This doesn't answer your 'which is the best CAD software' question, but rather addresses your 'i have access to a CNC mill and want to make something' issue.
SketchChair is specifically designed to do one thing: make chairs. It won't teach you much about CAD, but it will let you make your own CNC furniture very easily. It's free software, and you can get a good result very quickly - it could be an ideal first project to try out your mill.
Yeastie Boys have now added a license note to their recipe page - you can brew and sell Digital IPA as Digital IPA under the CC- Attribution-Sharealike license: http://yeastieboys.posterous.com/private/yCmgJxeHrs
Cheers!
The idea is basically to investigate the idea of open source. Many people have been getting very excited about this idea of 'Open Source Everything' and I'm just examining the principle - the purpose of this project is try it out, not to say from the outset "We can and must live 100% open source". It's about trying to think about the licensing issues surrounding the production, distribution and 'intellectual property' of everyday products.
The example of toilet paper was just to get people to realize how far outside of the realm of software I want to look, and to get people discussing the idea. Which certainly worked here. You're probably right about it not being copyrighted. from Wikipedia: Seth Wheeler of Albany, New York, obtained the earliest United States patents for toilet paper and dispensers, the types of which eventually were in common usage in that country, in 1883.[5]
I'd say this patent has run its course.
In regards to trademarks, I also have no problem with trademarks - in fact, I think the Arduino business model (open sourcing all schematics, encouraging modification, but retaining their brandname) is an excellent example of how open source can work in business.
I should probably explain a couple of key points about the project.
Yes, it is a naive and impossible aim. I am probably not going to have lived 100% open source by the end of year, if that is even possible. But that does not mean that the project will have failed. The project is about the attempt and through that, I want to get the ideas of open source into as many people's minds as possible.
As explained in my video, for some aspects of my life I won't be able to find a suitable solution, and I might not be able to be develop one, even with help from experts and others. This project is about trying to find the limits of the philosophy, both the current limits (as in where free software, libre hardware and open source stands today) and also the theoretical limits (could an 'open source' airline ever exist? should we allow access, modification and redistribution of swine flu?)
It's also about trying to summarize and define different approaches - for many people, copyleft, permissive licenses, public domain and traditional copyright are unclear terms with unclear consequences, and I hope that by holding these ideas up against different products and services that we use in our everyday lives, people will gain a better understanding of them.
It's not automatically good, or better than other forms of working or licensing. But it is very different to established industrial and economic models, and does have, or could have, a disruptive effect, and that's why I want to examine it and experiment with it.
Hi, I'm the one doing the stupid publicity stunt. Yes, it's a publicity stunt, but not for me, rather for the idea of free software, libre hardware, and alternative ways of licensing. I'm from outside the world of software and tech, and very few people I know have even heard of open source or copyleft. I want to reach those people, as well as publicise and give credit to people who are doing amazing work in the fields of free software and libre hardware.
I'm not saying that everybody should try to live 100% open source. In the current situation and economic system, that would, as you say, be stupid.
This is about taking an idea to an extreme to get people thinking about how products are licensed, to think about how different business models could work and affect their industries, and to rethink the way they live and the things they buy.
And I'm quite prepared to look stupid doing it.
Absolutely, there are plenty of patented crops here in Germany, not just GMO - I'm going to have a lot of difficulty avoiding them.
Luckily the organic movement has been shouting about 'frankenfoods' for a long time, so there's pretty good labelling of GMO crops - that part is easy. Here in my neighbourhood there is a very active movement of people involved in seed sovereignty, food politics, growing and selling heirloom strains. They should be able to point me in the right direction anyway - my 3m x 3m community garden plot won't keep me well-fed for long.
Yes. I've been discussing the project via email with RMS and he's said basically exactly that. I've also made it clear that my project is intended to be as transparent as possible, and early on in the project I will be asking for opinions from all sorts of people, as to what terminology I should be using throughout the project. He seems ok with that idea but at long as the project is called 'Year of Open Source', the 'Richard Stallman is not associated with...' note will stay on his calendar entry.
