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Eben Moglen Talks About Free Software in the Second of Two Video Interviews

Posted by Roblimo on from the second-time's-a-charm dept.

Yesterday we ran a video interview with Eben Moglen, who according to Wikipedia, "is a professor of law and legal history at Columbia University, and is the founder, Director-Counsel and Chairman of [the] Software Freedom Law Center." And as we also said yesterday, since 2011 he's been working with FreedomBox, a project working toward "a personal server running a free software operating system, with free applications designed to create and preserve personal privacy." Prof. Moglen is also one of the most polished speakers anywhere, on any topic, in our opinion. So please enjoy this second video of him speaking to (and answering questions from) Slashdot readers.

24 of 40 comments (clear)

  1. Another Flashvertisement by AliasMarlowe · · Score: 4, Insightful

    So tell us again, what does Eben Moglen think about non-free software like Flash?

    --
    Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities. - Voltaire
  2. Obligatory Flash bitching thread by crazyjj · · Score: 3, Funny

    Okay, everyone get it out of your system. Flash sucks, blah blah! Why couldn't they put it into HTML-5/Ogg/x264/whatever-the-fuck, blah blah? This won't work on my iThing and it makes Steve Jobs cry in heaven, blah blah. Everything should be DRM/proprietary-codec free, blah blah!

    Okay, feel better?

    Then, let's have at least a few posts to talk about the actual content (or, if need be, the lack thereof).

    --
    What political party do you join when you don't like Bible-thumpers *or* hippies?
    1. Re:Obligatory Flash bitching thread by Revotron · · Score: 2

      How about a thread discussing the ridiculous irony of posting a video about free software as a Flash object and providing no alternate means of viewing?

    2. Re:Obligatory Flash bitching thread by Spy+Handler · · Score: 1

      pssst... i can show you how you can get Flash for free. But don't tell anyone, it'll be our little secret.

    3. Re:Obligatory Flash bitching thread by PPH · · Score: 1

      Free as in free of Flash cookies and other tracking garbage. Not free as in I'm too cheap to even bother installing/configuring an alternative.

      --
      Have gnu, will travel.
    4. Re:Obligatory Flash bitching thread by Guy+Smiley · · Score: 1

      Works fine on my iPhone 3GS with iOS 6.0. The special YouTube app is also gone in iOS 6, and one can view YouTube content directly in Safari. So either iOS 6 has flash video support, or the servers are offering it in a format that can play on devices w/o flash?

    5. Re:Obligatory Flash bitching thread by unixisc · · Score: 1

      Free as in free of Flash cookies and other tracking garbage. Not free as in I'm too cheap to even bother installing/configuring an alternative.

      Call it 'Liberated', in that case, instead of Free. GP is correct!

  3. Transcript? by xxxJonBoyxxx · · Score: 2

    >> Prof. Moglen is also one of the most polished speakers anywhere, on any topic, in our opinion. So please..

    Yes. I'm sure. He is. Says the forum who. Thinks Shatner is. One of the greatest. Actors ever.

    Post the MF'ing transcript if you want us to consume the wisdom, please. We're in a hurry out here.

    1. Re:Transcript? by Roblimo · · Score: 1

      Post the MF'ing transcript if you want us to consume the wisdom, please. We're in a hurry out here.

      The transcript is posted and was all along. You may need new glasses.

  4. Not About Flash by Jane+Q.+Public · · Score: 3, Informative

    But about Slashdot's implementation of a Flash video player.

    It doesn't work in my Firefox at all. Even with script-and flash-blockers turned off. In order to watch videos on Slashdot, I have to open Chrome or Safari, and watch them there. Because of course there is NO LINK to the original video anywhere, and Ooyala deliberately hides the video source in a plethora of flash and javascript.

    1. Re:Not About Flash by Jane+Q.+Public · · Score: 1

      Really, I want to emphasize this, Slashdot: your video player implementation sucks. I said it before, and I will keep saying it unless and until you change it.

    2. Re:Not About Flash by CamD · · Score: 1

      https://code.google.com/p/get-flash-videos/
      Cross-platform. It's in the Debian repository, possibly others.

      To "stream" (in mplayer, by default):
      $ get_flash_videos --play "$slashdot_url"

      Seriously, why isn't Slashdot using Flowplayer or another "HTML5-first" player? Even YouTube would do...

    3. Re:Not About Flash by Jane+Q.+Public · · Score: 1

      "Seriously, why isn't Slashdot using Flowplayer or another "HTML5-first" player? Even YouTube would do..."

      That's what I suggested the last time. That they would probably be better off just ripping the FlowPlayer code from some porn site than this Ooyala-mutated wonder.

  5. works fine in my firefox by Chirs · · Score: 1

    on linux, even

    1. Re:works fine in my firefox by Jane+Q.+Public · · Score: 1

      I'm on OS X. That could be the difference.

      At first I thought it might be because I have Flash Local Storage turned off, but it works in Chrome and Safari.

      It could be because I have HTTP local storage turned off in Firefox. But that is no excuse. The video player should not refuse to run just because I respect my own privacy.

    2. Re:works fine in my firefox by ddt · · Score: 1

      Works for me fine on Mac OS (10.7.5) Firefox (16.0.1).

    3. Re:works fine in my firefox by Jane+Q.+Public · · Score: 1

      Do you have Local Storage turned off?

      Never, mind, that can't be it either, because it prompts you if a site wants to store something.

      Must be something subtle in my configuration. How about 3rd party cookies, maybe?

      I'm not getting any HTML or JavaScript errors. There are a boatload of CSS errors but there always are on Slashdot.

      So even though I'm pretty good at tracking this kind of thing down, I haven't figured it out.

  6. I hope he's right by Lennie · · Score: 1

    That they are going to be right in the end too.

    Open systems, protocols and standards should be the norm. Preferable open source as well.

    --
    New things are always on the horizon
  7. Awesome! by ddt · · Score: 1

    Part 2 is even more awesomer than Part 1.

    Thanks so much, Eben, for your time, service, and wisdom!

  8. Put them on youtube please. by bug1 · · Score: 1

    I dont think Eben would want me to deliberatly fire up my windows computer just to watch his video.

  9. Re:HTTPS Everywhere is not that great by Onymous+Coward · · Score: 1

    Which sites are hosed by HTTPS Everywhere? I haven't run into any myself.

  10. Re:HTTPS Everywhere is not that great by MadMaverick9 · · Score: 1

    Or use DuckDuckGo for your searches:

    At some other search engines (including us), you can also use an encrypted version (HTTPS), which as a byproduct doesn't usually send your search terms to sites. However, it is slower to connect to these versions and if you click on a site that also uses HTTPS then your search is sent. Nevertheless, the encrypted version does protect your search from being leaked onto the computers it travels on between you and us.

    At DuckDuckGo, our encrypted version goes even further and automatically changes links from a number of major Web sites to point to the encrypted versions of those sites. It is modeled after (and uses code from) the HTTPS Everywhere FireFox add-on. These sites include Wikipedia, Facebook, Twitter, and Amazon to name a few.

    https://duckduckgo.com/privacy.html

  11. Re:Now Mr Stallman - Where Is The FacePlug ? by unixisc · · Score: 1

    You mean GNU Network?

  12. Is there a transcript available .. by dgharmon · · Score: 1

    Is there a transcript available, cause in lectures, I tend to nod off after five minutes ...

    --
    AccountKiller