Linux End User Summit

Sep 18, 2008 GMT

On her blog, Linux Foundation's Amanda McPherson explains why she created the upcoming Linux End User Summit. Users from around the globe will be attending. Amanda writes, "The countries represented by end user participants include: Turkey, Ghana, Brazil, Norway, Israel, Japan, South Africa, Yemen, Germany, Canada, Argentina, Czech Republic, India, Russia, USA, Netherlands. So for a small event we’ll be a mini-UN for Linux users."

Recent Interviews with FOSS Ladies

Sep 18, 2008 GMT

One of the many things I love about working in the field of open source is how cooperative it is. For example, look at these recent interviews by and about women from a variety of backgrounds and experience: Tina Gasperson interviewed LinuxToday's managing editor Carla Schroder for Linux.com. .51's Maria Webster recently interviewed Drupal developer Angela Byron and Linux Journal's webmistress Katherine Druckman. She also posted an article series by programmer Gloria W. (Thanks for the correction, Maria!)

Leslie Hawthorn's Highlights from DjangoCon 2008

Sep 17, 2008 GMT

Google's Leslie Hawthorn posted a Highlights from DjangoCon blog, complete with links to conference sessions on YouTube. Google's Open Source Team hosted DjangoCon at the Googleplex.

Moral Panics about Girls Online

Sep 16, 2008 GMT

If you are on the Debian Women email list, you might have seen the recent link to an MIT Press Journals paper, "High Tech or High Risk: Moral Panics about Girls Online," by Justine Cassell and Meg Crame. The authors researched the history of girls and technology – from the telegraph to the Internet – and show an interesting pattern. People, especially parents, tend to be particularly concerned with how girls use the new technology. In the past, the concern had more to do with "appropriate" behavior for a young lady, whereas now people are more alarmed about online predators: "In the current case, the panic over girls’ use of technology has taken the form...

Reporting from Linux Plumbers Conference

Sep 16, 2008 GMT

The Linux Plumbers Conference is this week in Portland, Oregon. Maria Webster will be keeping us posted on the events, so be sure to check back on our news page for updates. Today she's attending the Student Mini-Conference.

AussieChix Microconference October 25

Sep 16, 2008 GMT

Alice Boxhall and Mary Gardiner are organizing an on October 25th in Sydney and Melbourne. Admission is free and you can register at: AussieChix Microconference. All women attendees are encouraged to speak: "AussieChix aims to help women in the Australian Free Software community participate in the wider community, and one of the ways we'd like to do so is to give women more speaking experience and confidence."

Groklaw Explains Spammer Case First Amendment Issues

Sep 15, 2008 GMT

A little less than a year ago, I interviewed Pamela Jones about anonymity online and First Amendment issues. The interview turned into a research paper for my First Amendment class and ultimately ended up as part of my thesis. Another First Amendment class assignment was a debate in which one two-member team had to present the side of the defense in a recent First Amendment case, and another team argued that the case didn't infringe on the defendant's right to free speech. Then the class voted on which team made the stronger argument. My team was assigned a case against Fred Phelps (or as my professor called him, our state wart) and his right to protest outside funerals of soldiers. My...