Free Software Supporter March

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*Read and share online: <https://www.fsf.org/free-software-supporter/2024/march>*

Welcome to the *Free Software Supporter*, the Free Software
Foundation's (FSF) monthly news digest and action update - being read
by you and 231,420 other activists. That's 686 more than last month!

### Exciting talks, hands-on workshops, and thrilling discussions await you at LibrePlanet 2024 

*From February 26*

Exciting talks, hands-on workshops, and thrilling discussions await
you at LibrePlanet 2024: Cultivating Community. If you haven't
registered already, register now to save your spot!

This year's theme is Cultivating Community and besides our regular
program of free software projects and developments, the schedule is
full of sessions on mobilizing from the grassroots, increasing
diversity in the free software community, facilitating the
participation of volunteers, and encouraging users to contribute to
their favorite projects. If you would like to volunteer at this year's
conference, please send an email to <resources@fsf.org>.

Register now to save your spot!

  *
<https://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/exciting-talks-hands-...>
  * <https://my.fsf.org/civicrm/event/info?reset=1&id=125>
  * <https://my.fsf.org/civicrm/event/info?reset=1&id=126>
  
## TABLE OF CONTENTS
 
 * FOSDEM 2024: Two days on software freedom
 * Free software is not antithetical to commercial success 
 * Celebrate KDE's 6th Megarelease!
 * Dems are at it again, trying to break open black-box algorithms
 * Guix Days 2024 and FOSDEM recap
 * February GNU Emacs news
 * Join the FSF and friends in updating the Free Software Directory
 * LibrePlanet featured resource: Group: FreedSoftware
 * February GNU Spotlight with Amin Bandali: Nineteen new GNU releases!
 * FSF and other free software events
 * Thank GNUs!
 * GNU copyright contributions
 * Translations of the *Free Software Supporter*
 * Take action with the FSF!

View this issue online here: <https://www.fsf.org/free-software-supporter/2024/march>

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Want to read this newsletter translated into another language? Scroll
to the end to read the *Supporter* in French, Spanish, or Portuguese.

### FOSDEM 2024: Two days on software freedom 

*From February 26*

We depend on software as a society. In such a world, software freedom
has to be protected. Free Software Foundation's (FSF) Licensing and
Compliance Manager, Krzysztof Siewicz is sharing his personal account
of FOSDEM 2024.

In this article, Krzysztof reflects on his experience at FOSDEM and
provides context for his talk at the conference, "Fireside Chat on
Further Restrictions, Imposed Downstream on Copyleft, Wreaking Havoc,"
delivered jointly with Bradley M. Kuhn of Software Freedom
Conservancy.

  * <https://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/fosdem-2024-two-days-...>
  *
<https://video.fosdem.org/2024/ua2220/fosdem-2024-3704-fir...>
  
### Free software is not antithetical to commercial success

*From February 12*

A common misunderstanding regarding the concept of free software, or a
question you might see tossed around by people on the internet in
different chat rooms, forums, and whatnot, comes from the
misconception that the "free" in "free software" means free as in
"free beer," i.e. gratis.

In this article, Gabriel Cezarin Popovici, intern with the Free
Software Foundation's (FSF) campaigns team, explains why developing
free software and earning money do not have to exclude each other.

  * <https://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/free-software-is-not-...>
  
### Celebrate KDE's 6th Megarelease!

*From February 28 by Joseph P. De Veaugh-Geiss*

KDE's 6th Megarelease took place on February 28, 2024, though there is
no need to celebrate the same day. Celebrations are happening all over
Europe and online, so use KDE's wiki to coordinate and find an event
in your area.

  * <https://community.kde.org/Promo/Events/Parties/KDE_6th_Me...>
  
### Dems are at it again, trying to break open black-box algorithms

*From February 16 by Thomas Claburn*

Democratic lawmakers once again have proposed legislation to ensure
that the software source code used for criminal investigations can be
examined and is subject to standardized testing by the government.

On February 15, House Representatives Mark Takano (D-CA) and Dwight
Evans (D-PA) reintroduced the Justice in Forensic Algorithms Act of
2024, a draft law that forbids using trade secret claims from barring
defense attorneys from reviewing source code relevant to criminal
cases and establishes a federal testing regime for forensic software.

Given that proprietary software can be used to put an alleged criminal
away for life, it is imperative that these programs be free software
to ensure a fair trial.

  * <https://www.theregister.com/2024/02/16/black_box_government/>
  
### Guix Days 2024 and FOSDEM recap

*From February 10 by Steve George*

Guix contributors and users got together in Brussels to explore Guix's
status, chat about new ideas and spend some time together enjoying
Belgian beer! This article contains a recap of what was discussed,
including Spritely Goblins, Hoot, Guix Home, and more!

