LibrePlanet 2017 — Free Software and Hacking Culture

Mar 25, 2017 - ⧖ 2 min
🗒️

🎤 "Free Software and Hacking: Two Movements, One Philosophy"
A presentation at LibrePlanet 2017 about the deep connections between
the Free Software movement and authentic hacker culture.

🗣️ About the Talk

At LibrePlanet 2017, I had the honor of speaking about the natural alignment between Free Software principles and the hacker ethos. Both movements share core values:

  • Freedom to explore, modify, and share
  • Collaboration over competition
  • Knowledge should be accessible to all
  • Ethics guide our technical choices

The talk explores how hackers have been natural advocates for software freedom since the beginning, and why the Free Software movement is essentially the formalization of hacker values into a coherent philosophy and legal framework.

📺 Watch the Talk

Direct link to video: Watch on Kolektiva Media

📄 Resources

Speaker Profile

Read my official speaker profile from the FSF:
👉 Meet the LibrePlanet 2017 Speakers: Christian Fernandez

Presentation Slides

Download the presentation slides:
📊 LibrePlanet 2017 Slides (PDF)

🔑 Key Takeaways

  1. Hacking is about freedom — The ability to understand, modify, and improve systems is fundamental to both movements
  2. Code is speech — Free Software licenses protect our ability to express ideas through code
  3. Community matters — Both hackers and Free Software advocates thrive through collaboration
  4. Ethics over profit — Making ethical choices about technology, even when it's not the easiest path

🌐 About LibrePlanet

LibrePlanet is the Free Software Foundation's annual conference bringing together software developers, policy experts, activists, and computer users to learn about and discuss issues related to software freedom. The 2017 edition focused on the theme of "Roots, Radicals, Reason" — examining the foundations of the movement and its future directions.

💭 Reflection

Looking back at this talk from 2017, the message remains more relevant than ever. As technology becomes increasingly centralized and proprietary, the need for Free Software and hacker ethics grows stronger. We must continue to advocate for:

  • User freedom and control
  • Transparency in technology
  • The right to repair and modify
  • Digital sovereignty

The struggle for software freedom is the struggle for human freedom in the digital age.

"Hacking is not a crime, and Free Software is not just about code — it's about freedom."

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-- ReK2