[gweekly] PT1a Weekly Project Gutenberg Newsletter
Michael Hart
hart at pglaf.org
Wed Dec 7 09:26:48 PST 2005
Weekly_December_07.txt
*The Project Gutenberg Weekly Newsletter For Wednesday, December 07, 2005 PT1*
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
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*eBook Milestones
*Introduction
*Hot Requests, New Sites and Announcements
*Continuing Requests and Announcements
*Progress Report
*Distributed Proofreaders Collection Report
*Project Gutenberg Consortia Center Report
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*Flashback
*Weekly eBook update:
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Also collected in the Monthly Newsletter
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2 New From PG Australia [Australian, Canadian Copyright Etc.]
58 New Public Domain eBooks Under US Copyright
*Headline News from Edupage, etc.
*Information About the Project Gutenberg Mailing Lists
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*eBook Milestones*
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***Introduction
[The Newsletter is now being sent in two sections, so you can directly
go to the portions you find most interesting: 1. Founder's Comments,
News, Notes & Queries, and 2. Weekly eBook Update Listing. Note bene
that PT1 is now being sent as PT1A and PT1B.
[Since we are between Newsletter editors, these 2 parts may undergo a
few changes while we are finding a new Newsletter editor. Email us:
hart at pobox.com and gbnewby at pglaf.org if you would like to volunteer.]
This is Michael Hart's "Founder's Comments" section of the Newsletter
*Headline News from Edupage
[PG Editor's Comments In Brackets]
OPEN SOURCE LICENSE UP FOR REVISION
The Free Software Foundation has announced plans to revise the General
Public License (GPL), which covers many open source applications
including the Linux operating system. The license has not been revised
since 1991, long before Linux and other open source applications had
been implemented widely. Now, according to Eben Moglen, the
foundation's general counsel, "The big boys, corporations and
governments, have far more reason to be interested and concerned." The
GPL and the Free Software Foundation are the creations of Richard
Stallman, an unwavering critic of proprietary software and the author
of much of the source code that led to the Linux operating system.
Stallman has used the license and the foundation to foster what he says
are the four principles of software: the ability to use, study, copy,
and modify it. Stallman acknowledged that with the success of open
source applications in recent years, the task of revising the GPL is
complicated by patent issues, which must allow open source and
proprietary software to run on the same systems. A first draft of the
new GPL will be presented at MIT in mid-January. The revision process
is expected to be completed by the end of 2006, with the Free Software
Foundation making final decisions about changes.
New York Times, 30 November 2005 (registration req'd)
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/11/30/technology/30license.html
THE RISING TIDE OF ONLINE COLLEGE APPLICATIONS
[Is This Perpetuating "The Digital Divide?"]
Motivated by a number of factors, growing numbers of college hopefuls
are turning to the Web to submit applications, though concerns about
the medium persist. For colleges and universities, online applications
generally mean easier processing with fewer mistakes. Many institutions
waive application fees--which can run as high as $75--for students who
apply online. As a result, most institutions are seeing higher
percentages of applications filed online, and many students are
applying at more institutions. According to the National Association
for College Admission Counseling, 57 percent of students applied to
college online in 2004, compared to 35 percent one year earlier. The
Higher Education Research Institute reported that in 2004, more than 16
percent of students applied to seven or more schools, up from less than
10 percent in 1994. Some schools do not waive fees for online
applications, however, among them Yale University and Harvard
University. And despite growing confidence in the Internet, some
students remain skeptical that their materials have been received.
William Fitzsimmons, dean of admissions at Harvard, said, "Students
will send it electronically, then they will fax it to you, and then
they will send it snail mail."