  * <https://guix.gnu.org/blog/2024/guix-days-2024-recap/>

### February GNU Emacs news

*From February 26 by Sacha Chua*

In these issues: Tips on Embark and Repeat-mode, user-shared
configurations, the System Crafter's Absolute Beginner's Guide to
Emacs, tips for structuring an init.el, and more!

  * [2024-02-26](https://sachachua.com/blog/2024/02/2024-02-26-emacs-news/)
  * [2024-02-19](https://sachachua.com/blog/2024/02/2024-02-19-emacs-news/)
  * [2024-02-12](https://sachachua.com/blog/2024/02/2024-02-12-emacs-news/)
  * [2024-02-05](https://sachachua.com/blog/2024/02/2024-02-05-emacs-news/)

### Join the FSF and friends in updating the Free Software Directory

Tens of thousands of people visit directory.fsf.org each month to
discover free software. Each entry in the Directory contains a wealth
of useful information, from basic category and descriptions to version
control, IRC channels, documentation, and licensing. The Free Software
Directory has been a great resource to software users over the past
decade, but it needs your help staying up-to-date with new and
exciting free software projects.

To help, join our weekly IRC meetings on Fridays. Meetings take place
in the #fsf channel on Libera.Chat, and usually include a handful of
regulars as well as newcomers. Libera.Chat is accessible from any IRC
client -- Everyone's welcome!

The next meeting is Friday, March 8 from 12:00 to 15:00 EST (17:00 to
20:00 UTC). Details here:

  * <https://directory.fsf.org/wiki/Main_Page>

### LibrePlanet featured resource: Group: FreedSoftware

Every month on [the LibrePlanet
wiki](https://libreplanet.org/wiki/Main_Page), we highlight one
resource that is interesting and useful -- often one that could use
your help.

For this month, we are highlighting the "FreedSoftware" wiki group,
which contains information on the GNU Free Software Distribution
Guidelines (FSDG), the current list of free GNU/Linux distros, and
areas where help is still needed.

  * <https://libreplanet.org/wiki/Group:FreedSoftware>

Do you have a suggestion for next month's featured resource? Let us
know at <campaigns@fsf.org>.

### February GNU Spotlight with Amin Bandali: Nineteen new GNU releases!

Nineteen new GNU releases in the last month (as of February 29, 2024):

* [anastasis-0.4.1](https://www.gnu.org/software/anastasis/)
* [binutils-2.42](https://www.gnu.org/software/binutils/)
* [ed-1.20.1](https://www.gnu.org/software/ed/)
* [gama-2.29](https://www.gnu.org/software/gama/)
* [gettext-0.22.5](https://www.gnu.org/software/gettext/)
* [glibc-2.39](https://www.gnu.org/software/libc/)
* [gnuastro-0.22](https://www.gnu.org/software/gnuastro/)
* [gnubg-1.08.002](https://www.gnu.org/software/gnubg/)
* [libmicrohttpd-1.0.1](https://www.gnu.org/software/libmicrohttpd/)
* [libredwg-0.13.3](https://www.gnu.org/software/libredwg/)
* [libunistring-1.2](https://www.gnu.org/software/libunistring/)
* [lightning-2.2.3](https://www.gnu.org/software/lightning/)
* [mygnuhealth-2.0.1](https://www.gnu.org/software/health/)
* [parallel-20240222](https://www.gnu.org/software/parallel/)
* [r-4.3.3](https://www.gnu.org/software/r/)
* [scm-5f4](https://www.gnu.org/software/scm/)
* [slib-3c1](https://www.gnu.org/software/slib/)
* [unifont-15.1.05](https://www.gnu.org/software/unifont/)
* [units-2.23](https://www.gnu.org/software/units/)

For a full list with descriptions, please see:
<https://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/february-gnu-spotligh...>

For announcements of most new GNU releases, subscribe to the info-gnu
mailing list: <https://lists.gnu.org/mailman/listinfo/info-gnu>.

To download: nearly all GNU software is available most reliably from
<https://ftp.gnu.org/gnu/>.  Optionally, you may find faster download
speeds at a mirror located geographically closer to you by choosing
from the list of mirrors published at
<https://www.gnu.org/prep/ftp.html>, or you may use
<https://ftpmirror.gnu.org/> to be automatically redirected to a
(hopefully) nearby and up-to-date mirror.

This month, we welcome Anton McClure as new maintainer of gnutrition.

A number of GNU packages, as well as the GNU operating system as a
whole, are looking for maintainers and other assistance.  Please see
<https://www.gnu.org/server/takeaction.html#unmaint> if you'd like to
help.  The general page on how to help GNU is at
<https://www.gnu.org/help/help.html>.

