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[ba-ohs-talk] Bootstrap and Licensing


It is past time for me to speak up about "Licensing" and IP in general.  Here 
are what seem to me to be relevant thoughts; if they do not provide adequate 
answers, please quietly and instructively cue me in about what's needed for 
you.    (01)

My general attitude is that emergent capabilities of new and forthcoming 
technologies, among other impacts upon our world, will enable us humans to 
extend our ability to manipulate and portray symbols in remarkably novel ways. 
Way beyond visual print symbols -- e.g. to include special "signal-codes" 
presented to our eyes, ears, noses, taste buds, touch, movement, temperature, 
skin-hair tugs, ... etc.  Here, very complex combinations and sequencing offer 
us new "symbols" and new "symbol structures" providing a huge increase beyond 
current languages in meaningful communications and knowledge.    (02)

For this "IP discussion," it is enough for me here to characterize the 
continued evolution of the augmentation of our Collective IQ as relating 
closely to the evolution of "natural languages."  E.g., the form of English 
which we are using in this forum.    (03)

And, dipping lightly into the object-oriented vernacular, the software for 
manipulating and portraying the symbol structures in our natural language need 
to be as free and open in the evolution and use of their objects and methods as
are the vocabulary terms and syntactic rules of a natural language.    (04)

Also to be considered are the huge number of evolutionary paths ahead of us, 
and the challenge of facilitating the evolutionary processes to find us the 
best paths and for us to become collectively smart enough in the ridiculously 
short time of say the next decade or so to cope with all the other disruptive, 
crippling threats caused by the associated, over-rapid, huge-scale, pervasive 
changes.    (05)

So, to my limited experience, it seems that GPL licensing would be best for 
objects and methods representing the verbs, nouns, modifiers, etc. of the 
Natural Language of our Augmented Future.    (06)

The roads, bridges, traffic laws, intersection rules and controls, parking 
facilities, etc. don't seem to be controlled by private enterprise and 
free-market rules.    (07)

So, I ask, how would each of the current licensing types encourage, curtail, 
stifle, or etc. the evolution of an OHS and the "natural language of the 
future?"    (08)

*****    (09)

And about the constraints on current interchanges: I'm definitely for removing 
them, and we're getting lawyer help in untangling the holdover, initial 
arrangements made with Stanford for the mutual BI-Stanford activities during 
the 10-week Colloqium.    (010)