But my main question is, should I turn this sort of thing into a YouTube channel?
Sort of a "Linux and Open-Source for noobs" thing. I really want to spread the message because I truly believe in the power of Linux and Open-Source software and prefer this ideology.
Some basic topics that I would cover:
What is Open-Source software?
Why Open-Source software?
What is the Linux Kernel?
Linux in the wild
And I'd even appreciate some topic suggestions!
I've got a basic camera setup (720p video DSLR) and some basic video editing skills.
And I know this is a longshot, but hell, I would love to produce some basic Linux content for Level1Techs!
Wow, glad to know that there's an audience for this sort of thing. Basically, my goal is to eliminate, or at least minimize, the gaps that there are between the technologically savvy and the technologically illiterate.
I found I learned the most about how a computer functions by delving into linux and since the beginning up to today, I've noticed a huge difference in how happy I am to use a computer and how much I prefer Linux even simply for the ideology.
I'll be honest, up until now I was nervous and a little bit reluctant to start a YouTube channel for this, but if any of the feedback I've gathered (of course I've posted this elsewhere) is any indication, it's a good idea.
I've come up with a few names for the project but one I think I'm going to settle with is Linux Liaison.
I want to start with the absolute basics of Linux and Open-Source and I think that describing exactly what Open-Source Software is and the differences that separate it from Commercial or Closed-Source software are. If there's anything you guys think I should focus on are, I'd be happy to hear any suggestions.
Before I begin, please don't try to take the stuff below as arbitrary criticism, I'm trying to give you feedback that I would want if I were in your shoes :D, I've wanted to do similar things in the past, but with a face for radio and an voice for a mime, I'm kind of stuck trying to help people, and on occassion doing live talks.
Lofty goal, definitely a good goal to have, but may be come up with some shorter term goals that you'll be able to meet/exceed in a short time!
Well you could always continue giving live talks to colleagues, schools, universities, the public at large. YouTube isn't the be all and end all anymore, and a lot of technologically illiterate people may not feel comfortable using YouTube to learn linux. Not trying to dissuade you, more trying to get you thinking about things so that you can develop a proper target audience.
Please spell liaison correctly though :)
Don't forget to also talk about the distinction between FOSS and OSS as the OSS community also has factions :)
Great tip, I think for me especially. I tend to be "achievement oriented" so keeping this in mind will keep me interested and feeling like I'm making some sort of progress.
I won't stop doing that and of course I'll be trying to get booked for schools, universities. One of the points of making a YouTube channel is to have some sort of clout other than this one speech. The speech in the video that I gave was for a single 'Toastmasters' club. I'll have to reach out and refine this speech by talking at other clubs.
Secondly, the YouTube channel would also be a sort of test bed to see what works and what doesn't. Gives me the opportunity to practice while getting feedback (hopefully not just from YouTube).
Oops... Thanks for pointing that out ;)
I hadn't thought of that. What sorts of OSS isn't F that you know of? Most of the Open Source projects I know are free and if they aren't, it's because part of the package is hosted on a server for a client to hook into.
I hate to be the Stallman quoting guy (I don't necessarily agree with everything he says) but there is a good article here. Basically we aren't talking cost free but instead freedom as in being able to do what you like with software.
When you install ubuntu for example it will ask you if you want to add non-free software, some of which may be proprietary closed source, but the rest is covered by patents (like MP3 libraries) or strict licenses over use.
Courts all over the world have pretty much adopted the point of view that software patents are not reconcilable with modern democratic legal systems.
Closed source software is still tolerated because it serves the unlawful/undocumented purposes of the surveillance community, but it's actually just a private initiative to circumvent the legal standards, not just in terms of patent laws, but also in terms of consumer protection laws, privacy laws, financial penal codes (pyramid/ponzi schemes), transparency laws, human rights, copyright laws, etc... closed source software is a really bad disease that has to be eradicated, it supports a world wide maffia of people with very bad intentions and full of lies.
Stallmann has nothing to do with it, he's just a very bright guy with not much other options to make a living then to kick everyone where it hurts, it's like the Donald Trump of software, but then he's a very bright guy, seriously, but he just doesn't get along with things he can't program himself, like other people for instance lol. I generally don't agree with RMS a lot, not a big fan, but it's undeniable that closed source software still existing, is rather strange considering the fact that software patents are not accepted any more by the collective legal consciousness.