If you have a working or partly working program that you'd like
to offer to the GNU project as a GNU package, see
<https://www.gnu.org/help/evaluation.html>.

As always, please feel free to write to me, <bandali@gnu.org>,
with any GNUish questions or suggestions for future installments.

### FSF and other free software events

* March 14-17, 2024, Pasadena, CA, [SCALE](https://www.socallinuxexpo.org/scale/21x/)
* March, 15-17, 2024, National Institute Of Technology, Calicut,
[FOSSMeet'24](https://www.fossmeet.net/)  
* April 12-13, 2024, Austin, TX, [TXLF](https://2024.texaslinuxfest.org/)  
* April 16-18, 2024, Seattle, WA,
[OSSNA](https://events.linuxfoundation.org/open-source-summit-nor...) 
* May 4-5, 2024, Wentworth Institute of Technology, Boston, MA, [LibrePlanet
2024](https://libreplanet.org/2024/)  
* June 7-9, 2024, Sheraton Charlotte Airport, Charlotte, NC,
[SELF](https://southeastlinuxfest.org/)  
* July 12-14, 2024, St. John's University, Queens, New York City, [HOPE XV](https://hope.net/)

### Thank GNUs!

We appreciate everyone who donates to the Free Software Foundation,
and we'd like to give special recognition to the folks who have
donated $500 or more in the last month.

  * <https://www.gnu.org/thankgnus/2024supporters.html>

This month, a big Thank GNU to:

* David Bruce
* James Wilson
* Jason Compton
* Ramana Kumar
* Stefan Antun
* Valerio Poggi 

You can add your name to this list by donating at
<https://donate.fsf.org/>.

### GNU copyright contributions

Assigning your copyright to the Free Software Foundation helps us
defend the GNU GPL and keep software free. The following individuals
have assigned their copyright to the FSF (and allowed public
appreciation) in the past month:

* Thomas Allen (GNU Emacs)
* Barra Ó Catháin (GNU Emacs)
* Kouhei Akiyama (GNU Emacs)
* Bruno Fernando Alexandre Boal (GNU Emacs)
* Hank Greenburg (GNU Emacs)
* Noé Lopez (GNU Emacs) 

Want to see your name on this list? Contribute to GNU and assign your
copyright to the FSF.

* <https://www.gnu.org/server/takeaction.html#dev>

### Translations of the *Free Software Supporter*

El *Free Software Supporter* está disponible en español. Para ver la
versión en español haz click aquí:
<https://www.fsf.org/free-software-supporter/2024/marzo>

**Para cambiar las preferencias de usuario y recibir los próximos
  números del *Supporter* en español, haz click aquí:**

<https://my.fsf.org/civicrm/profile/create?reset=1&gid...>

Le *Free Software Supporter* est disponible en français. Pour voir la
version française cliquez ici:
<https://www.fsf.org/free-software-supporter/2024/mars>

**Pour modifier vos préférences et recevoir les prochaines
  publications du *Supporter* en français, cliquez ici:**

<https://my.fsf.org/civicrm/profile/create?reset=1&gid...>

O *Free Software Supporter* está disponível em português. Para ver a
versão em português, clique aqui: <https://www.fsf.org/free-software-supporter/2024/marco>

**Para alterar as preferências do usuário e receber as próximas
  edições do *Supporter* em português, clique aqui:**

<https://my.fsf.org/civicrm/profile/create?reset=1&gid...>

### Take action with the FSF!

Contributions from thousands of individual associate members enable
the FSF's work. You can contribute by joining at
<https://my.fsf.org/join>. If you're already a member, you can help
refer new members (and earn some rewards) by adding a line with your
member number to your email signature like:

> I'm an FSF member -- Help us support software freedom!
> <https://my.fsf.org/join>

The FSF is always looking for
[volunteers](https://www.fsf.org/volunteer). From rabble-rousing to
hacking, from issue coordination to envelope stuffing -- there's
something here for everybody to do. Also, head over to our [campaigns
section](https://www.fsf.org/campaigns) and [take action on software
patents](https://endsoftwarepatents.org/), [Digital Restrictions
Management](https://www.defectivebydesign.org/), [free
software](https://libreplanet.org/wiki/Group:Freedom_Ladder) adoption,
[OpenDocument](https://www.fsf.org/campaigns/opendocument/download),
and more.

**Do you read and write Portuguese and English?** The FSF is looking
for translators for the *Free Software Supporter*. Please send an
email to <campaigns@fsf.org> with your interest and a list of your
experience and qualifications.

***

Copyright © 2024 Free Software Foundation, Inc.

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0
Unported License. To view a copy of this license, visit
<https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/>.

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