The Project

• Discussion process about Free Software and society

  • Wide range of opinions

    Introduction is neither own opinion nor a simple presentation

    Something in between

  • Common interest in emancipation

• Mainly virtual

  • Mailing lists [list-en AT oekonux.org, liste AT oekonux.de]
  • Web sites [http://www.oekonux.org/, http://www.oekonux.de/]
  • Wikis [http://en.wiki.oekonux.org/, http://de.wiki.oekonux.org/]
  • Open Theory [http://www.opentheory.org/oekonux/]

• Sometimes less virtual also (conference, talks)

Characteristics of Free Software

• Any software can be Free

  • GNU/Linux, Apache, Gcc, Perl

    Examples for system related software

  • KDE, OpenOffice.org, Gimp

    Examples for applications

  • Software for router, mobile phones, ...

    Examples for embedded system

    Shows how deep software is integrated in our every day life

• The actual product is gratis

  However: Price plays a role, but is not crucial

• Source code is available

  Important for the most of the following four rights, which every user of Free Software has

  • Software may be used for any purpose
  • The sources may be studied and changed
  • The software may be distributed arbitrarily
  • Changed versions may be distributed arbitrarily

Keyword: Free Software Licences

• Licenses express the rights of the copyright holder

  • Govern under which conditions someone may do something with the software

    Proprietary software also uses licenses

  • Especially: Use, modify, distribute

  • Software licenses are based on copyright

    Copyright is based on state power

  • Rights or restrictions beyond copyright need contracts

• The genius hack: Use the copyright system against itself

  • Copyright creates scarcity by denying rights
  • Copyleft creates abundance by granting rights

• Two main license types: GPL and BSD

  • Though many licenses exist

    Since a license is a contract it's easy to invent a new license

    But it's rarely useful

  • Lists of Free Software licenses by FSF and OSI

• Main difference: May a licensee close sources again or not?

  • BSD: Software may be distributed without sources
  • GPL: Sources must be kept open
  • More than 50% of Free Software projects use the GPL

Mode of production of Free Software

This is a very important characteristic

• Without money

  Developers finance themselves by other means

  Similar to other hobbies

• Effort ist taken on a voluntary basis

  • Necessity of concrete solutions to problems

  • Selbstentfaltung of the developers

    Programming is fun (for some people)

    Other activities may serve the Selbstentfaltung also

• Manifold self-organized in small, independent groups

• International in the Internet

Keyword: Selbstentfaltung

The notion plays an central role in Oekonux

• More than self-realization

  Self-realization focuses too much on the isolated individual

  Selbstentfaltung understands humans as formed by their relations

• Responsibility is part of Selbstentfaltung

  Taking necessities into account belongs to responsibility

  Responsibility needs to be recognized individually

  Responsibility is learned and therefore coupled with the norms of the society

• Selbstentfaltung is "autonomy-in-interdependence"

  • Dependency is not reduction but extension of own possibilities

    Because others from whom I depend create possibilities by their actions I would not have if only by myself

• Selbstentfaltung of the single person is direct precondition for the Selbstentfaltung of all

  • And vice-versa

• Potential for Selbstentfaltung is essential feature of humans

  See critical psychology (Holzkamp)

  • Content is different for every individual

    Particularly it's not necessarily political correct

Free Software and commercial influences

• Companies engaging themselves

  • Distributors and Linux-Companies (SuSE, RedHat, small ones, ...)

    Have an interest in the actual state, because they emerged from it

  • Hardware and others (IBM, Sun, ...)