Slashdot Mirror
This doesn't answer your 'which is the best CAD software' question, but rather addresses your 'i have access to a CNC mill and want to make something' issue. SketchChair is specifically designed to do one thing: make chairs. It won't teach you much about CAD, but it will let you make your own CNC furniture very easily. It's free software, and you can get a good result very quickly - it could be an ideal first project to try out your mill.
Yeastie Boys have now added a license note to their recipe page - you can brew and sell Digital IPA as Digital IPA under the CC- Attribution-Sharealike license: http://yeastieboys.posterous.com/private/yCmgJxeHrs Cheers!
yeah, at least some people have found their way to the original video where I explain the project myself...
Also, you should probably watch the pitch video which explains the project in more detail.
The idea is basically to investigate the idea of open source. Many people have been getting very excited about this idea of 'Open Source Everything' and I'm just examining the principle - the purpose of this project is try it out, not to say from the outset "We can and must live 100% open source". It's about trying to think about the licensing issues surrounding the production, distribution and 'intellectual property' of everyday products. The example of toilet paper was just to get people to realize how far outside of the realm of software I want to look, and to get people discussing the idea. Which certainly worked here. You're probably right about it not being copyrighted. from Wikipedia: Seth Wheeler of Albany, New York, obtained the earliest United States patents for toilet paper and dispensers, the types of which eventually were in common usage in that country, in 1883.[5] I'd say this patent has run its course. In regards to trademarks, I also have no problem with trademarks - in fact, I think the Arduino business model (open sourcing all schematics, encouraging modification, but retaining their brandname) is an excellent example of how open source can work in business.
I should probably explain a couple of key points about the project. Yes, it is a naive and impossible aim. I am probably not going to have lived 100% open source by the end of year, if that is even possible. But that does not mean that the project will have failed. The project is about the attempt and through that, I want to get the ideas of open source into as many people's minds as possible. As explained in my video, for some aspects of my life I won't be able to find a suitable solution, and I might not be able to be develop one, even with help from experts and others. This project is about trying to find the limits of the philosophy, both the current limits (as in where free software, libre hardware and open source stands today) and also the theoretical limits (could an 'open source' airline ever exist? should we allow access, modification and redistribution of swine flu?) It's also about trying to summarize and define different approaches - for many people, copyleft, permissive licenses, public domain and traditional copyright are unclear terms with unclear consequences, and I hope that by holding these ideas up against different products and services that we use in our everyday lives, people will gain a better understanding of them.
It's not automatically good, or better than other forms of working or licensing. But it is very different to established industrial and economic models, and does have, or could have, a disruptive effect, and that's why I want to examine it and experiment with it.
Hi, I'm the one doing the stupid publicity stunt. Yes, it's a publicity stunt, but not for me, rather for the idea of free software, libre hardware, and alternative ways of licensing. I'm from outside the world of software and tech, and very few people I know have even heard of open source or copyleft. I want to reach those people, as well as publicise and give credit to people who are doing amazing work in the fields of free software and libre hardware. I'm not saying that everybody should try to live 100% open source. In the current situation and economic system, that would, as you say, be stupid. This is about taking an idea to an extreme to get people thinking about how products are licensed, to think about how different business models could work and affect their industries, and to rethink the way they live and the things they buy. And I'm quite prepared to look stupid doing it.
You forget - I live in Berlin. My car is a 1-speed bike with a trailer on the bike. The ladies love it.
Absolutely, there are plenty of patented crops here in Germany, not just GMO - I'm going to have a lot of difficulty avoiding them. Luckily the organic movement has been shouting about 'frankenfoods' for a long time, so there's pretty good labelling of GMO crops - that part is easy. Here in my neighbourhood there is a very active movement of people involved in seed sovereignty, food politics, growing and selling heirloom strains. They should be able to point me in the right direction anyway - my 3m x 3m community garden plot won't keep me well-fed for long.
Yes. I've been discussing the project via email with RMS and he's said basically exactly that. I've also made it clear that my project is intended to be as transparent as possible, and early on in the project I will be asking for opinions from all sorts of people, as to what terminology I should be using throughout the project. He seems ok with that idea but at long as the project is called 'Year of Open Source', the 'Richard Stallman is not associated with...' note will stay on his calendar entry.