Bradley M. Kühn

https://fedi.copyleft.org/@bkuhn

Software freedom activist since 1992. Copyleft theorist & FOSS policy wonk. Expert in FOSS non-profit structures.

Views expressed herein are mine & not necessarily those of any organization w/ which I'm affiliated.

Fediverse “claim to fame”: Invented “Affero clause” of #Mastodon's license: https://ebb.org/bkuhn/blog/2007/11/21/stet-and-agplv3

1ˢᵗ #Linux: 0.99pl12
1ˢᵗ #Debian: 🧊🥔

Pronouns: he/them

#copyleft, #ethics for #LLMGenAI, #FOSS, #FreeSoftware, #OpenSource, #AGPLv3, #GPL, #LGPL

#StarTrek, #GreatestGen

🏳️‍🌈

Co-editor-in-chief of copyleft-next: https://next.copyleft.org
Personal Blog: https://ebb.org/bkuhn/blog
Professional Bio: https://sfconservancy.org/about/staff/#bkuhn
Random Code & Configs: https://f.sfconservancy.org/bkuhn

Public Key

npub1p8fw3gm5ejz5yzscznf7hlplclsmn3t9jnswqdvdytm88uutesnsvetcuc

NIP-05 Address

bkuhn_at_fedi.copyleft.org@momostr.pink

Profile Code

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Publishing to

relay.damus.io

nos.lol

Author Public Key

npub1p8fw3gm5ejz5yzscznf7hlplclsmn3t9jnswqdvdytm88uutesnsvetcuc

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Published at

2026-09-12T18:29:16Z

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Last Notes

2026-08-15 01:49:04 UTC

I am talking with a journalist who has some really deep questions about the #Mastodon codebase. Their questions are now well beyond my depth.
Please PM me if you know the Mastodon codebase (specifically Mastodon, not other ActivityPub implementations) well and would like to go on the record with a journalist regarding technical details about the codebase.
I think I've never said “please boost” before, but this is a case where I would appreciate wide reach. Thanks in advance to all.

2026-07-18 03:38:02 UTC

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My biggest thought from your post is: disciplined use of dangerous materials & methods.
You finish with a driving example. I've noticed in the last 15 years, drivers became increasingly more careless. IMO It's because vehicles are safer than ever before. (A runaway dog's life was saved recently because my car hit the brake faster than I could.)
Yet, I still drive like I'm in the 1981 Corolla I learned in.
People need to use LLM-gen-AI like it's a '81 Corolla even if it's the latest EV.

2026-06-28 21:39:19 UTC

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(2/2) @npub1juz…eyat, pls. don't conflate *technical* caretakers of a particular codebase w/ the caretakers of #GPL (or its enforcement). I'm heavily involved in enforcing #copyleft for #Linux. Success in the #Vizio case will establish 3ʳᵈ beneficiary right to complete, Corresponding Source code not just for Linux, but for all code under #GPLv2 & #LGPLv2_1.
It's #disturbing some in the billionaire-class conscripted #LinuxFoundation to confuse everyone about what copyleft means, but they've not won yet.

2026-06-28 19:30:39 UTC

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I'm surprised at the assumption that because a specific strategy didn't work perfectly, it's therefore a failure. I have spent decades being annoyed that #copyleft's inventors didn't factor in the capitalism power that @npub1juz…eyat's mention that would cause those challenges.
Yet, *despite* that, we have situations (such as #OpenWrt even *existing at all* because of #GPL enforcement) that show it made (& continues to make) a real difference in the struggle against software proprietariness
@npub19yg…w8um

2026-06-28 19:20:01 UTC

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I appreciate, @npub19yg…w8um, the added content ⚠️ per my request, I do think warning should note it's *sexualized* content.
Your analogy to that health care poster doesn't fit. We could debate whether using highly-sexualized content as attention-grabber is needed in a public health emergency when people are *dying* if they don't get the message. Maybe it is?🤷
But even I (who is Mr. #Copyleft if anyone is 😆) find it wrong to use sexualized content just to make a pro-copyleft point.
Cc: @npub1llz…uukq
@npub1ksf…r6s6

