[Linux-aus] Fwd: FYI & Comment - Latest version of Democrat Open Source Bill

[Con Zymaris]

On Thu, Sep 18, 2003 at 12:09:50PM +0800, Leon Brooks wrote:
> On Thu, 18 Sep 2003 11:38, Con Zymaris wrote:
> > * Preference should be given to technologies for which there is is a
> > case to be made that local industry can benefit, and that imports can
> > be replaced, helping improve our woeful balance of trade in ICT.
> 
> Microsoft have already pre-neutralised this one as stated. They claim 
> that most of the money from Microsoft sales stays in the country.

I know they do. It's an easily disproven lie. 

Further, I don't want 8/9ths of that money staying here, I want 9/9ths
;-)


> 
> This claim is true only when viewed in one very special way, but can in 
> turn be hobbled by requiring that *complete*local*autonomy* of the 
> software be an officially meritorious attribute.
> 
> If phrased intelligently, the ruling will mean that because any local 
> developer can fork KDE, KDE would automatically be preferred over 
> MS-Windows or CDE unless and until Microsoft properly Opened MS-Windows 
> or Sun Opened CDE, despite the largest single group of KDE developers 
> being in Germany.
> 
> If phrased carelessly, Microsoft or Sun need only offer source access 
> rights (on RAND terms) for one bazillion dollars to any "qualifying" 
> Australian developer in order to evade the ruling.
> 
> > I do believe that some affirmative action is not a bad thing, as the
> > entrenched players would otherwise be immovable. Most governments
> > already have purchasing policies which not only favour entrenched
> > vendors, they _mandate_ these vendors' products.
> 
> If that's so, perhaps we should start by simply requiring that all such 
> mandates be expressly eliminated? Any exceptions granted would have to 
> be explicitly argued on a case-by-case basis.

seems feasible. It alters the placement of 'hurdles' so that public 
servants have to leap hurdles when not deploying FOSS, rather than the 
current situation.


-- 
_____________________________________________________________________________
Con Zymaris <conz at cyber.com.au> Level 4, 10 Queen St, Melbourne 03 9621 2377 
Cybersource: Unix/Linux, TCP/IP and Web App. Development  www.cyber.com.au