Wall Street Journal, 30 November 2005 (sub. req'd)
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB113331711186209812.html
NEW ORLEANS ANNOUNCES WI-FI NETWORK
City officials from New Orleans have announced plans to deploy a
wireless network covering the entire city by the end of 2006. The
network will provide improved communication for city services,
including fire and police departments, and--the city hopes--will draw
residents and businesses back to the city following this year's
disastrous hurricane season. When complete, the network will provide
free Internet access to anyone in the city. Unlike several other
municipal networks under development, the New Orleans network will be
installed and operated by the city itself. Still, city officials must
grapple with a state law that restricts Internet access speeds on
municipal networks. Unless the city is able to change the law or win an
exemption, it will only be allowed to offer transfer speeds of 144
Kbps. Representatives of cable and phone companies that offer Internet
access have argued that cities should not be allowed to offer services
that compete with services from private companies. City officials
reject that notion, arguing that commercial Internet access is too
expensive and inconvenient for many potential users.
Silicon.com, 30 November 2005
http://networks.silicon.com/broadband/0,39024661,39154681,00.htm
INTERNATIONAL GROUP SUES OVER .COM MANAGEMENT
The World Association of Domain Name Developers has filed a lawsuit in
a California court against the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names
and Numbers (ICANN) and VeriSign over a deal recently reached between
the two organizations. After resolving a dispute over VeriSign's Site
Finder service, which directed users who mistyped URLs to VeriSign's
Web site, ICANN agreed to an extension of the contract that allows
VeriSign to manage the .com and .net domains. Although the extension
runs from 2007 to 2012, the lawsuit filed by the developers association
contends that the contract "provides for the automatic renewal of the
agreement and thereby precludes competitors from ever entering the .com
and .net domain name registration market," thereby establishing a
monopoly for the domains. The only means for another company to bid on
the work, according to the suit, is if VeriSign goes out of business or
fails to meet the terms of the contract. A statement from ICANN said
the lawsuit is intended to divert attention away from an ICANN meeting
currently being held in Vancouver.
BBC, 29 November 2005
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/4482292.stm
MICROSOFT TWEAKS IE TO SIDESTEP EOLAS PATENT
Microsoft has made a change to its Internet Explorer browser to avoid
infringing on a patent held by Eolas Technologies, though Microsoft
continues to dispute the validity of that patent. Eolas was granted a
patent in 1998 for a technology that allows certain programs, such as
applets or ActiveX controls, to be launched automatically from Web
pages. Eolas sued Microsoft in 1999 and in 2003 was awarded $521
million for infringement of its intellectual property. That case has
been working its way through appeals courts and is set for a retrial.
In the meantime, Microsoft has opted to modify its browser so that
users must manually accept the launching of ActiveX controls on Web
pages. Unlike an earlier proposal, the one implemented will not require
users to accept each such control on a Web page but simply to accept
them all at once. Microsoft's Michael Wallent said this solution is
less intrusive and that for most users, it will be "an almost invisible
change." Microsoft is working with developers to rewrite Web pages in a
way to minimize the effects of the change.
Internet News, 2 December 2005
http://www.internetnews.com/xSP/article.php/3568286
[Meanwhile The Rest of the World is in High Gear]
SINGAPORE TO INVEST IN ELECTRONIC SECTOR
The government of Singapore has announced plans to invest nearly $600
million over the next decade to foster growth in the digital sector of
the country's economy. Singapore's Economic Development Board will
manage the investments, which will support four areas: attracting
businesses from outside the country; fostering a climate that
encourages residents of the country to pursue careers in digital media;
funding research and development; and providing financial backing for
electronic projects involving local and overseas interests. Vivian
Balakrishnan, second minister for trade and industry, said the country
hopes that the investment will generate 30,000 new jobs in Singapore by
2018. The announcement coincided with the opening of a game development
facility by Electronic Arts. Officials in Singapore hope that the
country's digital industry will grow to nearly $6 billion by 2018.
CNET, 5 December 2005
http://news.com.com/2100-1025_3-5982727.html
INTEL UPS INVESTMENT IN INDIA
Intel has announced plans to invest $1 billion in India, where it
already operates the company's largest nonmanufacturing site outside
the United States. That site, in Bangalore, hosts development efforts
for software. The new investment, expected over the next five years,
will be split between the existing research and development efforts and
local firms. Craig Barrett, chairman of Intel, said, "We will grow our
local operations, boost venture capital investments, and work closely
with the government, industry, and educators." The company said it has
not made any decisions about opening manufacturing facilities in India,
though such an option remains open. The costs of doing business in
countries including India are significantly lower than in the United
States. Some estimates put the salary for an Indian software engineer
at one-sixth of what a comparably skilled engineer would earn in the
United States.
