March 30th is Document Freedom Day: http://documentfreedom.org/2011/odf.en.html

It's one day out of the year when you should definitely attempt to get away 
with being this guy: http://xkcd.com/743/

-----------

As to the Tumblr discussion, yes we should use Free tools, but we do have to 
draw a line somewhere.  I think identi.ca vs twitter is pretty illustrative of 
where and when and how to draw the line: status.net is clearly better 
technology with more features, and I'm willing to say a more user friendly UI 
than twitter.  Because more people use twitter, twitter is useful for reaching 
more people.  I know only one person on identi.ca for whom software freedom was 
not a consideration in joining, and the fact is software freedom isn't a 
consideration for most people.  We need to show off our superior Free tools, 
but we won't have an opportunity to do so if we only use those Free tools to do 
it - we'll be preaching to the choir.  If there is no superior Free alternative 
to tumblr, we need to develop one (I hate being the kind of obnoxious 
non-hacker who keeps demanding that someone out there in the miasma of free 
software developers run out and make whatever I want whenever I want so
 mething...  I am making an attempt to teach myself CS.).  I guess in summary, 
use the tools that reach the most people to plug the tools that are Free.  
Inasmuch as we refuse to use the tools that offend our principles, we  
marginalize our movement and injure our cause by limiting the reach of our 
discourse.  Then again, I might be saying that as someone who refuses to use 
Facebook and twitter as much out of misanthropy as out of adherence to 
philosophical principles.

_______________________________________________
Discuss mailing list
[email protected]
http://lists.freeculture.org/mailman/listinfo/discuss
FAQ: http://wiki.freeculture.org/Fc-discuss

Reply via email to