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This is another strong case for open source software development along with open, publicly available, standards and protocols. This isn't about Slack, it isn't
by AJ007 8y ago
This is another strong case for open source software development along with open, publicly available, standards and protocols.
This isn't about Slack, it isn't about US sanctions law. It is about any private entity creating closed sourced, remotely hosted software. Everyone knows that APIs can be pulled at any time (Twitter, Facebook, etc.) Spying can be mandated whether it is the US government, China, or anyone else.
As end users it is never clear what is going on behind the curtain. It is never certain the product will be here tomorrow - whatever the reason. No one would build a high rise where all of the elevators could suddenly vanish, yet we are increasingly putting the critical pieces of our businesses and our lives in the hands of entities that only need to flick a switch and everything instantly vanishes.
- thecatspaw 8y ago> No one would build a high rise where all of the elevators could suddenly vanish You also wouldnt build a highrise where all elevators are built by a random Joe, who you arent even sure if thats his real name
- geofft 8y agoTo put a finer point on it: open communications protocols driven by free software and end-to-end encryption both are and should be above the law, at least where the law purports to create national boundaries on the internet. Governments of the Industrial World, you weary giants of flesh and steel, I come from Cyberspace, the new home of Mind. On behalf of the future, I ask you of the past to leave us alone. You are not welcome among us. You have no sovereignty where we gather. We have no elected government, nor are we likely to have one, so I address you with no greater authority than that with which liberty itself always speaks. I declare the global social space we are building to be naturally independent of the tyrannies you seek to impose on us. You have no moral right to rule us nor do you possess any methods of enforcement we have true reason to fear. https://www.eff.org/cyberspace-independence https://www.eff.org/cyberspace-independence
- nradov 8y agoThat's a nice fantasy but the reality is that humans and computers still have to physically exist inside national boundaries. Flesh and steel still count for a lot.
- TeMPOraL 8y agoThat's why free/libre software advocates talk so frequently about technologies that could abstract flesh and steel away.
- 794CD01 8y agoBuying and installing your own permanent elevators is too difficult and expensive. Think of what happens in 25 years when they need to be replaced. You'd be a fool not to pay a monthly fee for elevators-as-a-service.