OSS: means the source code is visible and open to see for everyone, it does not mean that the software has a GPL license, permitting the use and modification by everyone, nor that it is actually free software (as in free beer, gratis)
FOSS: means the same, but also free as in free beer, it can be used without paying license fees. This does not mean that the software is not license-encumbered, it may not have a GPL license. The problem with free but not libre open source licenses (e.g. the MIT license model, e.g. used by BSD, by Google Chromium and Android, by Canonical for their Mir display server and Unity DE, etc...) is twofold: the code can be stolen and turned into closed source software, for instance that's what BeOS/MacOS/OSX/iOS did with FreeBSD, thus creating a situation whereby a corporation can take advantage of years of development from open source developers without giving anything back to the community, or creating a situation whereby closed source commercial software is released for use on open source platforms, without inheriting any open source license model, which severally inhibits quality and innovation.
FLOSS: free and libre open source software is the real deal, it means that the code is gratis and has one of the GPL license models, meaning everyone can use it, improve it, extend it, etc... the main property of GPL licensed software is that all software that is derived from GPL licensed code, inherits that GPL license, and thus can't be closed. This is violated by companies all the time, e.g. the firmwares of IoT devices like TV sets or personal cloud-type storage devices (Drobo, WD, etc...), but technology catches up with those abuses all the time, either through obsolescence (because in order to maintain GPL licensed code you actually need the full force of the open source developer community, it can't be successfully maintained by any commercial outfit, not even IBM or Microsoft or Samsung are rich and powerful enough on their own to successfully maintain even a limited open source based project without turning to the world wide open source developer community), or through feature paralysis, because open source software just does not go obsolete as such as long as there is a single user left, and companies find it hard to sell new products in such circumstances without turning to programmed hardware obsolescence, which causes larger RMA numbers and is not economically viable.
@SolitaryOwlet your speech was good. The one thing i felt it didn't get as much to the point was the freedom aspect. I release not everyone cares about the freedom side of it and its difficult to get across in a couple of minutes, but the side effect of software generally being free in price was never the main goal of free software. Sometimes the cost side is pushed first but I think this is sometimes detrimental in the long run. We should be giving money and resources to free software if we have the ability to do so. Otherwise it may not exist.
I completely agree with you. The audience was completely new to Linux in general and I had to reduce jargon for the speech. Of course as you mentioned, if I had more time, I would have most certainly included more on the freedom side of things.
I'm slowly preparing an hour long speech that delves into the finer details of collaborative software development, the various licenses that exist, the various concepts that exist and incorporating some of this speech in it.
It is unfortunate that the cost side is pushed first but that's mainly because well, money makes the world go 'round. I will put into the full presentation that while the software itself is free as in free beer, free will only get software so far. When someone is working full time on solving a problem in technology, a lot more work gets done and is more consistently qualitative than someone who just takes spare time to work on said problem.
Thanks so much for the explanation @Zoltan. It's a lot more clear to me the difference between FOSS and FLOSS. FOSS seems like a bad way to go (I think MEGA did something like FOSS recently).
I'm really glad that the Unity DE hasn't been forked and closed source (at least not popularly) by some other corporation.
Also, I knew that Apple was evil. I truly am disgusted by every single thing they do, it's a wonder that they've got so much brand loyalty.
I thought your video was good. As for the youtube channel, I would go for it, there is limited content on youtube compaired to windows. Plenty of Linux distro reviews out there. I would do the basic stuff like wifi and compatability of hardware, how to update bios, that kind of stuff. Good luck what ever you decide to do.
Thanks so much for paying attention and watching my video!
I agree that there's limited content and this is part of why I'm using YouTube rather than something like SoundCloud or some other audio podcast format.
I'm currently working on the outline first video I'll be making (What is Open-Source Software?).
Thinking of doing a "screencast" format with my narration as I flip through content on my screen.
So I’ve finally got around to creating that is some sort of content but it turns out I used SoundCloud in the end and made a podcast.
I called it “Yet Another Tech Podcast” and while right now, I’ve focused on general Tech topics, my stuff seems to go towards the side of privacy and security.
I’ve yet to upload the whole thing on my own blog, but the majority of the episodes are on SoundCloud
If you’re interested in checking out what I’ve got and providing feedback for a budding entertainer, I’d love to hear back from anyone in this thread.
You are doing great work and please continue with those podcasts. I have been looking for something that does linux and opensource education; provided in small bits. More than that, I would love to see the website and blog up and running. This could just be me, but I would love to see a blog post or article on your website about each podcast you do. I would be fine with even just the script from the podcast.
I don’t just want to take, I want to give back too