Re: Software and hardware monopoly is bad

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#33

From: Jem Berkes
Date: Thu, 08 May 2003 13:55

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> http://pcworld.idg.com.au/index.php?id=1074796437&eid=-108
> 
> Install linux. Go open-source. Avoid chip makers
> getting in cahoots with an inferior OS.

Also for a good read, check out:
http://www.cl.cam.ac.uk/~rja14/tcpa-faq.html

This is about TCPA and Palladium, trusted computing infrastructure. I 
really don't like the idea of my hardware being in cahoots with someone 
sitting far away. locking me out of my own data. Or worse, my non-TCPA 
equipment being 'rogue' and non-interoperable because it doesn't support 
the technology. It's NOT about copyright protection, it's about freedom.

Have you all noticed this trend of late? The industry is working to shift 
power away from the individual system towards central control systems. 
For example: operating systems (Windows XP) that can not even work 
without connecting to Microsoft over the Internet. Or TCPA, which gives 
some remote authority the power to manage local content.

All of us here are 'tinkerers' after all and I have learned a lot over 
the years by mucking around in hardware and low level software. 
Technology like this will stifle learning, development and innovation.

How good is that for the economy, really?

And then 'security' is brought up as the justification. Ridiculous. You 
can't give a central authority full control and say that is more secure 
than a heterogeneous mix of systems. Central failure -> global failure.

Sorry for the rant, but I really believe that we're in for a rough ride. 
The names of the technologies will change (e.g. Palladium -> NGSCB) as 
people catch on to what's trying to be done with their computing.

-- 
Jem Berkes
http://www.pc-tools.net/
Windows, Linux & UNIX software

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Subject: Re: Software and hardware monopoly is bad
From: Jem Berkes <jb@users.pc9.org>
References: <3eb9eaf7_1@news.iprimus.com.au>
Organization: PC9
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