Canonical Targets Ubuntu Privacy Critic 259
New submitter bkerensa writes "A member of Canonical's Legal Team recently sent a email to a critic of Ubuntu's privacy settings to insist he stop using the Ubuntu name and logo, even though it falls under 'fair use.' Micah Lee is the CTO of the Freedom of the Press Foundation and maintainer of the HTTPS Everywhere project. When Ubuntu began adding commercial results in its Dash search software, Lee wrote about the privacy concerns and created a site called Fix Ubuntu to show people how to turn it off. Canonical's legal department has now sent him a letter asking him to 'remove [the] Ubuntu word from you[r] domain name and Ubuntu logo from your website.'"
Hey genius (Score:3, Interesting)
Maybe you didn't see the letter from the EFF's lawyer to Canonical yet because you didn't RTFA:
https://micahflee.com/2013/11/canonical-shouldnt-abuse-trademark-law-to-silence-critics-of-its-privacy-decisions/ [micahflee.com]
You have NO IDEA what you are talking about, specifically in the legal aspect. This is a prime example of fair use.
Re: If you are still using Ubuntu... (Score:4, Interesting)
g+ ?
fuck that! seriously, its why I will NOT care about 'elementary os'.
if you have to use a google product to interact with the developers, they totally don't 'get it' and are not worth dealing with.
now, if they switch to some vendor neutral forum (even a website would be better) than I'll reconsider, but their whole 'support' notion is laughable.
Talking about privacy... Qubes OS (Score:4, Interesting)
In those "best linux distros" [techradar.com] I just discovered Qubes OS [qubes-os.org] which achieves security (and privacy) through strong isolation.
See what kind of activities can be isolated, in a picture [blogspot.fr].
I think they got it right.
Not very portable: one need to run it on bare metal (along with 4GB minimum), nomads will bring along their laptop, at least (also: secure boot optional).
Frustration Is Taking its Toll (Score:3, Interesting)
From Shuttleworth on down the line, Canonical is suffering a meltdown from the frustration of failure and loss.
Once the golden boy of the Linux revolution, Shuttleworth himself has devolved in the public eye to a petulant bully. Of course, he has only himself to thank for that, but such is frequently the trajectory of a highly driven personality, when denied the victories, fanfare and spoils they see themselves as deserving.
The Ubuntu project was founded on a "build it and they will come" approach to business. While that may work in the movies, it is a poor business model. In reality, "build it, package it, promote it and support it" are the pillars of success in the commercial world. Having failed to recognize the enormity of that task, Shuttleworth and company led themselves down a garden path, in regard to desktop Linux.
More recently, Canonical has sought to establish a vein of exclusivity in its offerings, at the expense of true Open Source principles. In so doing they have tried to make an end run approach to what Red Hat has done more openly, though recent times have seen suggestions that RH is, now, also taking more liberties with the spirit of "free and open".
Of course, Red Hat took its fair share of abuse when first it abandoned the desktop. Canonical seems headed down the same path, but in a slow, drawn out fashion, guaranteed to prolong the ordeal.