173549
submission
QCMBR writes:
A new Microsoft-funded study by a Harvard Business School professor concludes that developers don't want extensive patent licensing requirements in the GPL3. There are some problems with the study, however, especially given the very small sample size. 'Although 332 emails were sent to various developers, only 34 agreed to participate in the survey — an 11 percent response rate. Of the 34 developers who responded, many of them are associated with projects like Apache and PostgreSQL that don't even use the GPL.' Ars points out that the GPL3 draft editing and review process is highly transparent and inclusive 'to an extent that makes MacCormack's claims of under-representation seem difficult to accept given the small sample size of the study and the number of respondents who contribute to non-GPL projects.'
173393
submission
The Fun Guy writes:
The New York Times is reporting that all of the taxis in New York City City must be gasoline hybrids by 2012:
In addition to making the yellow cab brigade entirely green within five years, the city will require all new vehicles entering the fleet after October 2008 to achieve a minimum of 25 miles per gallon. A year later, all new vehicles must get 30 miles per gallon and be hybrid.
Shifting the taxi fleet to hybrids is part of Bloomberg's wider sustainability plan for the city, which includes a goal of a 30 percent reduction in carbon emissions by 2030.
173075
submission
falonaj writes:
Munich's KDE distribution LiMux has been certified to meet the international usability standard ISO 9241. The use of KDE 3 as an 'effective, efficient and satisfactory' working environment is named as a decisive factor for passing the certification. This is the first time that a Free Software desktop has been officially attested for usability by the German certification association TÜV. After an extensive two-year process of iterative testing, TÜV IT confirms that 'Open Source has reached a very high level of professionalism' and concludes that KDE's Open Source nature made it very easy for Munich to ensure that the software is especially efficient and user friendly for their office workers.
167487
submission
Snootch writes:
The BBC is reporting that the House of Commons Cultural Committee has recommended an extension of copyright on sound recordings. Until now, the copyright on a sound recording has lasted only fifty years after the initial date of recording. The BPI has been conducting a public-relations offensive, with the usual lines about the "rights of the artists", for a while now — including an infamous newspaper petition "signed" by dead artists.
