McAfee, a company known for creating an anti-virus program for Windows, has seriously mis-handled an attempt to complain about the GPL in their annual report. They write:

“To the extent that we use ‘open source’ software, we face risks […] Use of GPL software could subject certain portions of our proprietary software to the GPL requirements, which may have adverse effects on our sales of the products incorporating any such software.”

So first, McAfee admits that they use and distribute open source software but violate the GPL by not re-distributing their changes. It isn’t often that companies use their annual report to expose themselves to legal liability. McAfee’s misunderstanding about what the GPL is and how it can/cannot be used is baffling — don’t they have lawyers over there?

The One-Laptop-Per-Child project is being threatened by corporatism’s ugly head. OLPC is a non-profit which is attempting to bridge the digital divide by creating an extremely inexpensive laptop designed for children — the idea being that the generation of tomorrow will have to be computer literate and to prevent a sharp worsening of the gulf between have’s and have-not’s, OLPC seeks to make computer literacy possible for children all over the world.

Well, the bad news started recently when OLPC was sued for $20 million by Lancor Analysis Corp., a firm based in Nigeria. Apparently, they claim that OLPC stole their idea for multi-language keyboard.

Then, it was discovered that Intel was secretly pushing the Peruvian government to drop their order for OLPC computers and instead purchase an Intel competitor laptop. Intel is supposed to be a part of the OLPC project! When Nicholas Negroponte complained about this, Intel’s response was simple: they withdrew their support from the OLPC project. You can read about it in this NYT article: Intel Quits Effort to Get Computers to Children.

Update: Nicholas Negroponte has spoken to Fortune magazine about his views on Intel’s move.

What can be said about this? Can you all get a heart?

I became a fan of Eben Moglen when I saw this quote from him: “We also live in a world in which the right to tinker is under some very substantial threat. This is said to be because movie and record companies must eat. I will concede that they must eat. Though, like me, they should eat less.” This logic could be applied across the board in society! Computerworld recently featured an interview with Eben Moglen in which they discuss open source and free software.

One opportunity available to free software projects is the ability to right the wrongs that has made free-market modes of production so likely to institutionalize sexism. PBS has just published a great list of organizations and individual efforts related to this opportunity, like LinuxChix and devchix, which many people are already familiar with.

The women who work in the Northxsouth Developers Network also spend their time volunteering for groups that help the free software movement to grab this opportunity, like Birosca (which is mostly initiated by women from Latin America) and Gender Changers.

Now this is a cool site! I haven’t had a chance to fully sink my teeth into it yet but this thing has enormous potential to be a great resource for all of us out here who are finished with the archaic old way this whirling globe has been run by a few people only looking out for themselves. I can’t wait to go through this site because I’m all about Open Source Living!