Re: [Linux-aus] Australian Digital Civil Rights Quiz

[Janet Hawtin <lucychili@internode.on.net>]

Glen Turner wrote:
> Hi Janet,
>
> I'm not arguing against the substance of what you wrote.
>
> <nit picking>
>
> > - statistical data modelling
>
>
> Not a good example. I don't understand how Excel works, but I
> know its stats functions are crap because there is an external
> standard to test them against. Equally I know the functions in
> SAS are brilliant.  Both are closed source.
>
> There is a question about the rights inherent in a data model,
> especially those used in public policy, but again that is an
> important fight for others.

OK fair enough.
I suggested it after looking at the kinds of 
life/environment/economic/disaster modelling applications people are 
proposing for use to examine environmental impact, project safety and 
viability. If someone DRMs that software and public policy decisions are 
made based on it, I would expect it to conflict with public information 
rights that people have as to whether the information supporting a 
government decsion was well founded or balanced or even relevant. There 
is a risk that policy could be made based on modelling applications with 
nice bling and gui but with ineffective or customised information being 
output and no access to the logic.

Janet