Digital Rights Management (DRM)
If, unlinke me, you manage to do something other than read technology news, then you might not know that Digital Rights Management software (and even hardware) is being rapidly crammed down your throat. Besides being insulted by not being informed about this or given a choice, why should you care? David Weinberger (of JOHO the Blog) has an article in Wired on DRM that makes a mighty fine argument. (Link from Doc)
For me, this is also one of the primary reasons I use Free Software alternatives to Microsoft products. Microsoft builds this stuff into its Media Player, its Operating System, and is hoping to get even more control over your computer by building these controls right into the hardware you’ll buy. Black boxes that we cannot understand are not good for technology innovation. We need the freedom to tinker to advance. Besides that, if I buy a piece of hardware it should be mine to do with what I like. I do not need a monopolistic software company telling me where I can go today. I’ll be my own tour guide, thank you.
Intuit (makers of TurboTax) learned how much customers hate DRM the hard way and is dropping DRM from all its software. People didn’t like being spyed on or having their machines slow down so that these draconian controls could hamper honest customers. The simplest way for the average person to take a stand on all such issues is by sending some money to the EFF who always makes it a point to stand up for the public interest on these issues. Educate yourself about these issues, because they’re the ones that’ll really bother you once it’s too late. Or worse, they’ll silently stifle creativity without us being any the wiser.
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