For a truly open fields of science and technology...

In many ways, we should be pushing for more openness in the science and technology fields. For better, or for worse, they touch every aspect of our lives, so society should be able to know the inner workings and how they're managed.

On the science side, there should be transparency on every research conducted and how it get the money to be done. All the information, and technical data, should be made available to the public as soon as possible. So that we know how things were done, and for people who want to make the experiment on their own can replicate it on their own.

Most importantly, patents on any scientific breakthrough should be limited that they can be beneficial to as many people as possible while giving some resources to the people who made that progress. We need a system that have public interest at hearth, not individual or corporate ones.

On the technology side, the need to have any technology available to be work on by people at large when is made available to the public is vital. There should be clear rules on what is fair use, and how modifications to the technology by individuals can be distributed. To completely restrict or allow any modification to any technology produced is not beneficial to anyones, so there is a need to find a way to allow it to happen.

It can be done and it can be beneficial to the original producer, as it has been demonstrated many times in the past. When the producers engage the communities that customize their products for other purposes, it actually becomes a win-win situation. But only if managed correctly, or it can be a disaster for everyone involved.

At the end, having those vital fields open for all of us to participate in is something that we should be able to take for granted.

Use new facts to strive, and become a better person...

It's sad that some people want seem bent in stopping research based not on facts, but because it threatens their beliefs by demonstrating that those beliefs are wrong. As if by challenging any belief system, would make the person who holds them bad.

The universe we live in is extremely complex, and we are just starting to understand how it works. As such, many of the beliefs we have about the universe can be proved wrong at any time by emerging evidence. That doesn't mean that we are fools, or that we are bad, because we believed something proved wrong.

As we learn about how things function, we have a better understanding on how to deal with them. This knowledge is an invaluable tool to move forward, and have a better quality of life and how we relate to the universe around us.

We shouldn't be blocking research that can give us valuable knowledge, since by doing so we might be losing key aspects of how the universe works that could open better lives for all of us. The foolish thing to do, is simply blocking new knowledge because it proves some beliefs wrong. By adapting our view with the new facts, we can become better persons.

By having a open mind, we can have a window to gaze new and marvelous views that the universe still have for us. Also, can see things in a new way that will make us under just how lucky we are to live.

Teaching our kids, and others, the value of an open mind is the best gift that we can bestow upon them.

Each user can choose he's perfect smartphone...

Every time a new iPhone comes out, it comes with the whole the best smartphone out there. But, Android devices have basically closed the gap, specially with the arrival of Android 4.0.

For many, including myself, now the question is not what smartphone is the best in itself. The real question now is what handset is best for each user, since now there is a real chance to match the users needs with the smartphone. Competition in the smartphone area is on the users side, since now manufactures have to produce better smartphones if they want our money.

In a way, we are fortunate to be living in a time where technology allows us to have many different options of smartphones. This devices truly hold the potential to revolutionize the way we interact with our family, friends, and the world at large. We can share almost anything that happens around us in real time, and in many apps we can even choose with who we want to each piece of information.

So, at the end each smartphone has it weaknesses and strengths, as such it all comes to what the user wants and needs to have on the smartphone that will determine which device would make the best match. The idea that one smartphone can do everything perfectly is ludicrous, since is not practical to cover everything.

It's up to the user to decide which smartphone is the best for him, and not being forced into buying one because there is no other.

Open source software is more than just software...

One of the things that I like about open source software, and why I enjoy using it, is that I can select the level of engagement I've with each piece of software I use.

I can just be an user on some, and with various levels of commitment on others. Those commitments can range from bug reporting, contributing money to keep the project going or some code. Being able to do this is important for me, since it allows me to better support the projects I like in the way is more convenient for me.

The idea that you can be a user of any project, or a part of the community around it, is really appealing for me. Not to mention that it resonates with the way I see software development, and how it should relate to its users. At the end software is used by people, it should allow the people who use it to interact with the software, developers and other users in any way each individual can do it.

Any software can only become alive, and dynamic, when it allows its users and developers to form a community around it to share their views, to contribute what they think they should, and be part of what goes on with the project. By allowing this, the software that comes out is something much more than just software. It becomes part of the lives of those that make the community around it their own, with all that comes with it.

