what are we doing today, brain?

• Beijing Linux User Group - SFD ‘07 wrap-up!
  “October holidays are over and the Beijing LUG team has finally updated all the information related to Beijing Software Freedom Day 2007!” - Wow, what an incredible SFD event!
  (tags: sfd2007)

I am still flabbergasted by an excellent speech I heard from the NZ IT Minister, David Cunliffe about Open Source at the New Zealand Open Source Awards recently. The speech was excellently written and delivered, and included some excellent tidbits including:

Today the raw material you deal with is not high-tensile steel: it is ones and zeros, data and code. And it makes no more sense to restrict how the raw material of the information age can be used, as it did to say that No 8 wire should be used solely for fencing. Wire, like code, can be put to any number of uses given the license to be creative, or dare I say, ingenious.

As both an elected Member and Minister of ICT, I am acutely aware of open source technologies and the contribution they make to the systems that support our core democratic processes here in New Zealand. For instance, the Register of Electors and the Electoral Management Systems – are built on open source technologies.

As those of you in the industry know, ultimately that capability is about people, not technology. Open source attracts some of the most talented of our developers and affords them the opportunity to engage globally with the best in the business.

And my personal favourite:

I challenge both public and private sector organisations to look again at some of the home-grown open source offerings and ask: Where better to invest than in building our local IT industry and our capability to make the most of what open source has to offer?

I believe there is video forthcoming from the event. There are already a few videos up from the New Zealand Open Source awards, so check it out!

• Freedom to Tinker » One Laptop Per Child
  “Today we welcome back SG, a twelve-year-old who previously reviewed the B2 version of the One Laptop Per Child computer.” Cool review
  (tags: olpc b4)

• Beehive.govt.nz - Address to Open Source Awards
  “Wire, like code, can be put to any number of uses given the license to be creative, or dare I say, ingenious.” - A brilliant speech by the NZ ICT Minister, Hon David Cunliffe, about Open Source at the NZ Open Source Awards this week. Wow!
  (tags: FOSS NZ davidcunliffe)

The Software Freedom International Board are currently judging the best SFD07 competition entries, and there is a great video about the Mt Gambier Software Freedom Day event which made it to WIN news in Australia. Nice one to Peter and the team there

The winners of the SFD07 competition will be announced in November.

• Mahara - Open Source eProfile application
  “Mahara is a fully featured open source electronic portfolio, weblog, resume builder and social networking system, connecting users and creating online communities.” Great stuff!
  (tags: university)

• CLARKE & DAWE - Mastermind 2004
  “If you made a promise and don’t keep it, what is it?”, “A non-core promise” - A funny skit about the Howard Government in Australia.
  (tags: politics)

• “Intellectual Property - reasserting consumers’ rights” - Conference
  “Consumers’ rights to use intellectual property are increasingly under threat. Policy is made at an international level - how can national consumer organisations work better to strengthen their voice on the global stage?” Looks interesting!
  (tags: ip policy)

• I AM PIA!
  “I AM PIA!” Funny, I am Pia too! I ran across this person through a random email asking if I was her. She also lives in Sydney, is something of a geek (although an electricity and art geek) and the name Pia is so rare in Australia
  (tags: pia sydney)

• Betchablog » Meet the $100 Laptop
  “During lunch however, I spotted Pia again and she let me take the OLPC for an extended play.” Thanks for the article Chris Glad you enjoyed playing with the OLPC!
  (tags: education olpc opensource)
• “There may be very few… but they are trully something…”
  Great blog post about women in FOSS with a very useful piece of advice. “Please ladies, don’t judge us by our worst specimens” There are so many awesome people in our community all around the world.
  (tags: women foss)