An open source mis-understanding!?

[Robert Mann]

In earlier days, (once upon a time!!) there were people who wrote stories. 
These stange "hobbits" used to buy pencils from their fellow at the local
shop.

One day, an even stranger fellows among these, told them, hey :: let's get
the pencil-ware "open sourced". it'll be free for-ever!! For-ever said all
together the hobbits? yes!!! Hobbits being (just) hobbits they all agreed.
"open sourced" just sounded like magic to the ears!  

When they got their free pencil, made out of an open sourced free material
using an open sourced free process and open sourced free hands (!!) they all
smiled and went on an on writing. What a progress!!

But, as evil loves details, what they did not fully realize (it was written
in little scripts when they signed!) was that all their writings, then had
to be freely available too, to all. And so on. and so on, forever! 

The most professionals of these, the hobbits professional tale-makers,
already used a much more refined type of pencil they were ok to pay a lot
more. They would sell so many tales that... oups.. sometimes there would be
nobody to buy any, but that is another story. The story is they could still
sell their tales. So in effect they just.. closed up the market! Good thing
for them! 

At some point, an older hobbit story writer stood back and asked himself :
is that really what we meant? what we needed? what we wanted??  

He realized that what he really wanted was just a set of improved pencils.
"open sourced" to him really meant that all "libraries" (yes pencils at that
time were made out of "modular" libraries..) that all librairies were added
freely by gifted fellows who contributed, and taught so that more could
contribute. In fact he dreamed of highly organized contributions in which
structured modular libraries were gradually built according to the most
important needs of the tale-writers company. 

But the use of an improved pencil should not FORCE tale writers to give away
all rights forever on all their own writing, on all subjects matters, for
ever, just because he used that brand new pencil.

On the other hand the use of the new pencil should make it easier to
contribute intelligently to libraries, in an organized way (there is no
point in having to choose between 1000 librairies providing calendars... the
time to choose will be just about the time to write one more!)

So, that old hobbit wrote the tale you are reading, with a normal old
pencil, not with the brand new community open sourced one. So this tale is
now still "protected" by standard copyright laws. If luck turns around he
can publish this brilliant tale and enjoys the millions royalties hiw world
tour will attract.

And you can then take your chance too... and continue that same story,
stretching in into the future :: what will happen??
-- will the open sourcing idealist enforce their ideal?
-- shall the old tale writers be heard? How many of these still exist
around??
-- or will the multi-nationals professional tale writers take the lead, and
secure their market?
-- or else?? surprise!

!! copyright rman 2016 !!! 




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