    Especially for hardware companies GNU/Linux is simply useful

    Because of this they have an interest in the actual state

• Licenses prevent privatization

  • Gnu General Public License (GPL)

  • Other licenses

    These partially allow re-privatization (BSD)

• Quality accrues from the absence of alienation

  Only then creativity can fully unfold

• Wage labor contradicts Selbstentfaltung

  Is alienated because it is aimed at a third goal (making money)

Perspectives of Free Software

• Free Software is becoming more and more important

  • GNU/Linux on the desktop, too

    On servers GNU/Linux is already widespread

    Public administrations are early adaptors

  • GNU/Linux on embedded systems

  • Tempestuous development

• Dangers

  • Software patents

    In Europe: Years of struggle with many people from the Free Software scene

• More and more people are inspired by the idea

• The principles of Free Software in other fields, too

Free Software is not a simple hobby

• Has high societal usage

• Direct competition with commodities

  After a commodity market has been established

  With big success

• Very modern product

  With very modern means of production

• Develops international

• Mainly written by professionals

Free Software is not a commodity

• Without exchange

  Nothing must be exchanged

• Exists in abundance

  There is no scarcity beyond technical limitations

• Open sources make secrets impossible

• Cooperation instead of competition

• Absolute quality claim

  Result of the use-oriented way of production

  For commodities it suffices if the buyer believes in quality relative to the competitors

• Call to contribute (inclusion model)

  With commodities only a small circle may contribute (exclusion model)

Free Software is not a gift

• A gift is based on a personal relationship

  May exist before and/or after a gift

  • For most people Free Software is anonymous as a product can be

• A gift often creates an obligation

  • Taking Free Software creates no obligations

• Producers of Free Software do not think in terms of gift

  If at all then as a gift to mankind

Keyword: Scarcity

• Deposits

  • Determined by nature and unchangeable
  • Also products with respect to a certain point in time

• Limitedness

  • Portion of the deposits available to humans
  • Is changeable by technical and other means
  • May occur when need is bigger than offer

• Scarcity

  • Is determined by society and can be produced

    Mineral oil has not always been scarce

    Today for information commodities scarcity must be produced

  • May occur when offer is bigger than need

    Yes, this is insane

Keyword: Rivalness

Term to classify goods

• Rival: If consumed by one not available for a second
  • Example: Food
  • Rival goods can be limited
  • Abundance of a rival good makes rivalness less important
• Non-rival: Each consumption is independent of each other
  • Example: Information, sunlight
  • Inherently not limited
  • Scarcity must be imposed by external means
• Anti-rival: The good is more useful if it is consumed by many
  • Happens through network effects
  • Example: Telephone
• Markets of material goods are based on rival goods

Keyword: Excludability

Term to classify goods

• Excludable: Others can be excluded from using a good

  • Matching legal concept: property

  • Can be cast onto everything

  • Can be hard to maintain though

    For instance: Information goods in Internet age

  • Necessary to create scarcity

• Non-excludable: Others can not be excluded from using it

  • Anything which can not be private property?

  • Non-excludable goods are often public goods

    For instance: Roads

• Each market is based on excludable goods

• Free Software made non-excludable by the license

  • Chance of contributions rises when more people use it
  • Regardless of how many "free ride"

Cooperation in Free Projects

• Informal

  Roles suited to the project's need rather than a fixed set of roles

  No formal qualification needed

  Self-appointment as a general tendency

  Official appointment as acknowledgment of a existing practice

  No votes on people

• No fixed boundaries

  For instance: No clear division between producers and consumers

• Voluntary

• Variable over time

  People come and go

• Variable over intensity

  People start and stop contributing as they like

• Unequal

  Everyone may contribute as s/he likes

  Some have more influence than others

  Different abilities are appreciated

Keyword: Maintainer model

Software development is most of all a social process

Maintainer model is a frequent way to organize

Here: Doubly Free Software projects

• Voluntarism as fundamental pre-condition

  • No alienated incentives
  • Makes possible and requires personal decision

• Self-organization as fundamental pre-condition

  • Without external command or alienated goals

    Visible for instance in release dates

• Maintainer keeps the project on course

  • Makes binding decisions

  • Supervises adherence to internal project standards

  • If necessary cares for further development

  • Organizes consensus ("Nobody needs to object")

    Not: Animosity

  • Can not command other participants

• Mutual dependence

  Participants need the functions of the maintainer

  Maintainer needs the participants

  • On failure: Fork

    Productive forks are rare

Free Software = Selbstentfaltung + digital copy

• Selbstentfaltung is the central motor for production

• Digital copy as a means of production is

  • Lossless

  • Available to all by computers

  • Possible about big distances (Internet)