2026-06-28 18:07:59 UTC

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I've oft had copyleft v. non-copyleft debates—usually heated—in public since USENIX ATC '98.
The *argument* wastes time. Sadly, #FOSS has 2 entrenched policy camps: 1 ultra-libertarian& 1 socialist-democratic;the philosophies are mutually exclusive.
Do: Advocate copyleft! Criticize billionaire-class(eg: #Microsoft &its #Github) on their 25yr anti-copyleft campaign! Write #copyleft sw! Fork non-copyleft sw!
Don't: have YA of these threads!
@npub1ksf…r6s6 @npub1pyz…ew64
@npub17qu…49a5
[@whitequark](https://social.treehouse.systems/@whitequark )
[@david_chisnall](https://infosec.exchange/@david_chisnall )
@npub19yg…w8um

2026-06-26 17:39:42 UTC

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Note too that *even if* all the Courts decide artifacts output by an LLM-gen-AI aren't copyrightable (we're far from that now, and no one knows for sure what will happen), it *is* certain that human-performed modifications to a yet-uncopyrighted work *are* copyrightable.
I recommend licensing such under a copyleft license.
Anyway, per elsewhere in thread, LLM-gen-AI artifacts always require human improvements to be useful to FOSS.
Cc: @npub1s55…up8m @npub1tra…q9a6
[@alexband](https://hachyderm.io/@alexband )

2026-06-19 14:01:20 UTC

(1/2) This won't surprise anyone: I can't make it through breakfast without pondering ethics & moral imperatives.
I'm really busy professionally rn but I still gotta eat obviously.
But, I have been shaving minutes here & there off food prep time.
I usually hand squeeze one fresh orange with breakfast. I started to think I didn't have time, then thought “I have a right one glass of fresh-squeezed orange juice”.
Now I've spent 8 minutes pondering if it really is a *right*.
#ethics #morality #Kant

2026-04-29 09:53:39 UTC

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(2/2)…Why insomnia?: After 30 years, this became my archetype of how ridiculously bad we technologists are at prognostication.
IPv6 remains spotty. IPv4 addrs oughta be worthless, but ARDC became a wonderful grantmaker b/c Bezos paid $108mil for 25% of a Class A. 😲
Truth is stranger than prediction.
Most who did prognosticate accurately probably got lucky.
This terrifies me b/c the primary job of an activist policy maker is to anticipate future events & have policies ready to solve them.😬

2026-04-29 09:37:31 UTC

(1/2) ≈ every 6 months, I have trouble sleeping specifically because I think about how, circa 1996, I attended some sysadmin (probably SANS) event in Baltimore.
I went to a tutorial on #IPv6. I got there early as we knew it'd be standing room only & it was.
One of the first slides the instructor put up was a graph of how quickly #IPv4 numbers were being assigned. He said with complete confidence: “We all need to learn IPv6 as IPv4 will surely be deprecated by the end of the century”. …

2026-04-21 17:53:24 UTC

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A minor typo clarification in
@npub1rk6…hv4q's post (which I otherwise agree with). I'm not the sole author of any version of #AGPL. I invented the method that makes the Affero clause work¹, and I helped codraft #AGPLv3§13.
License drafting has many contributors; no one is the sole "author".
¹ I invented the approach of an additional requirement when modifying the software that the complete, Corresponding Source be made available to all who had access to the running software.
#AGPLv3

2026-04-19 23:44:39 UTC

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asked:
> > “can a gnome developer and a kde developer ever truly be in love?”
The six months age difference might be insurmountable.
(Sorry, this is a VERY old-school KDE/GNOME joke. In case folks don't know it: there was this big thing in the first few years of GNOME that KDE had started six months before GNOME, and therefore GNOME could “never catch up”. Almost 30 years later, this is a really silly argument.)

2026-04-18 23:33:10 UTC

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If there was ever a time in 40+ years of #FOSS history to tell our #copyleft-hating FOSS friends that they erred in their license choices, now is the time.
If they don't switch, they're giving hand-outs to the proprietary software companies. Now, in an entirely new & #disturbing way.
I really think these cases where proprietary software ends up in #LLM training sets & actually creates risk are exceedingly rare, if not entirely hypothetical.
Cc: @npub15wl…33uc @npub1ev4…xe5p @npub14pc…26fv

