Manifesto Of The People
Linux Format|May 2017

Jonni Bidwell’s political views have probably gotten him on all kinds of lists. Now, after meeting James Smith, he’s convinced open democracy is the way forward.

James Smith
Manifesto Of The People

James Smith is Head of Labs at the Open Data Institute. Like many in the UK, James (@floppy on Twitter) was frustrated at the state of UK politics. Unlike many though, he took his software wrangling skills and used them to make a stand, starting his own political party, Something New. He stood for election in 2010, and while this was unsuccessful he has continued to develop the idea of an open source party manifesto, central to the syncretic vision of Something New. We met him after his talk at OSCON Europe to discuss his experience. You can read his call to action “It’s Time to Step Up” at https://floppy.org.uk/blog/2013/07/05/ its-time-to-step-up.

Linux Format: Before braving the lion’s den that is politics, you were a software engineer, what sort of stuff did you work on?

James Smith: I still am a software engineer – I  haven’t fallen entirely to the dark side just yet – but yes, I worked on all sorts: biometrics, flight simulation for a while, more recently web based  stuff. I spent a few years working on climate  change type startups and then more recently  working on open data –getting more  accountability and transparency information  out there. Always trying to make the world a  better place.

LXF: What was your introduction to open source?

Denne historien er fra May 2017-utgaven av Linux Format.

Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.

Denne historien er fra May 2017-utgaven av Linux Format.

Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.

FLERE HISTORIER FRA LINUX FORMATSe alt
Create your first WebSocket service
Linux Format

Create your first WebSocket service

Mihalis Tsoukalos explains how to use the Go programming language to work with the WebSocket protocol.

time-read
9 mins  |
April 2023
Fantastic Mr Firefox
Linux Format

Fantastic Mr Firefox

Nick Peers takes a trip down memory lane to reveal the story behind the rise - and slight fall - of Mozilla's popular web browser.

time-read
9 mins  |
April 2023
Set up your terminal and email like it's 1983
Linux Format

Set up your terminal and email like it's 1983

Jump in the hot terminal time machine with Mats Tage Axelsson who emails from the command line using the latest technology.

time-read
8 mins  |
April 2023
Universal layer text effects with GIMP
Linux Format

Universal layer text effects with GIMP

Posters use them, films and presentations are hard to imagine without them: text effects. Attract attention with Karsten Günther and GIMP.

time-read
8 mins  |
April 2023
Jump to a federated social network
Linux Format

Jump to a federated social network

Nick Peers reveals how you can get up and running with this free, decentralised and non-profit alternative to Twitter.

time-read
9 mins  |
April 2023
Free our SOFTWARE!
Linux Format

Free our SOFTWARE!

Taking anything for granted is dangerous, so Jonni Bidwell and Mike Saunders revisit how the free software movement got started to help free us from proprietary tyranny!

time-read
4 mins  |
April 2023
Master RPI.GPIO
Linux Format

Master RPI.GPIO

Les Pounder goes back to the early days of the Raspberry Pi - and his career with this classic library! -

time-read
5 mins  |
April 2023
Waveshare Zero to Pi3
Linux Format

Waveshare Zero to Pi3

Transform your Pi Zero into a Pi 3, they promised Les Pounder, but it's more like adding on go-faster stripes.

time-read
2 mins  |
April 2023
The Best OPEN SOURCE Software Ever!
Linux Format

The Best OPEN SOURCE Software Ever!

In an attempt to trigger controversy, Michael Reed and Neil Mohr unequivocally state these are the greatest free software apps ever. Probably. We’re just trying to be helpful.

time-read
10+ mins  |
April 2023
Linux-Mandrake 7
Linux Format

Linux-Mandrake 7

Simplicity and a wide range of applications make this a great distribution for all Linux users.

time-read
2 mins  |
April 2023