week 7 lecture

This lecture was about creative commons and free/open source software.
CREATIVE COMMONS:
sites like creativecommons.org (started in 2002) provide tools so that people can make their works available to the public with licenses that are more flexible. It enable "some rights reserved" rather than "all rights reserved". The creator can allow people to use their work under certain conditions; for example they could specify that it can't be used for commercial purposes.
The idea of creative commons comes from the free software movement.

FREE SOFTWARE:
First of all one needs to understand what source code is: it is the intructions written in programing code that tell the computer what to do.
Historically software was free becuase there was no market for it so creators shared their work. Anyone could take someone elses software and access the source code to change it to fit their needs. Then when Microsoft started producing and marketing software they stopped people from accessing the source code. One couldn't change the product they were sold.
Richard M Stallmab started the Free Software Foundation in 1981 because he believed people should be free to:
0. run the program as they wished, for any purpose
1. study how the program works and adapt to thier needs
2. redistrible copies of the program to help thier nieghbour
3. improve the program and release it to the public.

OPEN SOURCE SOFTWARE is a new name for free software that makes it more marketable to busieness. It is called open source because the source code is open for people to access. PROPRIETY SOFTWARE on the other hand is closed source as the source code is confidential. Legally you can't change propriety software like windows or copy it for a friend.

This week we were challenged to try a free software program.
I already always use Firefox because I prefer it to Explorer. One great benifit of it being open source is that people are always creating new applications for it. Like the Stumble toolbar which takes me to sites that it thinks I might find interesting. It's terrible when I'm procrastinating over an assignment. I think Firefox is also easier to understand than Explorer. I feels like it was made by people who use computers and understand what propriety software is lacking.

I decided to try Gimp the photo editor too. I've never really used a photo editing program but I found Gimp easy to understand. As with Firefox it feels like it was created by people who want an easy, workable and useful program; not some programmers in a big office who's job it is to create something people will buy.

I also use VLC media player all the time. Because it will play anything. Oh and because it's free.