Kurt's Manifesto

From Taclug

Every evil genius needs a manifesto. I've had one simmering in my head for quite some time now.

The way I see it, open source software is just a step in the evolution of technology. It has now reached maturity. The next logical step is opening the designs of the hardware that OSS runs on. I personally don't care for the term open source hardware (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open_source_hardware) – I prefer the term open design hardware – but it is the generally accepted term, so I'll begrudgingly use it.

I think OSH can extend the capabilities of OSS, and vice versa. Furthermore, the two together could put powerful technology in the hands of people to whom it would be otherwise inaccessible.

One aspect of my design philosophy that I have found to be somewhat unique is my belief that functionality should be taken out of the hardware as much as possible and put in the software. Software is a lot easier to mass produce than hardware. This can simplify hardware design and make it less expensive, easier to manufacture, less cumbersome, etc. Of course, you could use the winmodem (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Winmodem) as a glaring example of how this philosophy can go wrong, but if every aspect of the design is open I believe the benefits would neutralize the drawbacks.

More to come...