2026-04-18 15:34:05 UTC

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I agree with @npub1kmp…far2 in particular because if *we* are copylefting our code (even if assisted by #LLM-backed gen-#AI), we won't face a copyleft claim later.
Furthermore, it is highly unlikely these LLMs are (a) trained on proprietary software, and (b) any proprietary software company that so-trained would later claim infringement.
#Microsoft has all but admitted they refuse to train Copilot on their own code anyway.
Cc: @npub1r8k…ddv2 @npub14pc…26fv

2026-04-16 00:58:03 UTC

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I think maybe you missed https://sfconservancy.org/blog/2026/mar/04/scotus-deny-cert-dc-circuit-thaler-appeal-llm-ai/ where #SFC analyzed that situation?
Also, follow [@ai_cases](https://mastodon.social/@ai_cases ) & see the *firehose* of litigation on this & remember the “Work Based on the Program” issue under GPLv2 has still never been litigated directly but lots of cases about 100% proprietary software have bolstered GPL's strength.
Big Content has legal battles with Big Tech on 100s of fronts rn. Yes, we're adrift on their sea, but the situation is not as dire as you imagine.
#AI #LLW

2026-04-15 20:22:34 UTC

👀 … https://sfconservancy.org/blog/2026/apr/15/eternal-november-generative-ai-llm/ …my colleague Denver Gingerich writes: newcomers' extensive reliance on LLM-backed generative AI is comparable to the Eternal September onslaught to USENET in 1993. I was on USENET extensively then; I confirm the disruption was indeed similar. I urge you to read his essay, think about it, & join Denver, me, & others at the following datetimes…
$ date -d '2026-04-21 15:00 UTC'
$ date -d '2026-04-28 23:00 UTC'
…in https://bbb-new.sfconservancy.org/rooms/welcome-llm-gen-ai-users-to-foss/join
#AI #LLM #OpenSource

2026-04-14 20:53:19 UTC

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So fascinating: „der Slop”'s already a loan word in German!
Aber sagen keine Deutschsprecheren „Das Schmutzwasser aus KI”?
I love loan words in any language. My favorite English ones are Latin loan words, but my favorite German one is „Das Handy” — so inventive: a slang English adjective for “useful” gets borrowed as a noun for a *very specific* useful device.
I've been trying to bring Handy (n.) back to English for same usage as a loan word with poor results.
Cc: @npub14mm…6r4g @npub1y2l…nuf9 @npub1p8d…d8w7

2026-04-11 18:32:37 UTC

Deutsch Sprechers, helf mir bitte:
Ich bin jetzt in meine Deutschkurse.
Ich und die andere Studenten haben festgestellt, daß haben alles Angst wie #AI.
Wir sprechen über AI, und denn fragen wir: „Wie sagt man auf Deutsch ‚AI’?”
Ich habe gesagt, daß meine Deutsche Kollegen immer sagen nur „AI”. Doch haben wir in Wörterbuch nachgeschlagen; wir finden „künstliche Intelligenz”…nie höre ich das auf Deutsch!
Denn fragen wir: ist “AI„: der, die, oder das? Ist “die„ wie Intelligenz?
#Deutsch #FragFedi

2026-03-25 15:44:10 UTC

👩‍🎤…I still got some #punk rock cred! So, it's last session after 3 days of #UndoneCS. I admit I zoned out, had trouble concentrating on Nils Bonfils' talk “Cultivating a Historicist Sensibility through Permacomputing”.
Through my mind haze, I hear Nils say the word “#anarchist”, then, “#anticapitalist”. Suddenly I'm wide awake & completely focused.
#PunksNotDead
I'm glad too as this #permacomputing stuff is extremely interesting & definitely important to future of #FOSS.
https://www.undonecs.org/2026/abstracts/UndoneCS26_abstract_47.pdf
https://cdn.masto.host/fedicopyleftorg/media_attachments/files/116/290/575/714/654/039/original/d97b530bf5773666.jpg

2026-03-25 14:06:28 UTC

I was so busy 😍'ing over Jacob Bruggman and Megan Finn's talk that I forgot to mention here how equally amazing the following talk was:
“Undone Canadian CS Ethics: Real-world Moral Dilemmas and Responsibilities” by Mohamed Abdalla
Abstract: https://www.undonecs.org/2026/abstracts/UndoneCS26_abstract_9.pdf
Sad news from Mohammed's talk: his study showed overwhelming majority of CS students/graduates surveyed just don't care about the morality of what Big Tech is doing. 😬
#UnDoneCS #ethics #SoftwareFreedom #FOSS #BigTech

