(See also: Home page of Irish Free Software Organisation)
Federico Heinz:
Free Software in Education and in
Public Administration
Plus "GPLv3: the process and
the changes", presented by Ciaran O'Riordan
14.00-17.00, Saturday the 29th of
April, 2006
Irish Computer Society
Crescent Hall,
Mount. Street Crescent, Dublin 2 (opposite the Pepper Canister
Church)
On this page:
- The presentations
- About Federico Heinz
- Event programme & details
The presentations
- Federico Heinz: The Imperative for Free Software in Government & Public Administration
-
Recordings:
video
(mirror), audio:
ogg
(mirror)
mp3, audio Q&A:
ogg
(mirror)
mp3.
-
Heinz is one of the guys behind the adoption of laws requiring
government bodies to use Free Software in various Latin American
countries, particularly Argentina, Peru, and Venezuela. These laws
have met mixed results.
-
In particular, Heinz argues that use of Free Software is necessary
to fulfill the state's promise the the citizens that their data
which it keeps and processes, will be kept with three principles:
- Security. No one should be able to prevent the people who do
have the right to access that data, from doing so
- Persistence. How long the data is usable for should be
determined by the government
- Transparency. Actions which the laws mandate must be
verifiable by the citizens.
Heinz explains that this can be done through manual procedures, but
when it is done digitally, Free Software must be used.
- Ciaran O'Riordan: GPLv3: the process and the changes
-
Recordings:
video
(mirror), audio:
ogg
(mirror)
mp3.
-
A brief presentation of the most significant changes proposed for
version three of the GNU General Public License, and information
about the year-long public consultation process.
- Federico Heinz: Free Software and Education
-
Recordings:
video
(mirror), audio:
ogg
(mirror)
mp3.
-
This is a topic that IFSO requested he talk about, and it's
something that's also important to him. Issues such as access to
education are far more acute there than in Ireland.
-
This should be of particular interest to those evaluating or
advocating the use of Free Software for the software infrastructure
of schools and universities, for the teaching curricula based on
Free Software.
More recordings & formats.
About Federico Heinz
Heinz is a veteran and widely-respected Free Software advocate in
Latin America, a long time GNU project spokesperson, and was elected
president of FSF Latin America when it launched recently.
His background is in software development and administration, mostly
on the implementation end, getting systems in place using existing
Free Software.
Heinz is also one of the GNU projects nine official speakers, for a
bio, see the
entry about him on the GNU project speakers page.
He has a reputation as on of the Free Software movement's best
public speakers.
There is a video online
of Federico
Heinz participating in a panel on Free Software in public
administration.
"Free Software and democracy are not equivalent, Free Software
is just a precondition. You can run a dictatorship on free
software, it might even make it more efficient, but you cannot run a
democracy on proprietary software."
Event programme & details
The event will start soon after 14h00 on the evening of Saturday,
April 29th. There will be a 30 minute break between the two talks,
and tea, coffee, and buscuits will be provided.
The venue is provided by Irish Computer Society,
a map is available on
their website. Thanks to ILUG
for help with promoting this, who invited us to use the venue, via
Niall Walsh.
