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diff --git a/ideology/fscons-2010.mdwn b/ideology/fscons-2010.mdwn index d3096a2..5224ec7 100644 --- a/ideology/fscons-2010.mdwn +++ b/ideology/fscons-2010.mdwn @@ -1,4 +1,5 @@ -# Syndicated E-mail Service Against Software as a Service +Syndicated E-mail Service Against Software as a Service +======================================================= Denna sida innehåller dels allmänna anteckningar om Friposts bidrag till FSCONS 2010 genom Gustav Eek och Stefan Kangas, och dels @@ -12,24 +13,23 @@ to directly read the article text. [[!toc levels=2]] -# Anteckningar om föreningens bidrag till konferensen FSCONS 2010 +Anteckningar om föreningens bidrag till konferensen FSCONS 2010 +=============================================================== - * *Authors* – Gustav Eek and Stefan Kangas + * *Authors* - Gustav Eek and Stefan Kangas + * *Contact email* - skangas@skangas.se + * *Preferred timeslot* - 30 min + * *Proposal title* - Olika förslag... + * "[Syndicated](https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/syndicate) E-mail + Service Against Software as a Service" + * "Serve our self the server service" + * "Servicing our own software as a service" + * "Defeating SaaS by socializing email services" + * "Collaborative email servers against SaaS" - * *Contact email* – skangas@skangas.se - * *Preferred timeslot* – 30 min - - * *Proposal title* – Olika förslag... - - * "[Syndicated](https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/syndicate) E-mail - Service Against Software as a Service" - * "Serve our self the server service" - * "Servicing our own software as a service" - * "Defeating SaaS by socializing email services" - * "Collaborative email servers against SaaS" - -## Proposal summary +Proposal summary +---------------- It is becoming increasingly common for persons and organizations to hire external services for e-mail handling, and even for the use of @@ -46,7 +46,8 @@ that guarantees that it is * of independent means, * democratically structured, * built on trust between its members, and - * ready to be far-reaching with regards to avoiding traffic logging and to protect the members privacy. + * ready to be far-reaching with regards to avoiding traffic logging and + to protect the members privacy. The service that we are hoping to create is a full featured e-mail solution with high reliability and accessibility. @@ -70,13 +71,17 @@ users away from private suppliers of e-mail and other services, to either join our association or even better start more similar projects. -## Other information + +Other information +----------------- It is preferred from our point of view that the talk is scheduled in an early stage of the conference. This since the hope is to raise questions for further discussion during the conference. -# Antagen till konferensen + +Antagen till konferensen +======================== Den 24 juli blev föredraget "Syndicated E-mail Service Against Software as a Service" antagen till temat "Infrastructure" på FSCONS @@ -93,24 +98,28 @@ Det är ett antal saker som vi från Jonas Öberg blivit ombedda att utföra och återkomma till Jonas och Jeremiah angående. 1. Granska den föreslagna sammanfattningen av föredraget och revidera - det med det övergripande temat i åtanke och om något tillkommit i - föredraget. + det med det övergripande temat i åtanke och om något tillkommit i + föredraget. 2. Om vi har några begränsningar vad gäller schemaläggningen. 3. Frågan om när vi kommer till Göteborg och om vi ska vara med på de - sociala tillställningarna. + sociala tillställningarna. Frågan är också om konferensen vill ha någon längre artikel för föredraget. I så fall vore det bra att sätta igång med det nu, snart. En idé skulle vara att översätta principförklaringen om den kan skrivas på ett tillräckligt vetenskapligt sätt. -# Second article for the conference + +Second article for the conference +================================= This is the second proposal, which is longer and more adjusted to the infrastructure theme description. The proposal follows declaration of principals. -## Introduction + +Introduction +------------ User freedom is the most important property of tomorrows infrastructure. This property is necessary to safeguard the relative @@ -125,14 +134,16 @@ freedom are identified. We then present the *Free Email Association*, what built up infrastructure we have, and our principles. Finally we try to sketch what we think the future paths might look like. -## Background + +Background +---------- The centralisation of influence and rectification of decision-making is not unique for the Internet. This is written in a wider context of general social criticism of economic and cultural globalisation and the current forms of the globalisation of information flows. Many decisions are made in multi-lateral arenas where the democratic -control is limited.