BBC, 5 December 2005
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/4499362.stm
[More Strange Microsoft Browser News]
RHAPSODY USERS CAN SKIP THE DOWNLOAD
RealNetworks has introduced a Web-based version of its Rhapsody online
music service, untethering existing users from their usual computers
and opening the service to users with non-Windows-based computers.
Until now, Rhapsody users had to download an application to their
computers to access the service. With the new offering, users can
access the service from any computer using their existing Rhapsody
names and passwords. The new feature also allows Mac users and those
with Linux-based computers to access Rhapsody. The catch is that the
Web-based service only permits music streaming--customers who want to
purchase tracks will still be required to use the downloaded
application. Rhapsody also allows users to listen to 25 songs per month
for free. Subscribers can listen to an unlimited number of songs. Rob
Glaser, CEO of RealNetworks, said he wouldn't be bothered if most
users of the Web-based service choose only to listen to free songs
because "the Internet advertising market is doing pretty well."
Wall Street Journal, 5 December 2005 (sub. req'd)
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB113379130776613997.html
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***
*HEADLINE NEWS AVOIDED BY MOST OF THE MAJOR U.S. MEDIA
[As requested adding sources, etc., when possible.
Remember, the subject is not the article's subject,
the subject is the manipulation of the world news.]
*
Florida Jury Acquits Professor of 8 Terror Charges
Professor Sami Al-Arian had been accused of being
part of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, along with
three others. Yesterday a jury acquitted him of
8 of those charges, but left at least as many of
the charges still on the table, and prosecutors
will have to decide if they want to proceed.
Source: Standard-Speaker, Tampa
Independent Florida Alligator, FL
*
Former Capitol Hill Press Secretary Thomas C. Springer
was arrested yet again for bank robbery, after someone
tailed his blue Geo Metro from the scene calling 911.
[Could fiction writers do any better?]
A Montgomery County Police spokesman said Mr. Springer
was responsible for 7 or more such bank robberies, all
in Montgomery County in approximately the last year.
In addition, his bank robbery career dates back to his
initial arrest in 1989. He spent a year in prison and
was released, that time for 3 Maryland banks he hit.
He also served another year plus in North Carolina for
bank robbery after being arrested in October, 1995.
Source: The Washington Post
*
Giant C-130 Hercules Cargo Plane Crashes In Iran Capitol
Various reports indicate the original pilot walked away,
saying the plane was unsafe to fly, but after six hours,
and various technical difficulties and after stalling on
the runway a handful of times, the plane finally managed
to get off the runway only to crash into a building, and
the death toll is already well above 100, most of them a
group of journalists covering military units.
Source: ABC Asia Pacific TV / Radio Australia, BBC, PBS
*DOUBLESPEAK OF THE WEEK
United States Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice denies
she told Germen Chancellor Angela Merkel that it was "a
mistake" for the CIA to have flown a German man, Khaled
el-Masri, to one of the secret CIA prisons in Europe.
Secretary Rice did acknowledge that the CIA had created
such prisons, but not that the prisoners had been flown
to the for purposes of torture.
Apparently all the detainees in these secret prisons in
Europe have been flown across the Mediterranean to some
new secret locations in northern Africa from prisons in
Poland, Romania and other undisclosed locations.
el-Masri had been detained in an Afghan secret site and
is now suing the CIA for wrongful imprisonment. He was
originally taken into custody by three men, in civilian
clothing, but well armed, as he was crossing the border
between Serbia and Macedonia because his name is linked
to 9/11 because it is that same as a hijacker's name.
In at least one instance such a suit was foiled, by the
simple process of not allowing the plaintiff to board a
plane to the U.S.
Yesterday the lawsuit was finally filed, by the ACLU.
