DMC2 Session 04: Open Everything

DMC2: Session 04: Open Everything
Ti 10.11 - 09.00-11.30

Open Symposium (http://opensymposium.net) Statement:

“We’re witnessing a trend of increased demands on transparency on the public and private levels by individuals who are themselves interacting in open ways by using tools available for them through networked digital media.

There has been a lot of buzz around all of this, but we feel that much of it has been on the societal level of laws, policies, values and ideologies.

We want to bring the discussion closer to home, to discuss the phenomenom as it unfolds before us in our daily lives.”

What does it mean to be thinking, doing, being open?
What does it mean to be thinking, doing, being closed?

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Open Source Definition

“Open source is an approach to the design, development, and distribution of software, offering practical accessibility to a software's source code.

Some consider open source as one of various possible design approaches, while others consider it a critical strategic element of their operations.

Before open source became widely adopted, developers and producers used a variety of phrases to describe the concept; the term open source gained popularity with the rise of the Internet, which provided access to diverse production models, communication paths, and interactive communities.”

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open_source

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Revolution OS Documentary (2001)

Documentary about the history of GNU, Linux, and the open source and free software movements (85 mins)

“REVOLUTION OS tells the inside story of the hackers who rebelled against the proprietary software model and Microsoft to create GNU/Linux and the Open Source movement.

On June 1, 2001, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer said "Linux is a cancer that attaches itself in an intellectual property sense to everything it touches."

Microsoft fears GNU/Linux, and rightly so. GNU/Linux and the Open Source & Free Software movements arguably represent the greatest threat to Microsoft's way of life. Shot in cinemascope on 35mm film in Silicon Valley, REVOLUTION OS tracks down the key movers and shakers behind Linux, and finds out how and why Linux became such a potent threat.

REVOLUTION OS features interviews with Linus Torvalds, Richard Stallman, Bruce Perens, Eric Raymond, Brian Behlendorf, Michael Tiemann, Larry Augustin, Frank Hecker, and Rob Malda.”

http://www.revolution-os.com

WATCH: 00:00 – 19:20/00:00 – 32:00 & 38:15 – 45:45

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=7707585592627775409

While watching, write down in two columns Open / Closed, different words you hear associated to open-source and proprietary software

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Free Software Foundation
http://www.fsf.org/

Richard Stallmann (2004,2006), Did you say Intellectual Property? Its a seductive mirage
http://www.fsf.org/resources/advocacy-materials/not_ipr.pdf

Eric S. Raymond (2000), The Cathedral and the Bazaar
http://catb.org/~esr/writings/cathedral-bazaar/

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According to Open Source Initiative..
http://opensource.org/docs/osd

Bruce Perens, author of Open Source Definition

“Introduction

Open source doesn't just mean access to the source code. The distribution terms of open-source software must comply with the following criteria:

1. Free Redistribution
The license shall not restrict any party from selling or giving away the software as a component of an aggregate software distribution containing programs from several different sources. The license shall not require a royalty or other fee for such sale.

2. Source Code
The program must include source code, and must allow distribution in source code as well as compiled form. Where some form of a product is not distributed with source code, there must be a well-publicized means of obtaining the source code for no more than a reasonable reproduction cost preferably, downloading via the Internet without charge. The source code must be the preferred form in which a programmer would modify the program. Deliberately obfuscated source code is not allowed. Intermediate forms such as the output of a preprocessor or translator are not allowed.

3. Derived Works
The license must allow modifications and derived works, and must allow them to be distributed under the same terms as the license of the original software.

4. Integrity of The Author's Source Code
The license may restrict source-code from being distributed in modified form only if the license allows the distribution of "patch files" with the source code for the purpose of modifying the program at build time. The license must explicitly permit distribution of software built from modified source code. The license may require derived works to carry a different name or version number from the original software.

5. No Discrimination Against Persons or Groups
The license must not discriminate against any person or group of persons.

6. No Discrimination Against Fields of Endeavor
The license must not restrict anyone from making use of the program in a specific field of endeavor. For example, it may not restrict the program from being used in a business, or from being used for genetic research.