2026-03-25 13:26:13 UTC

& *now* the talk I've been excitedly waiting for all of UndoneCS.
🤩
“Undone Codes: Ethics in the ACM 1966-1992” by Jacob Bruggeman and Megan Finn.
If you are into FOSS ethics and software freedom and rights, see if you can join the live stream (note: it's on proprietary platform).
Abstract: https://www.undonecs.org/2026/abstracts/UndoneCS26_abstract_35.pdf
#UndoneCS #ACM #ethics #SoftwareFreedom #OpenSource #FreeSoftware #copyleft
https://cdn.masto.host/fedicopyleftorg/media_attachments/files/116/290/027/891/925/079/original/28327df0e8d02b52.jpg

2026-03-14 18:09:01 UTC

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#SFC is on it & we'll have a more comprehensive statement & plan about #California AB 1403 in about a month. These sorts of nuanced policy responses and tactics should never be rushed.
I spoke to multiple legislative aides & a parliamentarian from the Colorado legislature last week. #Colorado bill is unlikely to make it through CO's House of Reps before this session ends, but I'm on it.
https://lwn.net/SubscriberLink/1062112/8b61114c8182edea/
Cc: @npub1ksp…0lzw @npub198c…jf98
#AgeVerification #FOSS #OpenSource #LWN #SoftwareFreedom

2026-02-22 01:33:01 UTC

An experienced developer said re: #LLM-backed #AI
> “things can move as fast as they want but the speed of my actual understanding is the only one useful to me”
They make an essential point: new tools aren't magically useful because companies are selling them.
Experienced people in the field have to spend some time to determine: “What Fresh Snake Oil”? This takes wall-clock time.
There are far too many PT Barnums and far too few Alan Turnings in our field today.
I fear for users' rights.

2026-01-31 06:59:16 UTC

You have many choices at #FOSDEM26, but my colleagues (list below) & I bring you the 14th edition of the Legal & Policy Issues DevRoom today in UB5.230 :
https://fosdem.org/2026/schedule/track/legal/
If ever you wonder: “code is amazing but code is also law (as Lessig once wrote) so how do we build better policies in the world WITH #FOSS?” — then this DevRoom is for *YOU*!!!
BTW, UA is the least “sensory overwhelming” bldg at #FOSDEM2026.
Brought to you by:
@npub14pq…3wcr @npub13xv…uw2w @npub13fl…9ycn @npub16zz…2n7k @npub14pc…26fv & me

2026-01-13 13:02:35 UTC

https://sfconservancy.org/sustainer/
This is the toughest time to work at a charity. When a charity posts its fundraiser, the total ask has been vetted 100 times: it's the amount that the org needs to keep going for the coming year.
Unlike your local PBS/NPR station, #SFC doesn't have a service we can interrupt to
pitch appeals for donations (& we probably wouldn't even if we did).
#SFC is short $48k with just days to go.
If you want me & my colleagues to work for #SoftwareFreedom in 2026, please give.

2026-01-09 06:41:44 UTC

Hey, weird Mastodon question to #AskFedi. If I post something "Followers only" and @-mention someone who *doesn't* follow me, do they get to see it? (What I am looking for *is* "my followers, plus anyone I explicitly @-mention), but not sure if that's what #Mastodon's "Followers only" does or not.
(I realize this is a bit "hey would you net.search this for me" too, but I just worked an 18 hour day so give me a break. 😛 )

2026-01-07 01:25:19 UTC

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Thanks for promoting this, I think it's the first time I told the BPDG story. It's an important one even if ultimately streaming brought DRM to everyone. ☹
@npub1hek…qqc2 @npub1fdr…lvhs

2025-12-31 18:27:50 UTC

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AFIAK, SFC have the only #FOSS conference in existence that criticizes sponsors for their bad behavior each day in the opening remarks.
When was the last time #LinuxFoundation admitted publicly that their giant list of event sponsors are often bad actors? 2012, I think?
Some companies won't sponsors SFC events b/c they don't want to be criticized like this. #SFC's integrity is not for sale; if you buy ☕∀ our attendees, you gotta live with public-stated list of grievances.
cc: @npub13fl…9ycn

