free software

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Free software scares normal people
2 months ago
- Normal people struggle with video conversion due to confusing formats not compatible with QuickTime or Facebook.
- Handbrake has a powerful but intimidating UI, typical of free software that deters non-expert users.
- The author built MagicBrake, a simplified front end for Handbrake that performs one common task: converting video to a small MP4.
- MagicBrake has a single button and hides advanced features, appealing to those who only need basic conversion.
- Criticisms about limiting functionality are addressed by noting power users can still use full Handbrake.
- The analogy of obscuring TV remote functions with tape is used to justify simplifying complex tools.
- Opportunities for such simplifications exist in media servers, audio editing software, and network tools.
- 80% of users need only 20% of features; hiding the rest increases productivity and happiness.
Europe's Software Problem - Bert Hubert's writings
2 months ago
- Europe's communication relies on Chinese hardware and US platforms, leading to over-dependence.
- European companies rarely create consumer-oriented free software due to lack of vision and regulatory constraints like GDPR.
- Free software models rely on rent-seeking or surveillance, which European companies cannot easily adopt.
- Current attempts (outlawing data transfers, interoperable standards like Joyn) have failed to produce competitive European alternatives.
- The solution is to develop compelling free software funded by the EU, leveraging existing talent and open source.
- Major challenge: existing funding mechanisms (public procurement, Horizon Europe) are not suited for fast-paced consumer software development.
- New structures like contests or agencies (e.g., SPRIND) are needed to stimulate innovation.
Sandyne DAW – Write, record and mix your own music (Free preview)
2 months ago
- Draw and edit notes on a piano-style grid with adjustable loudness and scale highlighting; use a computer keyboard if no piano controller is available.
- Combine instruments, drums, effects, recording, and mixing in one free app with no account or subscription required.
- Drag notes, audio recordings, and drum patterns onto a shared timeline; double-click any clip to open the appropriate editor.
- Browse and preview audio files, drag them onto the timeline, and edit them with trim, fade, loop, or split functions.
- Tap out drum patterns on a grid with adjustable loudness and stereo positioning; blend beats with melodies and recordings.
- Each track has a rack with a customizable chain of MIDI effects, instruments, and audio effects; drag modules to reorder them.
- Built-in instruments include real recordings (piano, drums, orchestra) and synthesizers (3D landscape synth, classic synth, evolving textures, electronic drums, synthetic voice, vocoder).
- Built-in effects enhance tracks or the whole mix; includes a web interface for remote monitoring, recording, and mix adjustments from any browser.
- Mix using a vertical-fader mixer or a 2D Visual Mixer with stage markers; both edit the same mix.
- Automate knob movements with recording or wobble patterns; see both set and actual values on a dual-ring display.
- Support for VST3 plug-ins; save songs fully or export individual tracks; available for free with built-in content.
Protecting our FLOSS commons from LLMs
2 months ago
- Two motions passed: no training LLMs on user data, and terms of use change to prohibit 'vibe-coded' projects.
- Codeberg commits to not using any user or project data for training generative AI.
- LLMs are seen as endangering the free/libre software ecosystem due to high costs, resource strain, and environmental harm.
- Weak-coded projects with single developers and no community consume disproportionate resources, violating Codeberg's mission.
- Rising hardware costs from LLM demand affect Codeberg's ability to expand infrastructure.
- The digital divide widens as costs for digital tools and services increase for small operators.
- LLMs harm collaboration in FLOSS by lowering trust, increasing maintenance burden, and enabling license laundering.
- Enforcement of new terms will be gradual and human-centered, with guidelines for affected projects.
How I Do My Computing
2 months ago
- Richard Stallman uses a Thinkpad x200 with free initialization program (GNU Boot) and free operating system (Trisquel GNU/Linux), purchased from small businesses that recondition and install free software.
- He previously used the Lemote Yeeloong and briefly an OLPC, both with limitations regarding free software and firmware.
- He recommends only ethical GNU/Linux distros that are entirely free software, and avoids making practical comparisons among them.
- He primarily uses a text console and Emacs for editing, email, and web page maintenance, and uses X11 only when graphical interfaces are necessary.
- He is careful about internet connectivity: avoids nonfree Javascript (using LibreJS), uses Tor, fetches web pages via email, and avoids sites that require identification or nonfree code.