Source: BBC, Metro Toronto, Malaysia Star, The Age [of
Australia], Independent, UK.
*PREDICTIONS OF THE WEEK
Following Verizon's lead, more and more healthy companies
will get out from under their pension funds.
[See previous comments on bailing out of pension funds]
*
The New York Stock Exchange will be forced by competitors
to finally stop blocking the oncoming electronic age, and
will have to become more computer and network oriented.
*STRANGE QUOTES OF THE WEEK
"But The Pension Fund Was Just Sitting There!"
Doonesbury, Collected Works, from 1978-1979
[Shouldn't someone be hiring Gary Trudeau as Chief Pundit?]
*ODD STATISTICS OF THE WEEK
Remember when Dan Rather was offered $5 million to replace
Walter Cronkite back in the 1980's?
Today the price is $25 million and offered to Katie Couric
to lure her away from NBC's Today Show to CBS Evening News.
[If you check the inflation figures during Rather's tenure
you'll find they were nowhere near 500% for the period, as
the rich continue to get richer and the poor get poorer.]
***
Still hoping for more statistical updates and additional entries.
"If we could shrink the earth's population to a village of precisely
100 people, with all the existing human ratios remaining the same,
it would look something like the following. There would be:
57 Asians
21 Europeans
14 from the Western Hemisphere, both North and South America
8 Africans
52 would be female
48 would be male
70 would be non-white
30 would be white
70 would be non-Christian
30 would be Christian
6 people would possess 59% of the entire world's wealth
and all 6 would be from the United States
80 would live in substandard housing
70 would be unable to read
50 would suffer from malnutrition
1 would be near death; 1 would be near birth
1 (yes, only 1) would have a college education
1 would own a computer [I think this is now much greater]
1 would be 79 years old or more.
Of those born today, the life expectancy is only 63 years,
but no country any longer issues copyrights that are sure
to expire within that 63 year period.
I would like to bring some of these figures more up to date,
as obviously if only 1% of 6 billion people owned a computer
then there would be only 60 million people in the world who
owned a computer, yet we hear that 3/4 + of the United States
households have computers, out of over 100 million households.
Thus obviously that is over 1% of the world population, just in
the United States.
I just called our local reference librarian and got the number
of US households from the 2004-5 U.S. Statistical Abstract at:
111,278,000 as per data from 2003 U.S Census Bureau reports.
If we presume the saturation level of U.S. computer households
is now around 6/7, or 86%, that is a total of 95.4 million,
and that's counting just one computer per household, and not
counting households with more than one, schools, businesses, etc.
I also found some figures that might challenge the literacy rate
given above, and would like some help researching these and other
such figures, if anyone is interested.
BTW, while I was doing this research, I came across a statistic
that said only 10% of the world's population is 60+ years old.
This means that basically 90% of the world's population would
never benefit from Social Security, even if the wealthy nations
offered it to them free of charge. Then I realized that the US
population has the same kind of age disparity, in which the rich
live so much longer than the poor, the whites live so much longer
than the non-whites. Thus Social Security is paid by all, but is
distributed more to the upper class whites, not just because they
can receive more per year, but because they will live more years
to receive Social Security. The average poor non-white may never
receive a dime of Social Security, no matter how much they pay in.
*
POEM OF THE WEEK
a moment with you
laid back time's a blue octopus
embracing my ankles, my feet like birds
cut through airy waves of memory
polyphonic castles erected in the realm of newspeak
sounds upon sounds describe majestic towers
sweet melody of understanding playing over and over again
the abyssal voice: lonesome mariners befriending oysters
their old secrets revealed through long voyages initiation
a dialogue of alikeness opening up door after or after door
above a seagull: caresses came to resemble its dance
touch of feathers spreading wide in horizons of color
ethereal sensations, hear mermaids singing loved songs
the rhythm of utter belonging
joyfully
contained in
a moment with you
Copyright 2005 by Simona Sumanaru and Michael S. Hart
Please send comments to: simona_s75 AT yahoo.com & hart AT pobox.com
***
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