^1 A decreasing number of transnational operators, +control is limited.[^1] A decreasing number of transnational operators, not only controls the means of production and the production of goods, but also have great influence in markets demands. @@ -146,32 +157,48 @@ segments of important infrastructure that millions of users depend on every day. Those who control the technology and its infrastructure also have power over its users. -## Computing, computer labour, and power over the infrastructure +[^1]: Good, recent examples are the European Unions IPRED directive or + the ACTA agreement. + + +Computing, computer labour, and power over the infrastructure +------------------------------------------------------------- The *Free Software Foundation* suggest definition of *free software* consisting of four requirements: the "freedom to run, copy, distribute, study, change and improve the software". (Free Software Foundation "The Free Software Definition") As a complement to those we define the more general *freedom with regard to own computer labour* -^2 as requiring that +[^2] as requiring that 1. the work is performed exclusively with free software, 2. the work is performed with computer hardware that entirely is at - one's possession and control, + one's possession and control, 3. the information worked with is information that one possess, and 4. the result from the computer work also is at one's possession and - control. + control. We here use "information" to denote data and documents that are the object to computer work. In this context *computer labour* is all use of computers, and *own computer labour* is computer work performed for -one's own part. ^3 +one's own part.[^3] -## Internet and its servers +[^2]: Stallman (Stallman 2010) uses *your own computing* to denote what + we call *one's own computer labour*. We use the latter because of + its broader associations. +[^3]: Stallman (Stallman 2010) points out that work performed as + employee in some company or in a cooperation project as Wikipedia + is not one's own computer work, but a part of that company's or + project's work. In that case it is not one's own freedom that is + threatened, but the company's or project's. + + +Internet and its servers +------------------------ The *Internet* seen as an infrastructure scheme was constructed as a distributed *peer-to-peer* non-hierarchical network of independent and -self-determined parts. ^4 Despite this immanent property, the Internet +self-determined parts.[^4] Despite this immanent property, the Internet today, seen from a regular user's point of view, is structured in a hierarchical manner around a decreasing number of server clouds, which are continuously growing in size and power. Historically the meaning @@ -182,7 +209,13 @@ independent. For example social networking sites, like Facebook, often require their users to perform their work directly on the company's servers. (Moglen 2010) -## Software as a service +[^4]: Technically the parts of a network are *nodes*, which in the case + of Internet are servers, switches, and personal computers, and + *edges*, which are interconnecting wires. + + +Software as a service +--------------------- A concept introduced in the spirit of centralisation is *Software as a Service* (SaaS). Shortly SaaS is that users are invited to perform @@ -200,7 +233,9 @@ is non-free in a double sense; using SaaS also leads to *vendor lock-in*. However, the complex of lock-in problems reach far outside SaaS. -## The infrastructure of email + +The infrastructure of email +--------------------------- The email infrastructure is not an exception from the tendency towards centralisation and rectification of Internet's services and usage. We @@ -225,16 +260,20 @@ concern to the sender, but there is generally no human activity (directly) involved and thus no actual work performed. In principle the same holds also for the process of receiving email. However, most popular email services are not content with that. Stallman writes, -<blockquote>Some sites whose main service is publication and -communication extend it with *contact management*: keeping track of -people you have relationships with. Sending mail to those people for -you is not SaaS, but keeping track of your dealings with them, if -substantial, is SaaS. (Stallman 2010)</blockquote> And using SaaS is -not free computer labour. Furthermore, whether hiring a company for -handling one's email imply usage of SaaS or non-free computer labour -might not be the only matter of importance. -## Privacy and survelliance +> Some sites whose main service is publication and communication extend +> it with *contact management*: keeping track of people you have +> relationships with. Sending mail to those people for you is not SaaS, +> but keeping track of your dealings