Software Freedom Podcast

SFP#19: Why we need Free Software on medical devices with Karen Sandler For this episode Bonnie Mehring met with Karen Sandler to talk about her relationship with Free Software. Karen depends on a medical device to keep her heart working. This led her to become an advocate for Free Software in medical devices. In her daily life Karen relies on a defibrillator to help her heart work properly. Like many medical devices this defibrillator uses proprietary software. Therefore Karen had to put software into her body over which she has no control in order to let her heart keep working. In this episode Bonnie Mehring talks to Karen about the problems that are occuring with non-free medical devices and why it is important to have Free Software on them. What happens to people when their support ends when the company that manufactures their devices goes bankrupt? And what is the connection with Dick Cheney?Listen to Karen and Bonnie talk about the importance of Free Software on medical devices and find out more about Karen's heartwarming story of software freedom. Read more:SFconservancyOutreachy"Abandoned: The human cost of neurotechnology failure" in NatureHonorary Doctorate for Karen SandlerIf you liked this episode and want to support our continuous work for software freedom, please help us with a donation.Join the FSFE community and support the podcast

SFP#18: IT-Security from a cryptographer's point of view with Cryptie A cryptographer and privacy specialist Amandine Jambert, a.k.a. Cryptie, is our guest in the 18th Software Freedom Podcast episode. With her experience, Cryptie is the perfect person to tackle some basics about Security in Free Software. Cryptie has been involved with Free Software for around 20 years now and has been a volunteer for the FSFE for 10 years. Together Cryptie and Bonnie Mehring discuss the basics of cryptography and discover what a privacy specialist is. They then move on to the basics of IT-Security and talk about prejudices against the security of Free Software. If you have wondered what is needed to make Software more secure this is the perfect episode for you to start with this topic and learn about the basics of IT-Security. Read more:Amandine "cryptie" Jambert If you liked this episode and want to support our continuous work for software freedom, please help us with a donation. Join the FSFE community and support the podcast

SFP#17: Citizen participation through Free Software with Petter Joelson In this 17th episode of the Software Freedom Podcast Matthias Kirschner and Petter Joelson uncover how Free Software can be a tool for citizens to actively participate in their local community. Petter invites you into the world of Decidim and explains what citizen participation should look like. Petter Joelson is the director of Digidem Lab, a Swedish NGO that works on improving citizen participation according to the UN Global Goals for Sustainable Development. One of the tools they promote and work with is the Free Software participation platform Decidim. Decidim was originally developed by the city of Barcelona and is today widely used. With this episode the Software Freedom Podcast invites its listeners to dive into the world of citizen participation, how it could be done, what hurdles are on the way, and – in line with our "Public Money? Public Code!" campaign – how publicly financed software can help administrations across Europe. Read more:"Public Money? Public Code!"Digidem LabDecidimIf you liked this episode and want to support our continuous work for software freedom, please help us with a donation.Join the FSFE community and support the podcast

SFP#16: Free Software in France with Hugo Roy In this episode of the Software Freedom Podcast, Bonnie Mehring speaks with Hugo Roy about his long involvement with the FSFE. Hugo is also very active in the French Free Software community and gives us an overview of the standing of Free Software in France. Hugo has been a volunteer for the FSFE for over 10 years now. Have you ever wondered what people inside the FSFE think about the organisation and how they see its development? In this podcast episode, Hugo and Bonnie talk about Hugo’s experiences as an intern and as a volunteer. Hugo has been a long-time activist for Free Software in France. Hugo and Bonnie talk about the understanding of Free Software in the public sphere and how it developed in recent years. This episode of the Software Freedom Podcast gives some insights into the framework of Free Software in France. Read more:About Hugo RoyThe FSFE's legal networkOSOR report about FranceEtalab FranceIf you liked this episode and want to support our continuous work for software freedom, please help us with a donation.Join the FSFE community and support the podcast

