Europe's leading Linux and Free Software Conference and Expo Overview and History Nils Magnus...
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Transcript of Europe's leading Linux and Free Software Conference and Expo Overview and History Nils Magnus...
Europe's leading Linux and Free Software Conference and Expo
Overview and History
Nils MagnusProgram Chair
9th Annual International Localisation ConferenceLimerick, Ireland, September 21 – 22, 2004
Towards Lower Barriers in International Knowledge Transfer by Means of Open Source
Approaches
Oliver ZendelChairman
Europe's leading Linux and Free Software Conference and Expo
Overview and Motivation
● Free Software is a social-economic phenomenon
● Free Software is not a product, but a ressource
● Key features include
– Low Cost
– Stability/Security
– Flexibility● How can Free Software bridge gaps in a global
society?
● Examples for successful projects as case studies
Europe's leading Linux and Free Software Conference and Expo
What Free Software stands for
● Free software is a matter of freedom:
– Freedom 1: The freedom to study how the program works, and adapt it to your needs
– Freedom 2: The freedom to redistribute copies so you can help your neighbour
– Freedom 3: The freedom to improve the program, and release your improvements to the public, so that the whole community benefits
and last but not least
– Freedom 0: The freedom to run the program, for any purpose
Europe's leading Linux and Free Software Conference and Expo
Comercial Impact
● Free Software means not “free of charge”
– Free Software is often free of charge: Low license expenses
– Free Software can be sold for money● Free Software is a path to the service society
● Keyplayers like IBM, HP or Fujitsu Siemens Computers use Free Software for solutions based on service-orientedIT-architecture
● Free Software vendors use ressources to create products (similar: carpenters uses wood to create products)
● Open Standards are induced by Free Software
Europe's leading Linux and Free Software Conference and Expo
Case Study: KDE
● K Desktop Environment is the user interaction environment between user and operating system:
– Window decorations: Look and Feel
– Application launcher, panels, applets
– Several applications: editor, word processor, email client, system utilities, games, and many more
● Started in 1997 by German student Matthias Ettrich
● Today several hundreds of developers worldwide enhance the system (programmers, tranlators, web team and more)
● Locale tools are part of the development process
Europe's leading Linux and Free Software Conference and Expo
Europe's leading Linux and Free Software Conference and Expo
KDE internationalizing effort
● KDE is translated almost 90 different languages by more than 300 translators (i. e. Irish Gaelic)
● Languages are chosen by demand, not by economic reasons
● Tools to support localisation are part of the development process (KBabel, gettext)
Europe's leading Linux and Free Software Conference and Expo
Being part of the Movement
● Not only Programmers and Software architects can contribute to Free Software, but also you and I
● Open Source ideas in other contexts:
– Artists can contribute to Free Software: Open Music
– Writers and Translators can contribute to Free Software: Open Content/Open Access
– Common Users can contribute to Free Software by filing bug reports
● Free Software is knowledge, everybody can contribute to a knowledge pool
● Developers and non-developer cooperate together
Europe's leading Linux and Free Software Conference and Expo
Case Study: Wikipedia
● Wikipedia is a joint effort to create a global encyclopedia of common knowledge of high quality
● International collaboration
● Non-technical contributors
● Everybody can participate
● Based on Open Source technology
● Shift of Paradigms
● Quality assurance is still an issue:Palestenian-Israel confilct is anexample of how to settle conflicts
Europe's leading Linux and Free Software Conference and Expo
Rise of a free knowlege pool
Europe's leading Linux and Free Software Conference and Expo
Knowledge needs Infrastructure
● Internet technology is the driving force for free knowledge
● Increasing the Internet user base increases the free knowledge pool
● There are still billions of people without Internet access. How many of these would share their knowledge?
● Free knowledge needs software to manage the it
● There is necessity of software for
– information retrieval (Access)
– collecting and archiving knowledge (Store)
– quality assurance (Enhance)
Europe's leading Linux and Free Software Conference and Expo
Case Study: Knoppix
● Knoppix is a LinuxTag project maintained by Klaus Knopper
● Easy to use full featured Linux operating system
● Run from CDROM or DVD without tampering your system
– Over 2 GB of installed programs (CD version, DVD: >5GB)
– Instant Internet access (LAN, WLAN, modem, DSL, mobile)
– Office productivity applications
– Educational software
– Development tools
– Games and much more
Europe's leading Linux and Free Software Conference and Expo
Knoppix Localizations
● Knoppix is available in severallanguages:
– German, English, French,Spanish, Polish, Italian,Japanese, Dutch, Dansk,and Russian
– More languages areavailable through projectsor can easily be done by yourself
● Lowers the barrier for underdeveloped regions
● Several projects customized Knoppix to their needs
Europe's leading Linux and Free Software Conference and Expo
LinuxTag as Platform
● Projects, developers, business, and usersneed a platform to exchange
● Conferences for several focus groups:
– Developers and admins (Free Conference)
– Descision makers in business and publicadministration (Business Conference)
– Users (Practical Linux Forum)
– Customers (Exhibitor Forum)● 16,000+ visitors, now 10th anniversary
● Next LinuxTag: June 22 – 25, 2005
Europe's leading Linux and Free Software Conference and Expo
LinuxTag exhibition
● Over 6,000 sqm floor space for 150+ exhibitors:
– Keyplayers in IT-Industry: HP, SAP, Sun, Intel, ...
– Providers for customized Linux Solutions
– Free Projects: KDE, GNOME, Open Office.org, FSF, ...
● Commercial vendors pay for their floorspace
● Free Projects get booths for free
● LinuxTag is run by volunteers in their spare time
● LinuxTag is a projection of the Open Source model
Europe's leading Linux and Free Software Conference and Expo
Q & A Session
Thanks for listening ...
... see you at LinuxTag in Karlsruhe, Germany from June 22 – 25, 2005
Europe's leading Linux and Free Software Conference and Expo
Speaker Contact Information
Oliver ZendelChairman LinuxTag [email protected]
Nils MagnusLinuxTag Program [email protected]
LinuxTag e.V., University of Kaiserslautern, 67653 Kaiserslautern, Germanyhttp://www.linuxtag.org/