7. Distribution of License
The rights attached to the program must apply to all to whom the program is redistributed without the need for execution of an additional license by those parties.

8. License Must Not Be Specific to a Product
The rights attached to the program must not depend on the program's being part of a particular software distribution. If the program is extracted from that distribution and used or distributed within the terms of the program's license, all parties to whom the program is
redistributed should have the same rights as those that are granted in conjunction with the original software distribution.

9. License Must Not Restrict Other Software
The license must not place restrictions on other software that is distributed along with the licensed software. For example, the license must not insist that all other programs distributed on the same medium must be open-source software.

10. License Must Be Technology-Neutral
No provision of the license may be predicated on any individual technology or style of interface.”

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15mins

Openness Definitions

As seen above, in software, there have been developed concrete definitions of what makes something free or open.
However, as these concepts are more widely applied, it becomes less easy to define fuzzier.

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“Open API - Open Access - Open Access Books - Open Architecture Strategies - Open Archives - Open Biology - Open Business - Open Business Models - Open Business Process Initiative - Open Capital - Open City Guides - Open Company Models - Open Content - Open Content Licenses - Open Cores - Open Courseware Initiative - Open DRM - Open Data - Open Design - Open Distribution - Open Document Format - Open Documentaries - Open Editorial Meetings - Open Education - Open Educational Resources - Open Fiction - Open Film Business Models - Open Futures - Open Genomics - Open GeoData - Open Hardware - Open Hardware Licence - Open Health - Open Infrastructure - Open Internet - Open Knowledge - Open Learning - Open Licenses - Open Media Standards - Open Money - Open Movement - Open Music Business Models - Open Music Model - Open Networked Learning Model - Open Organization - Open Peer Review - Open Peer to Peer Design - Open Platforms - Open Politics - Open Privacy - Open Problems - Open Public Data - Open Radio - Open Science Licenses - Open Social Networking Standards - Open Social Networks - Open Space Technology - Open Spectrum - Open Spreadsheets - Open Standards - Open Textbooks - Open Value Metrics - Open Value Networks - Open WAP”

“Open Source Architecture - Open Source Beer - Open Source Biotechnology - Open Source Business Models - Open Source Car - Open Source Cities - Open Source Commercialization - Open Source Development Model - Open Source Disaster Recovery - Open Source Drug Discovery - Open Source Ecology - Open Source Economics - Open Source Film Making - Open Source Hardware - Open Source Industrial Design - Open Source Initiative - Open Source Judaism - Open Source Knowledge Building - Open Source Leadership - Open Source Licenses - Open Source Network Analysis - Open Source Parking - Open Source Prospecting - Open Source Record Label - Open Source Religion - Open Source Research - Open Source Service Companies - Open Source Software - Open Source Spying - Open Source Telephony - Open Source Unionism - Open Source Virtual Worlds - Open Source War - Open Source Warfare - Open Source Yoga - Open Source for Artisans”

Above: Open & Open-Source categories on http://p2pfoundation.net/Openness

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From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open

Open problem: in science or mathematics, a known problem that can be accurately stated, and has not yet been solved (no solution for it is known)

Open-ended (contract): A contract with no definite time limit

Open-ended (gameplay): dynamic situations or scenarios that allow the individual to determine the outcome

Open-system: a system that continuously engages with its environment

From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open_system_%28systems_theory%29

“The interaction can take the form of information, energy, or material transfers into or out of the system boundary, depending on the discipline which defines the concept… An open system should be contrasted with the concept of a closed system which exchanges neither energy, matter, or information with its environment.

LOOK: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Basic_Open_System_Model.gif

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Note, there are not so many definitions of 'closed' which can help..

Closed & Clopen sets: in mathematics, open is not opposite of closed.

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According to the Open Everything Project: http://openeverything.wik.is/Mapping_Open

“Something qualifies as 'open' when it is …

Transparent. Meaning that you can see inside it, study it or understand it.

