Re: [Fsfe-uk] Free Software & The ICT Hub

[Simon Morris]

On Sat, 2006-07-22 at 23:03 +0100, address@hidden wrote:

> Their targeted audience is one I'd most expect to appreciate Free
> Software, so I was hoping the ICT Hub would promote it.  However,
> from the outset (when they started publishing documents and
> questionnaires in MSWord format) they have shown very little
> appreciation of the issues.  To get some idea of how confused some
> of them are, just see the bewildering conclusion of this excerpt:

I agree there is a problem here :(

> "[...] Word doesn't let me open (or at least not automatically)
> something which has been saved in Open Office. I'm all for open
> standards, but if someone is sending me documents which I know 95%
> of my fellow users can't open unless they install some open source
> software, how is that any more open?"
> http://www.icthub.org.uk/cms/opencms/icthub/articles/Open_Source.htm
> l

There is an opportunity to mention that data locked into proprietary
formats has a lifespan that is dictated by the vendor rather than the
organisation that relies on that data.

> They mention 'open source' a few other times on their website, but
> sometimes they seem to be encouraging fear and doubt.  Occasionally
> they say things that are just wacky:
> 
> "Open Source software is written using less powerful computers,
> which don’t need to be upgraded as often as they promote and adhere
> to common standards and formats."
> http://www.icthub.org.uk/cms/opencms/icthub/how_we_can_help/opensour
> ce_02.html

How bizarre!

They seem to be keen to pass on information about Free Software but a
lot of it is very misguided - possibly deliberately so, but I think lack
of understanding is the problem.

> With their current stance, I think the ICT Hub could be detering
> community-minded organisations from adopting or even investigating
> Free Software!  So, I think we should do something.

Yes - I agree

> 
> Perhaps we could start by writing to The ICT Hub, to politely ask
> them to correct the most inaccurate/moronic/derisive statements on
> their website, to acknowledge that Free Software has broader social
> implications, and to provide open-format alternatives to the many
> Word documents they offer for download.  Fortunately, the current
> ICT Hub website was only launched this month.  Before that the site
> was hideous and inaccessible, so very few people have probably read
> it.  At this early stage we may be able to convince them to revise
> their content on 'open source' before much damage is done.
> 
> If you are interested, please can you help me to critique their
> site, and write a persuasive letter to them?  First I think we need
> to find their most fallacious and objectionable statements.  We can
> also collect good examples of self-contradictions in their content,
> to show how confusing their advice can be.

I'll write a draft letter tomorrow and we can knock it into shape. Do
you have an idea who to address these concerns to?

Thanks

~sm

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