SFP#15: All about Upcycling AndroidIn November 2021 the FSFE has launched the new campaign "Upcycling Android". If you haven't already upcycled your phone or you are curious to learn more about the campaign listen to our new Software Freedom Podcast episode with the campaigns manager Erik Albers.Erik Albers has been employed at the FSFE for 10 years now. Since Erik found a connection between Free Software and sustainability, he hasn't stopped working on getting the word out about software sustainability through software freedom. But how is this connected to upcycling Android and installing a Free Software Operating System on your phone? Well, there is only one way to find out: By listening to our new Software Freedom Podcast episode. You will learn all about the importance of upcycling your own phone as well as gain a deeper insight into the "Upcycling Android" campaign.Read more:What is Free Software?The Upcycling Android CampaignIf you liked this episode and want to support our continuous work for software freedom, please help us with a donation.Join the FSFE community and support the podcast

SFP#14: The world of mesh networking with Elektra Wagenrad With this episode the Software Freedom Podcast opens the door to the fascinating and sometimes complex world of mesh networking. And who better than Elektra Wagenrad can take us on this journey? Elektra is one of the original developers of the B.A.T.M.A.N. protocol and of the Mesh Potato project. In our 14th Software Freedom Podcast episode Matthias Kirschner talks with our guest, Elektra Wagenrad, about the origins of Freifunk, the B.A.T.M.A.N. protocol, and the Mesh Potato project. If you are new to the world of mesh networking this episodes is an easy entrance to it. Elektra not only explains the theory behind the protocols but also dives deeper into the philosophical idea of it. In this context, Matthias and Elektra also touch on the difficult topic of limiting the use of Free Software, using the example of the former ban on the use of the B.A.T.M.A.N. protocol for military activities. Last but not least they also discuss the EU’s Radio Equipment Directive and the FSFE's Router Freedom activity.With this episode, the Software Freedom Podcast has produced an easy to follow and easy to understand podcast for everybody who is interested in mesh networking. Join us on our journey through this fascinating technical and philosophical world and listen to Elektra and Matthias as they tell the story with its ups and downs. If you clicked on the image of Elektra Wagenrad to come to this page, this image is licensed under CC-BY-SA 3.0 and created by Andrea Behrendt.Read more:What is Free Software?Freifunk (DE)Open-Mesh ProjectThe "Mesh Potato" projectFSFE’s activity on Radio LockdownFSFE's Router Freedom activityIf you liked this episode and want to support our continuous work for software freedom, please help us with a donation.Join the FSFE community and support the podcast

SFP#13: Free Software game "0 A.D. Empires Ascendant" with Stanislas Dolcini The upcoming "I Love Free Software Day" will focus on Free Software Games. One of the most famous Free Software games is "0 A.D.: Empires Ascendant". In this episode Bonnie Mehring talks with Stanislas Dolcini, the project leader of 0 A.D., about the game itself, the project, and how the game became Free Software. This podcast episode takes you on a journey through the game's development and its history of becoming one of the most famous Free Software games. You can also learn about how to participate and contribute to 0 A.D. Discover together with Stanislas and Bonnie how the community behind one of the best known Free Software games works, where support is needed, and the different types of developers and contributors. Bonnie and Stanislas also tell the success story of releasing 0 A.D. under a Free Software licence and talk about the positive side of developing a Free Software game. Read more:I Love Free Software DayWhat is Free Software?0 A.D. Empires AscendantIf you liked this episode and want to support our continuous work for software freedom, please help us with a donation.If you clicked on the image of the "Kush City Center" to come to this page, this image is licensed under CC-BY-SA 3.0 and created by 0 A.D. Empires Ascendant, Wildfire Games.Join the FSFE community and support the podcast

