[Discuss] Open Source Lab, with forward by Alicia Gibb
LoadTest
prodigyresources at gmail.com
Mon Nov 18 00:44:12 UTC 2013
Thanks Matt. FYI If you try downloading it from Scribd it will say its not
available for download. But if you click print, a popup will come up that
says "scribd documents don't print well, try downloading and then
printing"" and provides a link that downloads successfully.
On Sunday, November 17, 2013 9:10:06 AM UTC-7, Matt Maier wrote:
>
> Dr. Pearce is putting out a book about how to create a science lab with
> open source hardware.
> http://www.mtu.edu/news/stories/2013/november/story99310.html
>
> This is the forward by Alicia Gibb:
>
> "At the heart of open-source hardware is the freedom of information. We
> are inherently free to open our devices as we wish and poke around. There
> are no laws inhibiting a consumer to unscrew their household items and take
> the lid off—though it most likely voids the warranty. But the freedom to
> repair, freedom to study, and freedom to understand needs to be accompanied
> with a freedom of accessible information: schematics, diagrams, code, and
> in short source files. Open-source hardware includes the previous freedoms
> and also grants the freedom to remix, remanufacture and resell an item,
> provided that the hardware remains open source. History points to a
> multitude of repair manuals from cars to washing machines; patterns to
> follow from model airplanes to dresses; and recipes shared through friends
> and families for generations. Historically DIY (Do-It-Yourself) was not a
> fad but a way of life. Access to information coupled with a basic knowledge
> of tinkering has given consumers the power to fix more, waste less, and
> understand the physical world around them. But technologies are becoming
> more opaque, as their size gets smaller, making them more difficult to open
> and tinker. Historically, an important factor for understanding the
> physical world was that items were built on a human scale.Human scale is
> the one that humans can relate to and can visibly see with the naked eye.
> The scale of most objects previous to computing has been on the human
> scale. Items in our daily lives now include minuscule chip sets and tiny
> form factors that require schematics and code to diagnose, repair,or even
> understand. Perhaps no one understands this better than researchers
> themselves. With closed source and patented devices, there is no
> requirement to include source files so that people may understand the
> hardware. In many cases, steps are taken to obfuscate information from the
> consumer. In addition to documentation, many new inventions require special
> equipment and tools, such as laser cutters, PCR machines for DNA
> sequencing, environmental chambers and other lab equipment described in
> Pearce’s work. These tools are beginning to see open source versions so
> that consumers may build their own, often at a lower cost. Even more
> standard tools, such as tractors and CNC machines are being open sourced so
> that others may have the benefit of access to these basic tools. If history
> has favored open source, why are we entering a new movement of open-source
> hardware? Patents have become problematic to innovation. Basic building
> blocks of new technologies are being closed off with patents, causing
> further innovation to become increasingly expensive or halt altogether.
> While patenting the building blocks of technology may benefit one company,
> it fails to advance society. Today Intellectual Property can be sold as a
> good. The idea is the commodity rather than the physical object itself.
> Selling ideas rather than goods does not create a sustainable market for
> the common consumer. Patents were created to incentivize inventors and spur
> innovation in exchange for 20 years of exclusive rights in the form of a
> monopoly. The patentee had to submit a prototype and disclose how their
> innovation was created to the public. But the rules on patents have changed
> over time and there are many schools of thought that the patent system is
> broken and no longer reflects the reasons why the patent system was created
> in the first place. In today’s patent system, prototypes are no longer
> required, money made from patents is going to lawyers rather than the
> inventor, and a 20 years monopoly is not a rational time frame for the pace
> of technology in the digital era. Inventors are finding different
> incentives to innovate. The barriers and frustrations the patent system,
> has created are turning inventors toward a new alternative to patents:
> open-source hardware. Open-source hardware creates products driven by
> capitalism rather than monopolies, an open environment for sharing
> information, and a powerful opportunity for companies and individuals to
> learn from each other. Open-source hardware is a growing movement with a
> lucrative business model. It has spread into many areas of innovation, as
> Pearce has done with his work in scientific hardware, others do in
> electronics, mechanical designs, space programs, farm equipment, fashion,
> and materials science to name a few. We are at a crucial point in the
> history of technology which will determine if we hoard information or share
> it with others; sell information or sell goods; educate with open
> documentation or let everyone reinvent the wheel for themselves."
>
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