[In French, En español ]
What is it?
The Free Software Certification Project's two main objectives are:
- to elaborate a series of standards and programs for four types of certification:
- The certification of products (which do not require non-free software to operate fully)
- The certification of services (for which the offer is entirely based on free software)
- The certification of organizational practices (when their computer equipments contain only free software)
- The certification of IT professionals (when they know how to differentiate free from non-free software)
- to set up a not-for-profit international agency, whose mission will be to emit those certificates (through national/regional branches).
Certification would allow the free software movement to take its place next to the other world ethical movements which are well known to the general public (fair trade, biological food, energy efficiency etc)
For more details on the subject, read the essay Ethical Certification and Free Software.
How does it work?
An organization, let's say a company making a smartphone, that would be interested in obtaining a certification could formulate a request before a local authority. If that organization's product were to pass the evaluation, it would then receive a certificate and be authorized to display a logo, symbol of its compliance to the ethics of free software.
Who is concerned?
Everyone, but the project will be of particular interest to the IT professionals and the service and product companies participating in the free software community.
Why?
Is certification applicable to the case of free software? We believe so. Free software is itself defined according to criteria which are essentially ethical and the developers who chose to distribute their code under a free software license, do something very analogous, for example, to what a coffee or sugar producer does when he distributes his production through fair trade networks.
We believe that free software certification could be useful to society in general and to the community of free software professionals in particular.
Through certification, we wish to:
- promote the development of 100% free software products and services
- promote the deployment of 100% free information systems
- increase the visibility of organizations that made the choice of free software and are the living proof that it is both feasible and viable
- encourage the participation of non-programmers to the free software community by helping citizens to make the deliberate choice of free software when they exercise their role as consumers
What is the plan?
- Set up a team to work on the project (still opened)
- Put a project Web page on line (done)
- Create a public mailing list (done)
- Submit a press release to announce the opening of a period of study and enquiry on the implications of realizing the project (Sept. 2007) (done)
- Opening of the study and enquiry period to determine the nature of the standards and the certification processes (2008)
- Collect all suggestions, propositions and comments from people interested in the initiative
- Meet or simply communicate with resource persons to benefit from their competence and their particular experiences
- Prepare a report to recommend a certification scheme and a process to emit the certificates (2008)
- Set up an international umbrella organization and coordinate the establishment of national/regional branches
- Deliver the first certificates
How to participate?
- To keep up with the project's developments and to make public your opinion, subscribe to our mailing list
- You speak/write English and Spanish? We would like to collaborate with you! Write to mathieu.g.p(|AT|)videontron.ca