with them, if substantial, is SaaS. +> (Stallman 2010) + +And using SaaS is not free computer labour. Furthermore, whether hiring +a company for handling one's email imply usage of SaaS or non-free +computer labour might not be the only matter of importance. + + +Privacy and survelliance +------------------------ With large clientele comes a lot of power. Google is currently not the largest email service provider; both Windows Live Hotmail and Yahoo @@ -255,7 +294,9 @@ websites utilize Google's JavaScript APIs, web site statistics or reCAPTCHA service, which indirectly exposes individuals to Google's supervision. -## Organisation for a change + +Organisation for a change +------------------------- Technology has never been neutral. Behind technology changes and innovations today lies commercial interests and social factors. On the @@ -307,7 +348,9 @@ attention. A declaration of principles serve as a founding document for the association, but still a high level of trust is laid on the elected officers. -## On the long term + +On the long term +---------------- We recommend and encourage everyone to perform their computer labour with free software at machines that are in their own possession. But @@ -327,7 +370,7 @@ No one in their right mind would put their blind trust in a government that was dabbling in surveillance on a scale anywhere near what Google is doing. But when it comes to Google, their marketing strategy has been so successful that many people need no additional guarantees that -Google will behave – people are willing to take Google's word +Google will behave - people are willing to take Google's word for it. The reasons behind the described changeover of the Internet are @@ -340,42 +383,24 @@ free alternatives. In the long-term, however, we realize that a larger social change on a structural level is necessary. The best we can hope for is to give a small contribution to bringing about that change. -## Footnotes - -^1 Good, recent examples are the European Unions IPRED directive or -the ACTA agreement. - -^2 Stallman uses *your own computing* to denote what we call *one's -own computer labour*. [2] We use the latter because of its broader -associations. - -^3 Stallman points out that work performed as employee in some company -or in a cooperation project as Wikipedia is not one's own computer -work, but a part of that company's or project's work. In that case it -is not one's own freedom that is threatened, but the company's or -project's. (stallman 2010): - -^4 Technically the parts of a network are *nodes*, which in the case -of Internet are servers, switches, and personal computers, and -*edges*, which are interconnecting wires. - -## References - - * [1] Turner, M. et.al. (2003). "Turning Software into a Service", - Computer vol. 36, IEEE Computer Society 2003. - * [2] Stallman, R. M (2010). "Who does that server realy serve?", - Boston review, only web version - [[https://bostonreview.net/BR35.2/stallman.php]]. Revised version på - [[https://www.gnu.org/philosophy/who-does-that-server-really-serve.html]]. Fetched - 2010-08-30. - * [3] Moglen E. (2010). "Freedom in the Cloud", talk given to the New - York chapter of ISOC February 2nd 2010. Video available at - [[http://new.law.columbia.edu/isoc/eben_moglen_freedom_in_the_cloud.ogv]], - and transcription at - [[https://www.softwarefreedom.org/events/2010/isoc-ny/FreedomInTheCloud-transcript.html]]. Checked - 2010-09-10. - * [4] Free Software Foundation. "The Free Software Definition", - [[https://www.gnu.org/philosophy/free-sw.html]]. Fetched 2010-08-30. - * [5] Brownlow M. (2010). "Email and webmail statistics", - [[http://www.email-marketing-reports.com/metrics/email-statistics.htm]]. Updated - May 2010. First published April 2008. Fetched 2010-09-21. +References +---------- + + 1. Turner, M. et.al. (2003). "Turning Software into a Service", Computer + vol. 36, IEEE Computer Society 2003. + 2. Stallman, R. M (2010). "Who does that server realy serve?", + Boston review, only web version + [[https://bostonreview.net/BR35.2/stallman.php]]. Revised version på + [[https://www.gnu.org/philosophy/who-does-that-server-really-serve.html]]. Fetched + 2010-08-30. + 3. Moglen E. (2010). "Freedom in the Cloud", talk given to the New + York chapter of ISOC February 2nd 2010. Video available at + [[http://new.law.columbia.edu/isoc/eben_moglen_freedom_in_the_cloud.ogv]], + and transcription at + [[https://www.softwarefreedom.org/events/2010/isoc-ny/FreedomInTheCloud-transcript.html]]. Checked + 2010-09-10. + 4. Free Software Foundation. "The Free Software Definition", + [[https://www.gnu.org/philosophy/free-sw.html]]. Fetched 2010-08-30. + 5. Brownlow M. (2010). "Email and webmail statistics", + [[http://www.email-marketing-reports.com/metrics/email-statistics.htm]]. Updated + May 2010. First published April 2008. Fetched 2010-09-21. |