Ohio LinuxFest 2009
Another Ohio LinuxFest has come and gone and another wonderful time
was had by all. This year I did something a little different. Instead of
attending the more technical sessions, I spent my time in the sessions
on business and legal issues as they relate to
FOSS. Here are
some of the highlights from the sessions I attended.
- Open Source Business 101 For Hackers - This session provided an
overview of the different business models for open source companies
and the pros and cons of each model. I found this very interesting
as a business owner who would like to incorporate open source into
our product and service offerings. - Fedora, OLPC, lessons learned and where we go from here - This
was an interesting review of the
OLPC project and
where they plan on going. - Legalities of FOSS from a Hacker’s Perspective - This session
discussed the legal issues around licensing your code in an open
source project. Discussion included a look at some of the most
popular licenses and how to choose one to fit your project, what it
means to put something into the public domain and some of the
special cases like dual-licensing. From a business standpoint, it is
critical to pick a proper license the first time to avoid problems
down the road. - Building a Community Around Your Project - This was a look at
what to do and what not to do in order to build a community around
your project. - Be A Wonk! Open Source, Government Policy, and You - This was a
look at some of the technical issues like net neutrality that are
being discussed and examined by our government. It also provided
tips on how to get involved at the local, state and federal levels.
Once again the OLF committee put together another fabulous community
event. I really look forward to seeing what they put together for next
year.