MPAA: The Biter Bit

Although I am a frequent critic of the more outrageous excesses of copyright, I don't deny it has its place, in moderation. For example, this blog is licensed thanks to copyright, and the whole of the GNU GPL is based on it. So it seems only right that the free software world should be able to avail itself of the really horrible DMCA to slap down violations of the GPL:

The MPAA's "University Toolkit" (a piece of monitoring software that universities are being asked to install on their networks to spy on students' communications) has been taken down, due to copyright violations. The Toolkit is based on the GPL-licensed Xubuntu operating system (a flavor of Linux). The GPL requires anyone who makes a program based on GPL'ed code has to release the source code for their program and license it under the GPL. The MPAA refused multiple requests to provide the sources for their spyware, so an Ubuntu developer sent a DMCA notice to the MPAA's ISP and demanded that the material be taken down as infringing.

A hit, a palpable hit.

What's also deeply ironic is that the MPAA choose to use Xubuntu in the first place, rather than intellectual monopoly-friendly Windows. When even your brothers-in-shame shun you, you know you've got problems.

Ubuntu, Kubuntu, Xubuntu, Fluxbuntu

One of the reasons why free software will ultimately triumph is that it is based on the eminently sensible idea of building on other people's work. That is, you do not need to re-invent something from scratch, but can take the achievements of others and improve upon them - and then make your own efforts available for further development.

This can happen at the level of sub-routines, chunks of code, libraries, applications and even distributions. Oen of the most dramatic examples of the latter is the proliferation of the Ubuntu family.

This was originally based on the GNOME desktop, so those who preferred KDE soon took the code and swapped in the latter to produce Kubuntu. Others, who prefer the Xfce desktop environment, have come up with Xubuntu. And now, for lovers of the svelte Flux Box desktop, there is Fluxbuntu. Screenshots are available to whet your appetite.