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Overview and History

Overview and History. Oliver Zendel Chairman zendel@linuxtag.org. 9th Annual International Localisation Conference Limerick, Ireland, September 21 – 22, 2004 Towards Lower Barriers in International Knowledge Transfer by Means of Open Source Approaches.

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Overview and History

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  1. Overview and History Oliver ZendelChairmanzendel@linuxtag.org 9th Annual International Localisation ConferenceLimerick, Ireland, September 21 – 22, 2004 Towards Lower Barriers in International Knowledge Transfer by Means of Open Source Approaches Nils MagnusProgram Chairmagnus@linuxtag.org

  2. 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

  3. 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

  4. 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

  5. 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

  6. 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)

  7. 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

  8. 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

  9. Rise of a free knowlege pool

  10. 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)

  11. 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

  12. 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

  13. 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

  14. 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

  15. Q & A Session Thanks for listening ... ... see you at LinuxTag in Karlsruhe, Germany from June 22 – 25, 2005

  16. Speaker Contact Information Oliver ZendelChairman LinuxTag e.V. zendel@linuxtag.org Nils MagnusLinuxTag Program Chair magnus@linuxtag.org LinuxTag e.V., University of Kaiserslautern, 67653 Kaiserslautern, Germanyhttp://www.linuxtag.org/

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