NationStates Jolt Archive

I have written a proposal for an issue to mandate the use of open software (Linux, for example, but not exclusively) in all government systems. It is currently listed on page 19 of the list of proposals. Any comments about this proposal should be directed here.

Use of Open Software

Category: Human Rights; A resolution to improve worldwide human and civil rights.
Strength: Significant

Proposed by: FreeCoders

Description: It has come to our attention that large parts of the world still run their computer systems on closed, properietary software. Not only is this software expensive, but it poses serious national security issues for all nations. Who knows what that software is doing, if you can't look at the source code?

We propose to mandate that all UN governments make use of open software and standards in all computer systems. Not only is this safer, but it is also less expensive in the short term (small cost to adopt), but it is less expensive in the long run (smaller cost to upgrade -- only hardware costs).


Approvals: 4 (Komunio, Neolithica, Scyphia, Benlandia)

Status: Lacking Support (requires 129 more approvals)

Voting Ends: Sun Dec 14 2003

I gather this is your first proposal. Not bad. Now back to IC...

Why legislate what software a government uses? That's not much of an international issue. It's certainly not a Human Rights issue

Since there's a surprising number of people who don't know this, the game cannot interpret resolution text, and so the effects of a proposal are determined solely by the category and strength; the effects of a proposal are pretty much listed by the label it gets (ie: "Human Rights; A resolution to improve worldwide human and civil rights."). That's why having a category that matches up with the proposal is so important.

That said, I don't see a category this readily falls into.

Open source programs are not necessarily safer because they are better programmed -- they're far less targeted, too. How long do you think it would take someone to hack your system if they had ready access to ALL of your coding? There have been some successful, secure, open source products, but we can't know if that's because they're really that good or if it's just because no one ever targets them.

NIbbleton has already submitted a proposal for this (search for "Open Source for All"). Ours is clearly a Free Trade proposal, and is listed as such. Any approvals would be appreciated.

In fact, i'll post it here, because I can.


Open Source for All
A resolution to reduce barriers to free trade and commerce.


Category: Free Trade
Strength: Mild
Proposed by: Nibbleton
Description:
We believe that computer software should be made availiable at no cost to all users, no matter what their background or how much money the have.
Because of this, we propose that it should be made compulsory for all software, made by any company, group, or individual, to be distributed open-source, under the GNU General Public Licence, a copy of which can be found here: http://www.linux.org/info/gnu.html
We hope that this will help liberate software from the grasp of large, multinational corpirations, and make all software available for everyone

Approvals: 9 (Nibbleton, Arctopia, RedDraconis, Yisanville, Komunio, Spurrelladia, Mahatma Ghandistan, Rhuber, Rhhodgen)

Status: Lacking Support (requires 124 more approvals)

Voting Ends: Sun Dec 14 2003

My apologies for the classification. I chose Human Rights, because the effects seemed to fit the best out of the choices. I agree, it is not the best choice. Free Trade is probably better.

As for the argument against open software that it is more easily exploitable since the code is readily available, this is simply untrue. The fact that the code is "out in the open" means flaws are more easily discovered, located and isolated. In addition, the turnaround time for discovered flaws is several orders of magnitude smaller for open-source software than closed-source software simply because there is no business model to adhere to that restricts when patches and updates can be released.

As a result, open software tends to be more secure, not less than closed software. In additon, because the users of the software can look at the source if they want to, they can verify that there is no "malicious" code running. This is important for governments that are at war, or otherwise don't trust, the makers of the software. For all they know, that company, or their government, put "goodies" in the code. In closed-source systems, the only way to discover this is is by looking through forensic network logs.

Nibbleton: I'm going to telegraph my delegate and ask him to file his approval of that proposal :)

FreeCoders, we thank you for your support

Nibbleton

the gnu 'copyleft' and open software concept is fully compatable and consistent with the carlemnarian way of life and is in fact the way things are done not only in reguard to software but the very patern of our economics and just about everything else.
being post monitary and based on barter and potlatching intillectual property means only that credit must be given wherever it is due, but no one is prevented from utilizing any nonharmful concept, only from attempting to take credit for an innovation or act of creative synthasis not legitimately their own.
everything created by the noyo geniuses of our society, which even persons born mentaly challanged often become, such is the incouraging and inspiring nature of our environment, is freely shaired. the greatest prestege being earned by creating the most and greatest beauty and giving it to everyone. the gratification of doing so is the very engine that drives our nonmonitary economy, as indeed in time, as the concept of money becomes obsolete elswhere, will some day likely prevail throughout the planet even as it does on other worlds of the civilized universe.
all things chainge. that is the nature of existence. resource to population ratios are constantly evolving as population levels chainge and resources consumed at a faster rate then produced get used up. traditions based upon those resource to population levels that may have existed in a particular nation at a particular time become unsupportable, however dearly loved. (while of course those based instead on the spiritness of places endure even forgotten to rise from their own dust when once again freed to do so).
even as nomadic hurds replaced skill at the hunt, land replaced nomadic hurding, and arbitrary symbols of value known as currency replaced land as a measure and indication of wealth, in due time tecnology itself and the skills of using it creatively will have replaced money as any meaningful indication of wealth.
this transition is taking place in the mundane world today though few realize it and fewer still willing acknowledge this.
carlemnaria has 'been there and done that'
our oil and access to it is long gone and we refuse to make war on other nations to rob them of whatever resources we my once have foolishly depleted.
rather then deplete them though, rather then wait for them to be gone, alternatives to any need for them were developed and widely adopted long before doing so would become a matter of survival instead of waiting untill long after as is the case with so many shorter sighted nations.
thus we are able to proudly boast of being post petrolium, post monetary and post warring states, as we look forward to the era of the most great peace when our entire planet, having arrived under its own power and by its own conclusions, uncoerced by ourselves or anyone else, at such a state.
so whole heartedly we endorse and encourage such concepts as open software.

(ooc haven't tried linux yet myself but i really really love the idea)

=^^=
.../\...