- He does not use social networking sites (except for a Twitter account solely for logging in elsewhere) and rejects Facebook, Twitter impostors, and 4chan posts.
- He advocates for Lisp as the most powerful programming language, prefers Lisp and C, and criticizes C++ for its flaws.
- He refuses to install or tolerate nonfree software on his own machines, but may briefly use nonfree software on others' machines in limited circumstances.
- He opposes DRM, streaming services like Netflix and Spotify, and nonfree communication apps like Skype and Zoom, due to their ethical violations.
- He dislikes the term 'coding' for programming, as it historically referred to low-level implementation separate from design.
Useful Is Not Sufficient
2 months ago
- Linus Torvalds defends AI as a useful tool in Linux development, stating critics can fork the project if they disagree.
- The author argues that usefulness alone is not a sufficient justification, comparing AI to child labor or surveillance software which are also 'useful' but ethically problematic.
- In free software contexts, political and social considerations like autonomy and community are important, not just utility.
- The piece calls for higher ethical standards beyond mere usefulness, especially in a world facing crises.
Stop the GUARD Act and age verification laws worldwide
2 months ago
- Age verification laws are often justified as protecting children, but may not effectively solve the intended problems and can have severe consequences for digital freedoms.
- The GUARD Act in the U.S. would mandate age verification for chatbot services, potentially enabling surveillance and threatening software freedom, including free machine learning development.
- Age verification requirements could force even small free software projects to implement restrictive technologies, undermining Freedom 0—the right to use software for any purpose.
- Activists urge calling senators to oppose such legislation and highlight upcoming International Day Against DRM on July 17th to raise awareness and seek support.
How the FSF sysadmins block botnets with reaction
2 months ago
- The FSF sysadmins use reaction, a tool to block botnets and aggressive scrapers, including those like the Vo1d/Popa botnet using compromised smart TVs.
- They transitioned from fail2ban due to scalability issues (like hitting limits with UFW rules) to ipset, which allowed handling up to five million rules without instability.
- After encountering performance issues with fail2ban's architecture, they adopted reaction from Framagit, customizing configurations for ipset and improving restart times by exporting/restoring IP sets.
- The FSF shared their reaction configurations upstream to help others and emphasizes the role of free software supporters in funding their defense efforts against DDoS attacks.
Open Source Barware: free, local-first bar inventory software (GPLv3)
3 months ago
- The program is a free, no-subscription inventory tool designed for bar managers, running on laptops without requiring AI.
- It simplifies the traditional inventory process by replacing manual counting and spreadsheets with a digital workflow including voice-walking and reconciliation.
- Features include smart inventory sheets, variance tracking against POS sales, optional AI for invoice photo reading, and a product database with over 500 items.
- Open Source Barware aims to provide a cost-free alternative to expensive hardware and SaaS solutions, emphasizing no vendor lock-in and immediate use.
FSF Librephone update: Ensuring freedom, one blob at a time
3 months ago
- The Free Software Foundation (FSF) supports the GNU Project, which creates important free software and inspires advocacy for software freedom.
- FSF launched LibrePhone to reverse-engineer nonfree blobs in mobile SoCs, focusing on radio blobs for WiFi, Bluetooth, NFC, and cellular communications to advance mobile phone freedom.
- Lead developer Rob Savoye extracted firmware from over 200 Lineage packages, processed 85GB of files, and found shared software across devices, accelerating progress.
- Despite challenges like proprietary baseband firmware and threats to digital rights, FSF continues developing free software, with each freed blob representing progress.
- Free software powers two-thirds of internet servers, all top 500 supercomputers, and 98% of codebases, with widespread use on personal devices, showcasing the impact of the four freedoms.
- LibrePhone is a long-term project requiring time, financial support, and volunteers, similar to the GNU Project, to achieve free mobile phone computing.

free software

Free software scares normal people

Europe's Software Problem - Bert Hubert's writings

Sandyne DAW – Write, record and mix your own music (Free preview)

Protecting our FLOSS commons from LLMs

How I Do My Computing

Useful Is Not Sufficient

Stop the GUARD Act and age verification laws worldwide

How the FSF sysadmins block botnets with reaction

Open Source Barware: free, local-first bar inventory software (GPLv3)

FSF Librephone update: Ensuring freedom, one blob at a time