SFP#12: Enforcement of the GNU GPL with Till Jaeger With our 12th episode of the Software Freedom Podcast we dig into the history and the beginning of enforcing Free Software licences, especially the GNU General Public License (GNU GPL). Together with Till Jaeger, who has been working alongside Harald Welte for enforcing the GNU GPL in the first court cases in Germany, we talk about the long way we have come since those early days. Our guest, Till Jaeger, discusses with our host, Matthias Kirschner, how the decision to go to court and stand up for the rights of copyleft licences came about. Till and Matthias tell an exciting story about those first steps on this new legal ground. They also highlight the short term and long term impacts of the first court decision in favour of Free Software. For example, how more and more information about licensing and especially using a Free Software licence became available and publicly known. But also how workshops, like the FSFE's yearly Legal and Licensing Workshop, were created for those interested in using and being compliant to Free Software licences. Discover together with us the changes that have come from those first steps to the acceptance of Free Software in companies. Till has been involved with Free Software licensing for a long time and provides a deep and well rounded insight into the history of enforcing the GNU GPL. To give this episode a perfect ending, Matthias and Till also talk about some of the most common misunderstandings of Free Software licensing. This is the perfect episode for everyone to get an insight into one of the most important events in the history of enforcing Free Software licences. Read more:What is Free Software?The Free Software Legal and Licensing WorkshopFSFE's Legal NetworkThe gpl-violations.org projectSFP#3 about Free Software mobile phone communication with Harald Welte If you liked this episode and want to support our continuous work for software freedom, please help us with a donation. Join the FSFE community and support the podcast

SFP#11: REUSE Booster and our update on REUSE with Max Mehl Max Mehl and Bonnie Mehring talk about the REUSE initiative and the newly launched REUSE Booster programme. This 11th episode of the Software Freedom Podcast is the perfect match for you if you are interested in Free Software licensing and curious about how REUSE and its tools make that easier for developers and users. For this episode we have invited Max Mehl. This is the first time since the launch of the Software Freedom Podcast that a FSFE staff member joins the podcast. Max Mehl, an FSFE programme manager, has been with the FSFE since 2011 and has worked on numerous campaigns. These include the "I Love Free Software Day", "Free Your Android", "Router Freedom", and the "Public Money? Public Code!" campaign, just to name a few. Nowadays, Max Mehl is also the person responsible for the REUSE initiative and one of the REUSE tool's maintainers.REUSE is a standard for modern licensing of Free Software projects. It is widely adopted and has been implemented by large Free Software communities like KDE. In this episode Bonnie Mehring and Max Mehl talk about REUSE itself and its tools, the development of the REUSE community and the newly launched REUSE Booster programme, which is the perfect opportunity for an easy entrance to adopting the REUSE standard for your software project. With this episode Bonnie Mehring and Max Mehl provide a nice and easy entrance to the very complex world of software licensing. Read more:REUSE Booster helps Free Software projects with licensing and copyrightREUSE campaignMax MehlSFP#4 about REUSE with Carmen Bianca BakkerIf you liked this episode and want to support our continuous work for software freedom, please help us with a donation.Join the FSFE community and support the podcast

SFP#10: How to support Free Software and a sustainable digital infrastructure In our 10th episode of the Software Freedom Podcast we talk with Elisa Lindinger from Superrr Lab. Together we discuss problems faced by Free Software projects and how to tackle them. In a broader frame we discover what would be needed for a more sustainable digital infrastructure and talk about the work Elisa does for this aim. For this episode Matthias Kirschner and Bonnie Mehring talk with Elisa Lindinger about the survey Roadwork ahead, which evaluates the needs of those working for software freedom and a digital infrastructure for the public. What concrete actions are needed to create sustainable Free Software communities and projects? How could developers spend more time on coding and not so much time on organising events and finances, in short how could community management be better organised? And how could those who do volunteer work for open infrastructure and Free Software receive the support they need? Those are just some of the questions discussed in the podcast. All of those problems are brought into a broader sense of this topic, when we talk about how our digital civil society can be more sustainable. We discuss the four claims Elisa and her team developed and advocate for:Digital civil society needs to be part of political discussions about digital policy,New methods are needed of support and funding,"Public Money? Public Code!" should be a guiding principle for public procurements and Open Data, Open Access and Open Source should be the base for public contracts,A commitment for long-time support of widely-used software, libraries and protocols is needed to ensure their maintenance.Together, we discuss what a sustainable digital civil society can look like and what is still needed for this aim to be reached. This episode provides knowledge and insights for all of you who want to support Free Software and create a long-lasting digital society.Read more:What is Free Software?Report: Roadwork aheadLearning from the crisis: empower civil society organisations!Superrr LabNext Generation Internet Zero Initiative (NGI0)If you liked this episode and want to support our continuous work for software freedom, please help us with a donation.Join the FSFE community and support the podcast