JJB Blog

The European Parliment, the parilimentary body of the EU, has rejected the Directive on the patentability of computer-implemented inventions, a directive which included the creation of software pattents.

Wikinews has the story. Included in the Wikinews article is this photo (click the photo to see a larger version where you can read the banners on the boats):

Which inspired this dialogue between me and Zane:

Context for the metaphors: Open source software and/or small business software is carefully and lovingly developed, often by its users, and is mindful of the hapiness of its users, the health of the industry, and general information ethics issues. Big companies often create huge, poorly designed software projects that are difficult to maintain and upgrade, and often lock down information resources (with either patents or copyright) that they are not using, while disallowing smaller businesses who are eager to make new technologies available to society from doing so.

zane: Man, that picture sums it all up so nicely. You’ve got rich vs. poor, few vs. many, sinecure vs. meritocracy.
john: yeah
john: also the yacht has an engine and the canoe is paddled [Open-source and/or small business software is lovingly maintained by a small group of effecient, dedicated people; it can quickly adapt to the supply and demand dynamics of the free market. Closed-source and/or corporate software is big, ineffecient, and must design and execute its actions in broad strokes as it desperately holds on to a monopolistic existence based on artificial markets created by intentional and persistent restriction of information.]
john: even more awesome.
zane: you can work environmentalism in there too.
zane: This picture is the caption for all I believe!
john: oh man
john: ALSO
john: you can’t see the passengers of the yacht
john: they are hidden inside [Closed-source software and/or patented technologies hide the inner workings of a product from the end user, and by extension restrict access to information.]
zane: good one
john: ohhhhhh zane
john: you will like this one
john: check out their statement
john: patents = european innovation
john: to the casual observer they are stating that those things are equal
john: but really, since it is a = and not a ==, [In many computer languages, = changes the meaning of the thing on the left, == checks to see if the left and right have the same meaning] they are assigning new meaning to the concept of Patents!! [Patents were originally intended to provide short-term protection for actual implementations that were on the market, to provide incentive for new innovation. The concept has morphed to the point where it is now possible to patent an unimplemented algorithm.]
john: heh heh
zane: haha
zane: Also, the people in the canoe are more globally aware, they state the general case, while the yacht takes the narrow, local view.
zane: The yacht also presumes to first command the reader, and explains only as a side note, while the canoe merely persuades.
john: hahaha
john: excellent points
zane: The yacht, devoid of its human masters, also represents the dehumanization of society and our enslavement to material things. Is the yacht the true master?
john: the yacht is seemingly/effectively self-navigated
john: it is too complicated and cumbersome to be propelled or navigated by hand even if one tried [a corporation develops its own personality and needs independent of the desires of its employees]

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