jr conlin's ink stained banana

i feel like i need to apologize to future generations.

The Digital Tipping Point is a project with the stated goal that they're studying and documenting how Free Open Source Software is changing culture. They're using Open Software for everything from running the site, to editing the content to eventually delivering the final product. Everything is being put under Creative Commons and will be available via the Internet Archive. They've interviewed myraids of luminaries like Richard Stalman (sans ninjas), Dan Gilmore, Caitlin Hill who speak both with great knowledge and insight about the wonders of Open Source.

And then there's me.

For about four hours i was taped at the KIPP San Francisco Academy (a damn spiffy program that seriously needs your old servers) where i think i will serve as comedy relief or possibly that guy. (You know That Guy. The one that got cornered into the Daily Show interview who is way out of his league and completely and unerringly wrong.)

Don't get me wrong, it's not like i hate Open Source. i loves me some FOSS. It's just that i'm a pragmatist and realize that while it's going to get there, it's not going to happen soon. It's a bit like how i wonder about the entire concept of a "Tipping Point" where OSS overcomes commercial. i'm not sure there ever will be. OSS is a different option than commercial. There may be real, valid reasons to continue to choose a commercial, non-open option for something where OSS may simply never make sense because you can't get enough folks interested in supporting some obscure option or function you may need. You may have to literally pay someone to build it. Likewise, there are going to be times when a commercial app will out-perform an OSS solution because there's a different incentive model. People have iPods. How many run RockBox on them? It's not so much a tipping point as a period of slow evolution.

Still, i'm thankful that someone felt my opinions were worth preserving in some form. i'm also going to try to help out the KIPP folks and see if i can wrangle up some gear they can use (Considering the kind of gear that gets hauled off to the recyclers, i can think of a far better use for it.)

i fully expect that even though it will all be transcribed and digitally stored, my remarks will not make the final edit. If i'm lucky, someone will turn my penchant for rambling use of pronouns into a dance remix and i'll become the next NumaNuma guy.