2025-12-31 01:14:13 UTC

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Adding to @npub13fl…9ycn's answer:
I have really tried to move on in #FreeSoftware culture (as much as I'm able) from the idea that computer users do something wrong by merely using proprietary software.
Just using proprietary software is not an affront to software freedom. Marketing proprietary software, getting users trapped into monthly licensing agreements, etc. are the bad acts, & if someone gets trapped in a proprietary agreement, we should help them, not berate them!
#SFC #OpenSource

2025-12-16 17:08:03 UTC

(1/7) I suppose #Fediverse isn't the place people are discussing #RobReiner. But after 36 hours of deliberating whether to say anything, I feel compelled. This thread will be long,but I start w/ most important part:
It's an “open secret” in the #FOSS community that in March 2017 my brother murdered our mother. About 3k ppl/year in USA have this experience, so it's a statistical reality that someone else in FOSS experienced similar. If so, you're welcome in my PMs to discuss if you need support…

2025-11-18 06:33:05 UTC

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Thanks those who shared this satire:
https://www.mcsweeneys.net/articles/i-work-for-an-evil-company-but-outside-work-im-actually-a-really-good-person
IMO, only paragraph missing was:
> “3 hours/week, my company lets me upstream code to their favorite MIT-licensed #FOSS project! That counts. Of course, in exchange, I have to post on y-combinator how bad #copyleft is & file a #GitHub ticket telling some #AGPLv3'd project to change licenses. Oh, & all the best patches with new features stay on our internal branch…but *I* fixed all typos & misspellings upstream!”
Cc: @npub1p09…m5vl @npub103g…7fmd

2025-11-06 01:28:45 UTC

I learned today YA set of records about me that are public & I can't un-public them.😡
It's an open secret in #FOSS: those of us who are “FOSS celebrities” always live with a low-grade fear of doxing & harassment. It's a perfect storm:
* We are low-grade famous to *just* enough people to attract a few problematic folks.
* Such folks — which are *very* few, to be clear — have tech skillz to do harassment efficiently.
My white male privilege makes it easier for me than others who face this.

2025-10-26 18:49:11 UTC

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In case folks were wondering, I did indeed go buster ⇉ bullseye ⇒ bookworm ⇒ trixie, just changing apt sources each time, & I think the only adjustment I have to make is my spouse likes systemd to “ignore” on all lid close events (rather than suspend). Somehwere between bullseye & bookworm it did warn me that /etc/systemd/logind.conf was changing. Same with /etc/default/grub … I guess it's more accessiblity-friendly to give 5 seconds on GRUB_TIMEOUT but 2 is plenty 'round here.

2025-10-26 16:02:27 UTC

Age makes you more cautious. I used to carry Debian CD's with me & do all my upgrades while in flight without electricity or Internet — just to test myself I could hack my way out of a screwed up GRUB or problematic #Linux build.
I'm taking my spouse's laptop all the way from #Debian buster to trixie this morning (going through bullseye to bookworm first), & I'm actually nervous. I *think* it's just because it's my spouse's machine.
Ironic thing is upgrades are so much safer these days.

2025-09-10 13:40:27 UTC

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ST:LD is non spoilerly for newer #StarTrek & written & created by talented comedians who *get* our generation's Trek. It's every joke fans made but written by comedians.
Start there.
ST:DIS is a product of early streaming TV & has issues. If you can watch it for what it is, & love the actors who are excellent, it's worth it.
ST:SNW is ST:TOS for 2025.
ST:PIC is the true causality of the rights issue. It made me cry for what it coulda been. it's final season almost redeems
@npub1jv3…h844

2025-09-10 02:25:57 UTC

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the goofy rights issues is sadly now sorted out thanks to the subsequent mergers but of course not enough to make ST:PIC what it should have been.
I also the obsession with canon ultimately is loyalty to a tiny group of writers who long since went to work on other projects.

