Patents Event

From Hacklab

Table of contents

1 Why? 2 When, Where, How? 3 What? 3.1 Workshops 3.2 Film 3.3 Discussion 3.4 Entertainment 4 Action 4.1 Form Letter 5 Resources 6 Links

Why?

Emerging patent laws threaten to change the way we share and use information.
The London Hacklabs Collective invite you to:

• A day of discussions and practical workshops
• An evening of music, films and quality social time

When, Where, How?

Saturday April 9th, at the rampART. Come early to participate in the workshops, or join the mailing list (http://sindormir.net/mailman/listinfo/freedomlab) to help plan and organise it!

What?

Workshops

First floor @ 12 noon: OpenOffice.org.

Main hall @ 12 noon: Various presentations on proprietary software.

First floor @ 2pm: Why Open Source? Plus LiveCD test drives. Try out a new operating system and take one home.

Main hall @ 2pm: Question & Answer session (Q&A) on video production. From pre-production to editing through production and express-editing, the process of preparing a broadcast piece of news is covered using Kino, Cinelerra and supporting software like Audacity, GIMP, IceCast and VideoLan.

2.30pm: Open Source desktop publishing (producing April issue of Indymedia Offline).

First floor @ 3.30pm: Q&A on image editing mainly using GIMP (http://gimp.org) (GNU Image Manipulation Program).

Main hall @ 4pm: Introduction to Pure Data (http://puredata.org/) (real-time graphical programming environment for audio, video, and graphical processing). Note that time is to be confirmed.

First floor @ 4pm: Q&A on alternatives to Word and compatible formats, audio editing and basic introduction to formats, Webpage creation (very basic html).

4.30pm: Wireless internet HOWTO plus build your own high gain antenna out of cardboard and sticky-backed plastic!

Main hall @ 5pm: Open Co-ops. Open source style organising for human relations?

First floor @ 5pm: Build your own PC. Bring parts along if you have any.

Film

Main hall @ 6pm: Stallman on Patents

Discussion

Main hall after Stallman film: Do patent laws have a place in today's information society?

Patent laws were originally put in place to protect innovators from having their ideas stolen. They now provide a tool for large businesses to control how inventions, research, knowledge and even lifeforms can be exploited for profit.

In a society that is becoming increasingly dependent on information and communication technology, ownership of information controls every aspect of our lives.

Are we going to sit idly by while the richest and greediest corporations, assisted by our governments, take exclusive control?

Entertainment

First floor from 6pm onwards: Computer games - have fun destroying RampART!

Main hall from 9pm till 2am: Live music and DJs

Action

There will be computers available to sign the online petition (http://petition.eurolinux.org/index_html) against EU software patents, contact your MEP (http://www.europarl.org.uk/uk_meps/MembersMain.htm) or take direct action against patent laws. You could also find out whether your MP (http://faxyourmp.com/) understands the issues.

Form Letter

A possible letter to send to your MEPs:

Dear ,

Software Patents

I am writing to you in regard to the proposed EU directive on software patents.

Copyright Law at present protects software quite effectively. The addition of a Patent law will allow a few dominant players to stifle competition and innovation by denying developers the opportunity to create competitive alternatives which adhere to open standards, promoting interoperability and thus choice.

As the law currently stands you are not, for example, allowed to copy Microsoft's Word program from one computer to another; however you are free to write a program that performs as Word does and distribute it under the GPL licence, as say, OpenOffice.org does.

Under a Patent law, developers could be open to prosecution simply for creating a program that behaves like Word! As Microsoft puts it "Let there be no doubt that Microsoft believes patent protection is necessary in order to protect our innovative work."

As my MEP, kindly reveal your position on this issue, and whether you are willing to lobby and vote against it.

This proposal is neither constructive nor necessary. It is a direct attack on software companies in the UK and across the EU; and in the longer term it will impose extra costs on all businesses and consumers across the EU, as software development becomes an even more entrenched monopoly.

It is highly desirable that a vibrant, independent and profitable software industry continues to exist in Europe. The introduction of this Directive will do nothing to further that aim.

Yours sincerely,

Resources

The event flyer ->

The flyer in printable A4 format, copy and distribute!

A4 format flyer (http://wiki.hacklab.org.uk/index.php/Image:Patent_event_flyer_a4.png)

The flyer in Gimp format ->

Gimp format flyer (http://www.hacklab.org.uk/patent_event_flyer.xcf)

Refs:

http://news.independent.co.uk/world/science_technology/story.jsp?story=622675

http://www.charlesarthur.com/blog/index.php?p=368

Links

• Richard Stallman on Patents (http://www.cl.cam.ac.uk/~mgk25/stallman-patents.html)
• Foundation for a Free Information Infrastructure (http://www.ffii.org/)
• Software Patents vs Parliamentary Democracy (http://swpat.ffii.org/)
• Patents for Profit (http://www.opendemocracy.net/debates/article-8-40-2370.jsp)
• European Parliament MEPs (http://www.europarl.org.uk/uk_meps/MembersPrincip.htm)
• No Software Patents! (http://nosoftwarepatents.com/)