  • Universal for all (digital) information goods

    The content of the information good is not relevant for the copy operation

    Analog to electric motors of the industrial era

Keyword: Internet

• Digital copy on a planet-wide basis

  Inherits the features of digital copy

• Lifts space limitations of cooperation

  • No limitation in size
  • Globalized and across cultural boundaries

• Lifts time limitations of cooperation

  • No fixed time frames
  • Makes possible real time as well as asynchronous processes

• As a medium has little inherent limitations

  • Makes topic oriented coppoeration possible
  • New projects and forks are always possible

• Combines individual use with common access

  • Everyone can be active based on individual decision

    Also meaning: As producer or consumer

  • Everyone has access

Free in the sense of Free Software

This freedom is indicated by the capital "F"

• Absense of alienation

  • Needs to result from the direct needs of those involved

  • Self-organization

    Not organized by principles alienated from the project

  • Voluntary participation

    Including voluntary taking over of responsibility

  • Enables Selbstentfaltung

• Freedom is result of the process

  • Results are Free because of the process

    Can be used by anyone who needs them

    Implies that they are available without payment

  • I.e. unlimited externally

• Freedom is pre-condition of the process

  • The process doesn't work without Freedom

    Freedom enables contributions from all sides

  • I.e. unlimited internally

• One's Freedom enables the Freedom of others

  Instead of limiting it like in abstract freedom

Keyword: Germ form

• Something structural new existing in the old

  Not the new in a small version

• Features of a contemporary emancipatory germ form

  • Global networking

  • Absence of exchange value and exchange

  • Self-organization

  • At the forefront of the development of productive forces

    Technical, but also social

  • Makes Selbstentfaltung possible

    Also as part of the development of productive forces

• Germ forms can be assessed only historically

  However, one can try to recognize germ forms

Keyword: Five-step

• Germ forms develop in a five-step

  Five-step is a general model for development

  • Formation of the germ form

  • Crisis of the old form

  • Germ form becomes an important dimension of development in the old form

  • Germ form becomes dominant

  • Restructuring of the over all process

    All phases can take a long time

Criticism: Germ form thesis

Exists inside and outside of the project

• Free Software is useful for capital

  Only for some sections; more important: useful for non-capital

  Points beyond capital structurally nonetheless

• Free Software is financed by the value system

  Every germ form is in the beginning embedded in the old

• Immaterial production is fundamentally different

  Yes; important is what is dominant

• Just nerds in patriarchal structures

  After all nobody can exclude women formally

  Interesting question: Why do women don't want to self-unfold in this Free Software?

• Free Software works in a meritocratic way

  There are no means of force in Free Software, so power has no substance

• Assessment of the germ form questionable

Dam building vs. ship building

Picture to make clear to distinct approaches to politics

• Dam building
  • Useful to dam against rising tide
  • Goal: Defend the old
  • Conservative approach
• Ship building
  • Useful to use the rising tide
  • Goal: Journey to new shores
  • Progressive approach
• Building dams and building ships are totally different approaches
  • But they can complement each other

The utopia

The possibilities are outlined

GPL society means a formation of society, which is based on the principles of the development of Free Software

Until now it can be imagines only in rough outlines

• Means of production make Selbstentfaltung possible

  • Useful: Maximum number of degrees of freedom

• Useful activities are Selbstentfaltung

  • Societal and individual utility is directly intertwined

    In part for this other means of work / machines are needed

  • Automation makes necessary activities superfluous

• Information and goods are Freely available

  • Free availability is precondition of the process

    So everyone can use all means to self-unfold

  • Free availability is result of the process

    Becaus of openness and inclusion model

  • This is what the capital "F" means

• Overcoming of the labor society

  • No labor, no commodities
  • No exchange, no money
  • No alienation

• The most important productive power is the human Selbstentfaltung

Free information goods

Which hints are there today?

• Well-known ones

  The idea to limit access to information is a historical relative new idea

  • Science?

