ABOUT THE OHIO LINUXFEST
The Ohio LinuxFest is a grassroots conference for the GNU/Linux/Open Source Software/Free Software community that started in 2003 as a large inter-LUG (Linux User Group) meeting and has grown steadily since. It is a place for the community to gather and share information about Linux and Open Source Software.
A large expo area adjacent to the conference rooms will feature exhibits from our sponsors as well as a large .org section from non-profit Open Source/Free Software projects.
The Ohio LinuxFest welcomes people from all 50 states and international participants. We’ve had participants from Canada, England, Argentina, Brazil, and Australia in years past.
Several registrations levels are available for attendees. Please help support the non-profit volunteer run Ohio LinuxFest by donating or by registering for the Ohio LinuxFest Institute.
Open-Source Software
Open-source software is necessary to achieve personal, cultural, and organizational security in the face of technological threats brought by corporations and individual criminals.
Government has a vital role in breaking up software monopolies, not so much by filing antitrust suits, but by buying nothing but open systems. The U.S. Government and the larger states are buyers large enough to influence the computer and software systems through their purchasing. It should be illegal for a government agency to create and store information vital to its operations in a format it doesn’t control. Governments should always consider storing information with open-source software and in-house staff instead of only commercial systems, vendors and software. One way to achieve this would be to add a virtual bid for in-house open source deployment whenever a software purchase goes out for bid.
The Green Party supports protection of software (free or proprietary) by means of the copyright. We strongly oppose granting of software patents. Mathematical algorithms are discovered, not invented, by humans; therefore, they are not patentable. The overwhelming majority of software patents cover algorithms and should never have been awarded, or they cover message formats of some kind, which are essentially arbitrary. Format patents only exist to restrain competition, and the harm falls disproportionately on programmers who work independently or for the smallest employers. Greens around the world are involved with the development of systems such as Drupal and CiviCRM. The Green Party of Aotearoa – New Zealand has been a pioneer is this effort. The Green Party of Canada has also been very involved in this type of development. http://www.gp.org/economic_justice_and_sustainability_2016