that should be allowed, since information is the tool on which societies can grow and adapt better to changing circumstances. Information should have no owner, and should be exchanged freely among who ever wants to share on any particular piece of information. As it is, information is valuable because of the use that can be given to it by its end user. All attempts to censor, need to be repealed as soon as they appear. Cens...

By principle, I oppose anything that limits the individual rights to do as he wants with what he owns or with his skills. Each individual should be able to use his skill set and charge for it as he sees fit, without having any interference from a third party. The same goes with any property he has. He should be able to exchange it as he sees fit, even to modify it in any way it serves his interests. The limitations set, should only be the ones put in place by the parties involved in the transaction as it suits the interests of everyone directly involved in it. If we want to progress as individuals and as a society, we should have the freedom to use all the tools we need at our disposal and be able to modify them as we need. Also, we need to be able to share the information with other people with no interference. This is helpful, so it helps to innovate or get to solutions that other wise we wouldn't be able to do or would take more time that what is practical. No s...

I've being doing a lot of thinking about the importance of having an open and free society, and how on many occasions society itself is one of the biggest obstacles to obtaining such open and free state. Mainly because most of the people simply don't care enough to take the action they need to make in order to have the openness and freedom they claim to want. This kind of society requires active participation of its members, in order to take depositions on how to manage the working of the interactions of its members. The fewer people know and take decisions, the easier is to make them behind close door and benefiting just a few. How things are now, all is structure in gear toward being closed as possible in order to facilitate the taking of decisions by small groups in the name of the community at large. If we want to change this, we all need to start taking actions to retake control of the decisions that should be ours. We have the right to have access, and partic...

It's sad that the US is even thinking about setting something like SOPA. For me it's also strikes me as hypocritical, since it's something that US government has criticized about other governments around like world. But, what worries me the most is that SOPA doesn't really protect the rights of the people. SOPA is framed to protect the interest of big companies. To make it worst, many of those companies have outdated business models that they want to keep instead of innovating. I don't want my rights being stepped over by companies that refuse to change their models. Why should risk being framed as a criminal just because I mentioned a company, or a product, just because it doesn't like the way I did so? The Internet should be a free field for the exchange of information. It is imperative that we keep special interest from broking it in any shape or form, so that every one can access the information he or she needs to keep informed and in contact wi...

I've been using Ubuntu for over a year now, and it is my favorite OS by far. In one way or another, I've been using open-source software for quite sometime. Yet, until last year I made up my mind to use a Linux distro and get rid of Windows for good. After doing some research, and asking around, I decided to use Ubuntu since it was one of the most user friendly distro out there. So, the first version I used was the 9.10. And since then, I've have no intention what soever to return to using Windows, or to start using the Mac OS. And now with the Unity UI, I enjoy using Ubuntu even more. For me, I find that I like the way it looks and it works for me. I find it easier to get around, so I can do my work with it. I just enjoy it much. Most importantly, it's open-source software. Which is important for me, since the philosophy that come with the open-source software community is the same that I have. I do believe that we all should have the ability to fr...

I feel rather frustrated how many companies, and some individuals, seem to look down to community driven projects. And, for better or for worse, many people seem to buy into idea that if a company isn't behind a given product or service, it can't be trusted or it couldn't be any good. Yet, I don't buy into that. Community driven projects can be as good, or better, as those driven by companies. But, most people don't seem to be willing to give community a chance, because they are afraid that there is no support if or, when, they run into problems. This idea is perpetuated by companies, in order to make weary about moving to community driven project. But, finding support is as easy, and sometimes easier, when compared to company driven projects. It's just a matter of a way to contact the support. As a matter of fact, contacting support on community driven projects is easy. Most often than not, when you reach for help you'll find someone willin...

It's important for society at large to understand that telling others how to spend the money they have earned for their work. After all, we are entitled to spend the money we earn in any way we see fit. The truth is that, since we earn that money with the efforts of our labor its fair that we can use it to reward ourselves. Yes, there are people have more money than most. Yet, this is just life; and life is not fair. There'll always be people that have more, and people that have less. What we should strive for, is a society in which the powerful where the powerful can't step on the people below them. The key for a fair society is that everyone earns the same, or has the same of everything, is one where the individuals have the same rights and access to have their basic need meet. If the individuals living at a society, don't have equal rights it becomes a society that won't be self sustaining. Wealth alone is not enough to make society prosperous,...

After using GNOME 3 for three days, I just couldn't take it any more and came back to using Unity as my user interface on Ubuntu 11.10. Even though I do like GNOME 3 in general terms, I do feel that Unity is better suited to the way I interact with the user interface. I don't only like Unity looks, but also the way it works. When I started using Unity with the release of Ubuntu 11.04, I did come across several bugs. But, at the end there weren't that important and for the most part those bugs have been ironed out. So, I expect that with the release of Ubuntu 12.04 Unity will be fully mature. But, this rises something that I really like about Linux in particular, and the FOSS movement in general. What I like is that there is always a choice. If there is something doesn't work for you, or you just don't like it, you can always choose another distro or app that suits you. Of course one can has the right what one likes or not, yet I don't see the po...

One should always avoid dealing in absolutes. Most things in life are not black or white, but rather a shade of gray. But often than not, is better to judge things relative to the context on which those things occur. What is appropriate on one situation in one place, might not apply to the same situation in another place. There are many factor that makes anything that is done acceptable or not. There is only a really few things that are almost universally accepted. Yet, the vast majority of our actions fall in a gray area. Most often or not, there will be someone that finds what you do objectionable and other that agrees with the way you view it. Instead of lashing out when someone tells you that what you so is not the thing to do, instead of attacking back try to understand where they come from. In many cases, the person who disagrees with your position doesn't have the whole context, or information, on why you act the way you do. Once they understand why you do, ...