Richard Stallman talk at UCSD

Pictures/videos from Richard Stallman talk at UCSD

UPDATE (2007-04-13): Richard Stallman's complete talk (recorded by UCSD) is available in Ogg Theora format (148.8 MB). Its total length is 2:15:52. Since Richard Stallman refused to let UCSD post the video unless it was distributed in a format viewable by free software*, I will only be providing the video in Ogg Theora format. For instructions on how to open files in Ogg Theora format, please see the discussion below the points of interest.

Points of interest in the talk:

0:08:56 - Stallman's talk begins
1:38:50 - Q&A session begins
1:39:20 - Q&A: Do you support the Creative Commons license?
1:42:25 - Q&A: Is there some software best left to the commercial world?
1:43:45 - Q&A: Don't some companies need to protect their IP? (particularly ATI and NVIDIA)
1:45:35 - Q&A: Dissecting the term "Intellectual Property": secret information and patents
1:48:15 - Q&A: What is considered hardware? (ASICs, flashable data)
1:48:50 - Q&A: What's wrong with the Tivo?
1:50:10 - Q&A: I really want to use a non-free software package; what's wrong with that?
1:50:45 - Q&A: I'm using a company tool developed internally; is that free software?
1:51:25 - Q&A: Google's web-based apps are non-free; should I be using them?
1:52:30 - Q&A: Caution against storing e-mail on other people's servers
1:54:25 - Q&A: Wouldn't Apple want to hire me more if I worked on FreeBSD (permissive license) instead of Linux (GPL)?
1:57:15 - Q&A: Is the free software world really a democracy?
1:58:10 - Q&A: Isn't the term "free software" misleading for some?
2:00:10 - Q&A: What do you think of recent software patent lawsuits?
2:00:35 - Q&A: Should all art be free?
2:01:00 - Q&A: What format should I use when I release videos of this talk?
2:01:35 - Q&A: Will GPL v2 and v3 be compatible?
2:02:25 - Q&A: Can I use ATI and NVIDIA drivers because Mesa isn't nearly as complete?
2:05:50 - Q&A: Isn't it better to have more free software so fewer developers are needed? (relating to other occupations like farming)
2:07:45 - Conclusion of talk

The following are pictures and videos taken at Richard Stallman's talk at UCSD on February 28, 2007 (abstract). The videos are distributed in QuickTime (my camera's native format) as well as Ogg Theora, which is the format Stallman recommends because it can be viewed with entirely free software*. I suspect Stallman would disagree with providing videos in QuickTime format, but I know that there will be people viewing this page that already have a QuickTime player installed and would be unlikely to watch the videos if they had to install an additional piece of software.

If possible, I would suggest you use the Ogg Theora videos instead of the QuickTime videos because Ogg Theora is a format that can be viewed with entirely free software* and the file sizes are smaller so they will take less time to download.

If you're using a free operating system*, it is quite likely you will be able to play the Ogg Theora videos with software that comes with your operating system. If you're not, you will probably need additional software. I have used the Ogg Codecs for Windows, which let you play Ogg Theora files in Windows Media Player. The Theora web page provides more options for playing Ogg Theora files on a non-free operating system.

A complete audio file of the talk should be available from UCSD in the near future. I will update this page with a link to that when it becomes available.

I apologize for the somewhat blurry videos and quiet audio. If someone would like to re-encode the video with louder audio, I would be happy to post updated video files.

* When I refer to free software here, I am using the FSF's definition of free software. Richard Stallman is the president of the FSF.


Closeup of the UCSD podium	Stallman at the podium	Stallman in line for food with everyone else	Stallman waving excitedly
video (4:43) Ogg Theora (7.0 MB) QuickTime (83.6 MB)	video (3:51) Ogg Theora (6.9 MB) QuickTime (68.4 MB)		video (4:35) Ogg Theora (8.2 MB) QuickTime (81.9 MB)
Introduction and summary of the 4 freedoms	Dilemma of sharing software with a friend: why you should use free software (otherwise social institutions say you're a pirate)		Necessity of freedoms 0 and 1; spyware: Windows, RealPlayer, Tivo
video (0:14) Ogg Theora (0.5 MB) QuickTime (4.3 MB)	video (9:01) Ogg Theora (15.9 MB) QuickTime (160.2 MB)
Medium is the message: Stallman won't let UCSD distribute a video of the talk in RealPlayer format, which is the format they usually use to distribute videos of talks	Need free software to prevent malicious behavior, fix more bugs; added features available to everyone; democratic nature (features grow where users want them); free software prevents malicious behavior	User pleading with proprietary software company: "Please add a new feature!"
video (1:38) Ogg Theora (2.8 MB) QuickTime (28.9 MB)	video (1:29) Ogg Theora (2.8 MB) QuickTime (26.7 MB)	video (1:05) Ogg Theora (2.1 MB) QuickTime (19.3 MB)	video (1:25) Ogg Theora (2.7 MB) QuickTime (25.0 MB)
Free virtual continent; fallacy of reducing freedom; freedom means not having a master	History of Stallman's beginnings in free software in 1983: developing OS software	Obstacle of lots of OS software to write; need to start even when winning is not guaranteed	History of GNU name and pronunciation
video (2:18) Ogg Theora (4.0 MB) QuickTime (41.2 MB)
Unfairness of Linux name (GNU/Linux better); people don't associate GNU/Linux with freedom when it's called Linux; examples of breaches of freedom
video (0:58) Ogg Theora (1.8 MB) QuickTime (17.3 MB)	video (0:44) Ogg Theora (1.3 MB) QuickTime (13.1 MB)
Businesses not sufficiently regulated; problem with free trade; suing of governments allowed with NAFTA	If free software takes over, there will still be software jobs; custom software is huge (and paid)	Saint IGNUcius