    Currently there are very different and contradictory developments

  • Free cooking recipes

• New ones

  In the Internet a number of things developed

  • Wikipedia

  • Indymedia

  • Wikis, Blogs

  • Free music

    This does not mean copyright violation by P2P

Keyword: Creative Commons

• Licenses for "Some rights reserved"

  Copyright: "All rights reserved"

• Four license building blocks

  • Attribution (BY)

    Demands attribution of the source on copies

  • Noncommercial (NC)

    Denies permission of commercial usage of the work

  • No Derivative works (ND)

    Denies permission to derive works

  • Share Alike (SA)

    Demands keeping the license on derived works

  Copyleft equals SA+BY

• Big, international movement with good "marketing" (http://creativecommons.org/)

  • Adaption of license terms to national law systems

    3rd Oekonux conference: Presentation of the Austrian variant

  • Many million of works under Creative Commons licenses already

Free material goods

• Concrete projects

  Until now it is mainly a matter construction plans

  • Free electronic and hardware projects
  • Free car projects

• In capitalism information is an important precondition for material production already

• Material production becomes more and more an appendage of production of information

  This is analogous to the fact, that today agricultural production is a appendage of industrial production

Keyword: Fabber / Rapid Prototyping

Rapid Prototyping is the more official term

• Fabbers are universal fabrication machines

  • Materialize three-dimensional things from digital data

  • Typically by "baking" some amorphous, fine-grained material

    Allow for constructing things which are difficult to create otherwise

  • Actually exist

    Today: Mostly used for building models

• Fabbers have some interesting features

  • Link digital data and material world closely

    Bringing the logic of digital data to the material world

  • Universal for (parts of) material production

    Like computers for information: "One machine to rule them all"

  • Allow material production for individual needs

• Industrial robots are equally interesting

Other successful Free Projects: Wikipedia

• Web-based encyclopedia

  • Transnational, multi-lingual endeavor
  • Based on Wiki technology

• Produces useful products

  Is well-known for this reason

• Grows fast

  • Attracts "normal" people
  • Attracts knowledgeable people

• Free in the sense of (Doubly) Free Software

  • Freedom is pre-condition and result of the process
  • Voluntary participation
  • Unlimited externally and internally

• Challenge: Quality assurance

  • Difference to Free Software: No "technical truth"

    Software runs or not

    An encyclopedia article always reflects an opinion

  • Actions are on their way

    Result of those actions is of general interest

Other successful Free Projects: Open Access

• Free access to scientific information

  • Growing movement in the scientific communities

    More and more acceptance in the scientific communities

  • Based on Internet technology

  • Aligns well with scientific tradition of open flow of thoughts

  • Based on established methods of peer review

• Produces useful products

• At the forefront of the development of productive forces

  Science is a pre-condition for production with ever increasing importance

• Free in the sense of (Doubly) Free Software

  • Freedom is pre-condition and result of the process
  • Unlimited externally and internally

• Challenge: Counter movement to lock away scientific information

  E.g. patents

Keyword: Automation

• Today

  • Destroys jobs
  • Only capital is interested in automation

• GPL society

  • Extends possibilities of Selbstentfaltung

    By reduction of unpleasant activity

    By the creative process preceeding it

    By the empowerment of the users

  • Everybody is interested in automation

Keyword: Need

• Is neither good nor bad but requires satisfaction

• Needs are determined by society

  By fashions and (structural) coercion

  So this is variable

• Way of satisfaction is determined by society

  The need for mobility does not not have to be satisfied by cars

Criticism: GPL society

• Some necessary activities will always be done only under (structural) coercion

  Nevertheless: They need to be abolished

• How to prevent e.g. ecological unsound Selbstentfaltung?

  Don't know

The utopian toilet

• By Annette Schlemm and others

• Sketches the satisfaction of a human need ;-)

  An excerpts follows

  [See http://www.oekonux.org/texts/utoklo/ for translations]

Possible actions

About this we did not think very much until now

• Support Free Software

  • Use it yourself and recommend it to others
  • Report bugs to the developers
  • Write Free Software yourself

• Use standards

  Proprietary standards harm Free Software

• Think further together

  • Liberate yourself from the thinking categories of the labor society
  • Project Oekonux (http://www.oekonux.org/)

• Make available your products Freely

  • Is easy for digital products

• Start your own Free project