2025-09-10 00:32:27 UTC

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please don't turn into one of those NotMyTrek guys!
Lower Decks makes every joke we as fans have always made and asks all the questions. To great comic effect. See it ASAP.
Think of the other new stuff the way we think about “Angel One” vs. “Chains of Command” … there will be some truly Bad Stuff to have good stuff too.
All the people working on new trek today are True Fans. They aren't perfect at their craft (no one is) but they have sufficient reverence.
#StarTrek

2025-09-02 02:02:22 UTC

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Yeah, what @npub1ly4…72u4 said!
A small instance is the way to go.
I really do encourage those who can afford $6/month just sign up for @npub18sk…l2gu with their own domain & have an instance for a small group.
These massive instances can't possibly keep up with the complaints (& verify their server rules are followed) & ultimately lots of small instances is what federation is about!
@npub1764…nuj0

2025-08-16 15:38:47 UTC

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… I was quoted in *The Register*:
> “The problems w/ #GitHub have been growing for some time. We at #SFC have always been concerned about the issue of using proprietary software to write #FOSS. However, the integration w/ #Copilot so deeply into the platform, and #Microsoft's flagrant use of content hosted on GitHub to train their own LLMs makes a departure from GitHub urgent for all FOSS developers.”
https://www.theregister.com/2025/08/15/codeberg_beset_by_ai_bots/
I hope it inspires you to #GiveUpGitHub! https://giveupgithub.org
(3/3)
https://cdn.masto.host/fedicopyleftorg/media_attachments/files/115/039/186/833/101/095/original/063034073241e6fd.png

2025-08-16 15:29:50 UTC

*The Register*:
“#Codeberg beset by #AI bots that now bypass Anubis tarpit”…
https://www.theregister.com/2025/08/15/codeberg_beset_by_ai_bots/
… has *The Register*'s usual click-bait sensationalism title, but the article itself is excellent. I'm glad these attacks on @npub1fh7…ee83 are getting some press coverage. *The Register* asked me for comment; I include my quotes below, but definitely click-through the article — at least to thank *The Register* for covering this important issue that few would cover.
(1/3)
#OpenSource #FOSS

2025-08-15 19:16:45 UTC

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I have a follow up question, though, @npub1fh7…ee83, re: @npub1ev4…xe5p's question. Is it *possible* that giant human farms of Anubis challenge-solvers actually did it? Or did it all happen so fast that there is no way it could be that?
#Huawei surely could fund such a farm and the routing software needed to get the challenge to the human and back to the bot quickly enough that it might *seem* the bot did it.

2025-08-11 17:54:04 UTC

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3 yrs ago, @npub1ufx…u2t8 wrote:
> “💡 Today is a perfect day to exercise your independence from #BigTech, & #GiveUpGitHub.
> ☣️ #GitHub is the equivalent of #Twitter & #Facebook for software development -- creators of the most enticing proprietary walled garden ever made for #FOSS…
> Don't be stuck when #Microsoft…change[s] the rules on you.“
> https://GiveUpGitHub.org
…now ∃ more reasons to stop procrastinating & GiveUpGitHub *now*…
https://social.kernel.org/objects/bd3ddc58-31ee-41df-a326-e6619b3960e9
https://mastodon.social/@glyph/114995950245874315
Try @npub1fh7…ee83 today!

2025-08-04 22:34:47 UTC

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(3/3)
IMO, Richard Stallman (RMS) is a genius-level intellect.
But RMS is a human being who can terribly wrong sometimes. RMS is likely correct 90+% of the time. But #SoftwareFreedom should not incorporate papal infallibility &/or divine right of kings.
The #GPL Agreements are some of the best licenses ever written; I thank RMS & I've dedicated my life to adjudicate them.
Judge #FOSS folks on their actions,not what words they say.
This is *my* last word on “GNU/Linux”. (Posted for posterity.)

2025-08-04 22:14:08 UTC

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I respond to this troll b/c it's an opportunity to say publicly why — in 2015 — I stopped saying “GNU/Linux”.
I say “Linux-based systems” — which I also recommended for SFC's stylesheet.
I ceased saying “ga-new-slash-lynn-ox” when RMS chastised me for saying
“Linux” (but not “GNU”) in a post about VMWare's #GPL violation. I *had* mentioned the GNU GPL, but no GNU software was in their product.
RMS told me I harmed #GNU every time I didn't footnote the word “Linux” & explain GNU/Linux.
(1/3)

2025-08-04 07:07:59 UTC

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I appreciate your enthusiasm for copyleft, but you do have a lot of details wrong.
I will be frank — because I know w/ 99% confidence where your confusions come from: While we owe RMS much for his excellent work (particularly writing all the GPL Agreements) — frankly RMS misunderstands a lot about its enforcement b/c he hasn't done GPL enforcement himself since early 1990s.
I urge you to read materials on https://sfc.ngo/vizio as it clears up many of the confusions you expressed.

