Freedom For the Cloud: How We Learn to Control the Cloud and Live Happy

The Free/Libre Open Source movement has built the Internet as we know it: from the domain name server, and up to the application frameworks that power Google, Amazon or Facebook. There are free/open source components available for building and deploying cloud-based applications and services. From the Franklin Street Statement of the Autonomo.us group to the Open Cloud Manifesto, the debate is mounting for how to bring freedom to users of cloud based apps and services.

A major issue is being able to access data and content, anywhere, anytime, e.g. when you are on your desktop system, the web or a mobile. There are proprietary services and solutions that allow you to keep everything in sync and access this content, but only if you are in their freedom-depriving environment.

This BoF will serve as introduction to the debate over the concept of software freedom to cloud based applications and services. OSCON attendants will learn what tools are available for the free software community to replicate the success of free desktop system and of the free Internet into the wider concept of ‘cloud’ and how the keys to the success of GNU/Linux can be replicated in this evolved scenario.