Open source software is more than just software, or the interaction with it by its users. It's about human interactions, and building communities and friendships with people with similar interests. Being part of an open source software project can open the door to knowing more people that share the love and passion for the things you love.

I invite you to come to the open source software world, and have a look around. You'll be surprised about how big, and easy, to find something for you.

Open source importance...

The importance of open source, both in software and hardware, is something that can't be understated. If there is to fair access to technology by anyone who needs it, it's vital that the core of each technology used can be studied and modified by any person that's interested in doing so.

The idea of having any technology locking user to a single vendor because there is no real way around it, is appalling because it means that if something happens to that vendor all investment in time and money will be lost. Not to mention all the information that was in there.

It also means that monopolies are more likely, and if the come to be they will be more easily maintained since there is no option to go to in case of abuse or bad service.

Also, people that need especial adaptations of any software or hardware, could custom make them if that version isn't provided by the original vendor for whatever reason. This can streamline processes, and could bring life saving technologies to the people who need it a lot faster.

By allowing people to get to understand, and work on, the internal workings of whatever technology they are interested in, can have other important by products. With more people working to improve current technology, products that meet particular needs can come to market a lot faster. Also, those improvements needed by a particular group of individuals could make their way a lot faster, since they could get someone to make them with more ease.

Innovations will come faster, since there'll be more people covering a lot more technology. In some cases, it'd mean that there is a bigger chance of people will be working on fields that businesses would not take. Or NGOs could take existing technologies, and adapt them for their needs if they can't get any sponsor to do so.

Having open open source technologies is vital for us. Our society is becoming ever more dependent on technology to live our daily lives, so technology's inner workings have to be available for all of us. More importantly, they have to be easy to access by those who can do something of value with them.

If this doesn't come to happen, we run the risk of having the technology on which we depend on at the hands of a few hands. As history has shown us time and time again, that's not in the best interest of the majority.

A better understanding...

It's hard for some people to understand that lack of understanding about the working of a certain process, or why it does what it does, doesn't mean that it's proof of a supernatural forces are working. It just means that there's no answer on that matter as of yet.

There always be voids on our knowledge of how the universe works, or why things are how they are. Yet our best option is no saying that it should be that way, because there is a external force that it's at work. On the contrary, is because understanding why things are, and how they work, can lead to breakthroughs that make are lives better that an answer should be looked for.

Understanding is the best tool we have to actually have a shoot at increasing our quality of life, while we protect our environment. Doing things without understanding them, is asking for trouble that can come back to bite us hard. There is a need to understand what consequences can be expected from doing, or using, any tool.

True understanding can give benefits far beyond anyone can imagine, since it gives the tools to better use what surrounds us. We'll be able to better conserve our resources, and use them more effectively.

It also can come to strengthen our bonds, since it will enable not only to connect with our surroundings. It'll help us to connect with other people, and better share with them the resources in order to achieve both parties goals.

Understanding where things are made, and from where they come from, gives us a better perspective on the impact they have. Armed with that perspective we can give them the best possible use, at the best possible time. That's why we must be receptive to new knowledge about what we use, so we can give it the best possible uses.

Having the answers to our questions, and understanding the impact of our actions, is one of the most empowering things at the personal level.

Patent wars hurt the consumer the most...

Not a day seems to pass without at least of a couple of news about someone suing someone else on patent grounds. It seems that there is almost nothing out there that doesn't have a patent on it.

Which makes me ponder how much does this affects innovation, and ultimately consumer's ability to have several options to choose from. With a higher risk of being sued, many small companies and startups might not want to take the change of getting sued out of existence and probably not bring to market products that compete with the ones of established players.

This playing it safe attitude is not good for the consumers, since it limits our choices, or to innovation that produces better products though open and direct competition for our money.

The current patent wars need to end, they are not beneficial to innovation or consumers. They are about companies, and how to protect their profit margins.

I can't really hold a straight face anymore when corporations say that the lawsuits they make are for the benefit of consumers, so they can bring the best possible products to them. Each time they fail to mention that by barring newcomers to the market, they are effectively locking the consumer to use their products.

There is a dire need of a new patent system, one that makes it easy to innovate while protecting those ideas that are worth it. Or else, the ones that are set to lose more are the consumers.