2025-08-03 15:10:18 UTC

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Oh, @npub1lte…nuyv, *of course* we should insist on #copyleft licenses like #AGPLv3 & copyedt-@npub1lck…48s2!
Problem I discovered years ago — to which I have dedicated the part of my work that isn't #FOSS fiscal sponsorship — is enforcement of & widespread lack of compliance with #copyleft licenses.
Big Tech just ignores the terms & gets away with ignoring users' & consumers' right to repair their software.
We *are* working hard on this problem: See #Vizio: https://sfc.ngo/vizio
Cc: @npub1cp0…f4yh

2025-08-03 08:01:00 UTC

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I think the point that @npub1ghr…5hnv's post upthread misses is that *integrating* #FOSS into proprietary products doesn't actually help improve software freedom. In fact, it's the opposite: it exploits the great FOSS to make proprietary software more desirable.
So, speaking for myself — as someone who has spent most of my career doing boring bureaucratic fiscal sponsorship work for FOSS — I think for-profits doing bureaucratic work that helps them exploit FOSS is a disaster for software freedom.

2025-08-03 07:48:58 UTC

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Re: the upthread @npub14nf…d9qw quote.
I've long espoused my “casserole theory”:
I grew up in a neighborhood full of conservative William F. Buckley fans. But, if someone had a difficult time: hospitalization, death in family, new child, etc.: you always made a casserole & took it over.
SOCIAL SERVICES ARE JUST GIVING PEOPLE THOSE CASSEROLES MORE EFFICIENTLY AND AT SCALE.
If you are against expanding social services, you're just saying people in need must be judged for worthiness of aid.
CC: @npub1afm…5gp4

2025-08-02 21:36:27 UTC

https://2025.fossy.us/schedule/presentation/361/ #FOSSY25 invites people we disagree with to talk to us. @npub1n2w…wfz4 is back this year on a panel, even after I won so completely in our debate last year:
https://2024.fossy.us/schedule/presentation/280/index.html
I respect that McCoy was willing to come back. I disagree with almost everything he's saying in the panel but his willingness to come present his ultra-capitalist, corporate apologist ideas again to the most unfriendly audience imaginable shows how people who disagree can & should talk.
#FOSSY

2025-07-28 19:32:06 UTC

👀 … *huge* opportunity for travel to a key #FOSS event! Don't miss it…
https://fedi.copyleft.org/@conservancy@sfconservancy.org/114909678896224276
https://sfconservancy.org/news/2025/jul/24/travel-grants-for-vizio-trial-to-foss-community/
… #SFC'll cover travel expenses for select qualified individuals who produce blogs, “toots”, articles, videos, podcasts, etc. during the historic trial in the #SoftwareFreedom #Conservancy v. Vizio case.
If you're available the week of 2025-09-22, & have a little experience writing/broadcasting about #FreeSoftware online, apply by emailing <travelforvizio@sfconservancy.org>!

2025-07-25 17:52:45 UTC

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An employee of Cook/Jobs, @npub130l…n5e6, asks on a copylefted platform what she can do improve #WebKit.
The answer is simple: Comply with the LGPLv2.1. Participate with upstream projects rather than manipulating them so you can control them.
Employees of your company used to be forbidden from talking to FOSS communities. You've spent decades working against #copyleft. But you now follow Microsoft's plan to “embrace, extend, & extinguish” #FOSS.

2025-07-11 20:33:05 UTC

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Thanks for your post & your counter 😆
I'm curious: you characterize the EU #CRA as requiring #SBOM's *specifically*. I know the License Compliance Industrial Complex wants it to be true, but I researched this issue for my #FOSDEM 2025 talk…
https://fosdem.org/2025/schedule/event/fosdem-2025-6155-is-there-really-an-sbom-mandate-/
… & IIUC CRA *doesn't* specify SBOMs specifically.
IMO, if the vendor gives the customer complete, Corresponding Source & a 100% [@reproducible_builds](https://fosstodon.org/@reproducible_builds ) they've complied with CRA. No one has shown me anything that disproves that.