Participatory. People can become involved in a substantive way. They can contribute to and shape the open thing in question.

Flexible, malleable, editable. The people involved can change, evolve or improve whatever it is they are gathered around.

Further observations..

1. Tend to combine extreme levels of idealism and practicality, which are things that don't usually go hand in hand.
E.g. Firefox is a very useful tool, but its makers say they make this tool 'to keep the web open'.

2. Taken from some work in the social innovation/enterprise area, this seem to have some relevance:
Provide spaces for people as they are and as they want to become
Embrace the richness and wisdom in differences
Act with a light spirit, sense of fun, creativity and a perspective of opportunity
Practical and productive application of techniques and approaches from non-traditional domains
Distribute increasing control, earnings, and assets into the communities they serve”

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Open Space Technology

From http://www.co-intelligence.org/P-Openspace.html

“Open Space Technology was created in the mid-1980s by organizational consultant Harrison Owen when he discovered that people attending his conferences loved the coffee breaks better than the formal presentations and plenary sessions. Combining that insight with his experience of life in an African village, Owen created a totally new form of conferencing.

Open Space conferences have no keynote speakers, no pre-announced schedules of workshops, no panel discussions, no organizational booths. Instead, sitting in a large circle, participants learn in the first hour how they are going to create their own conference. Almost before they realize it, they become each other's teachers and leaders.

Anyone who wants to initiate a discussion or activity, writes it down on a large sheet of paper in big letters and then stands up and announces it to the group. After selecting one of the many pre-established times and places, they post their proposed workshop on a wall. When everyone who wants to has announced and posted their initial offerings, it is time for what Owen calls "the village marketplace": Participants mill around the wall, putting together their personal schedules for the remainder of the conference. The first meetings begin immediately.

Open Space is, as Owen likes to say, more highly organized than the best planning committee could possibly manage. It is also chaotic, productive and fun. No one is in control. A whirlwind of activity is guided from within by a handful of simple Open Space principles.”

From http://www.openspaceworld.org/

What will happen in Open Space?

“1. All of the issues that are MOST important to the participants will be raised.

2. All of the issues raised will be addressed by those participants most qualified and capable of getting something done on each of them.
3. In a time as short as one or two days, all of the most important ideas, discussion, data, recommendations, conclusions, questions for further study, and plans for immediate action will be documented in one comprehensive report — finished, printed and in the hands of participants when they leave.
4. When appropriate and time is allowed for it, the total contents of this report document can be focused and prioritized in a matter of a few hours, even with very large groups (100's).
5. After an event, all of these results can be made available to an entire organization or community within days of the event, so the conversation can invite every stakeholder into implementation — right now.
6. AND… results like these can be planned and implemented faster than any other kind of so-called "large-group intervention." It is literally possible to accomplish in days and weeks what some other approaches take months and years to do.”
Open Space Explanations
http://www.openspaceworld.org/cgi/wiki.cgi?OpenSpaceExplanations

Example..

“the four principles (question mark graphic): Whoever comes is the right people, whatever happens is the only thing that could have, when it starts is the right time, when it;s over it's over. These aren't prescriptive, they are the results of thousands of little experiements.”

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Harrison Owen, H.H. Owen & Company
and originator of Open Space Technology
Potomac, Maryland, USA
http://www.openspaceworld.com
http://www.openspaceworld.com/brief_history.htm

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Example of BarCamp..

"BarCamp is an ad-hoc gathering born from the desire for people to share and learn in an open environment. It is an intense event with discussions, demos and interaction from participants who are the main actors of the event.”

http://barcamp.org/

How to Organise a Local BarCamp
http://barcamp.org/OrganizeALocalBarCamp

http://www.barcamp.org/BarCampHelsinki

Also called 'Unconference'
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unconference

http://www.unconference.net/

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Linus Torvalds on Open Peer to Peer Design

“I think the real issue about adoption of open source is that nobody can really ever “design” a complex system. That’s simply not how things work: people aren’t that smart - nobody is.

And what open source allows is to not actually “design” things, but let them evolve, through lots of different pressures in the market, and having the end result just continually improve.”

(From http://www.openp2pdesign.org/blog/archives/43)

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Open Movement

http://p2pfoundation.net/Open_Movement

Proposed definition by Michael Bauwens:

1. An open movement is a movement which uses open inputs, both in terms of people and in terms of cultural material

Being open to people means that an open organization welcomes the input of everyone, without a priori filtering of contributors.

However, this openness may be qualified by the purpose of the organization, and appropriate anti-hijacking (against spamming, trolls, etc…) and netiquette-based rules.

Using open cultural material means that it uses content that is open for usage and modification, i.e. either material that is already using open licenses, or material that is newly created through such licenses.

2. An open movement uses open and transparent governance processes

Open movements use participatory governance structures and aim to lower the threshold of participation.

The working of the organization are transparent and verifiable, including for aspects such as its accounting practices, its collective choice mechanisms, etc…

3. An open movement produces for the commons, and insures that its own production is open and free where possible

Where costs need to be recouped and income generated for its producers, it does so based on the principles of equity,

both towards its own producers and towards the users of its products.

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Open Mind Map by Michel Bauwens, P2P Foundation

http://www.mindmeister.com/28717702/everything-open-and-free
http://blog.p2pfoundation.net/open-everything-mindmap-and-visualization/2009/09/08

“The main body of the visualization contains 8 aspects of processes representing the cycle of reproduction and growth of openness in our societies.

I. Aspects of Openness,

- the requirement of inclusionality or open access;
- the demand for participation, i.e. permission-less contributions;
- the demand for holoptism* or full transparency of that process, and finally, for full shareability and ‘changeability’ of the common material.

All these represent new social expectations, and are key ingredients of commons-based peer production as well.

Panoptism is how knowledge is distributed in hierarchical organisations. Only the top of the pyramid has a full view of what is going on in the organisation.
Holoptism is the ability for any member to have horizontal knowledge of what the others are doing, but also the vertical knowledge related to the aims of the project.

II. Enablers of Openness

These aspects or fundamental characteristics of openness are then embedded in enablers or ‘guarantors’.

First of all are the Open Definitions, the social charters that determine the boundary conditions of the open communities and which define the minimal conditions for openness to be recognized;

these are further embedded in open code, open licenses, and open standards; as well as the basic conditions which are open access and open data.

III. Infrastructures of Openness

To make it all real, we need infrastructures in which these enabling elements are embedded,
i.e. we need open platforms, both virtual and physical, which alllow us to produce in a open way:

open collaborative technical platforms,
open places where we can gather,
open media and communication infrastructures we can use,
open and free software, knowledge and scientific data;

and the ability to live in open and free villages and urban spaces, which connect local production with global open design communities.

IV. Open Practices

All the preceeding enablers, will allow us then to engage in open practices, especially open design and open manufacturing,

but also free currencies and new forms of sharing (ownership).

V. Open Domains of Practice

These practices are obviously embedded in topical domains, such as education and science,

where these practices are contextualized and made real, to finally result in all kinds of …

VI. Open Products!!

The actual ’social artefacts’ actually created by the processes from I to V, i.e. the Apache server, the Linux operating system, etc..

All of the above gives us a circular process, leading to new iterations of open characteristics.

Note that we then add a layer of examples of each practice (in bold), as well as the sources where you can find examples in our ecology of information services at the P2P Foundation.

VII. Open Movements

New social movements, specifically dedicated to increasing ‘openness’ are also specifically tackling the social awareness concerning this shift,

strengthening and increasing the numbers of people who see this as a new mode of life and ethical ideal, and as their default social practice.

Like the P2P Foundation itself, they consciously work on creating open distributed infrastructures in all areas of life,

interconnecting initiatives in global networks of experience sharing.

VIII. Open Consciousness

All the efforts from II to VII change our subjectivities and how we relate to each other, re-inforcing new iterations of the Open Cycle.”

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