Freedom toaster

[RaymondQE]

The Shuttleworth foundation has set up cd burning vending machines in S. Africa that allows a user to burn Linux install cds. All a user needs are blank cds.

http://www.freedomtoaster.org/

A very neat idea, which I hope catches on to other places with limited telecommunications facilities.

[TravisNewman]

brilliant!!!

[matthew]

That is fabulous! I would love to see that spread to other countries as well.

[TravisNewman]

every college, high school, and library on the planet needs one.

[benplaut]

i can see it now...

someone burns a disk, leaves the disk in, and unplugs it

they replug it in, and it's running Hoary Live :grin:

[Kvark]

Wow! That's one of the smartest and most stunning ideas in a long time!

Hope it spreads, large parts of the world needs that.

I can almost picture it in my mind, someone walking up to a row of vending machines...
ahh, coca cola... eww, tobacco... mmm, candy... huh, freedom???

[Madpilot]

ahh, coca cola... eww, tobacco... mmm, candy... huh, freedom???

You can't beat the real thing. (probably TM)

:grin:

[mike998]

It's slashdotted.
Bugger...
I guess I'll check it out later.

[GeneralZod]

Grrr....damn you, slashdot! I was just wondering it the CD contained the recent security patches, as those for the kernel and, say, KDE alone would be quite large for a dial-up user.

[kostkon]

Yeah, it has been slashdotted. I tried to visit the site and it's down :(
I'll try again tomorrow...

Damn you slashdot :mad:!

Nevertheless, the idea is crazy good! I like it very much. I hope to see the vending machines in schools, colleges all over the world, I hope to see them become a fashionable must-have accessory... Then Linux will conquer the world...

[lotusleaf]

bump

Too bad places like Starbucks and Wal-Mart don't have these so the 'common' folk could pick up the ubuntu vibe.

[xequence]

Wow, that is what I call inovation. Not what microsoft calls inovation, but REAL inovation ;)

And it gives people even more freedom. Not just ubuntu, but mandriva, fedora, debian, and 10 other distros :P I wonder what kind of hard drive is in that? To have all 14 debian CDs, plus a whole plethora (is that a word? I think so. It means variaty I think. Cool ;)) of other software and distros.

EDIT: Yes, plethora is a word =O
http://linux.slashdot.org/

They asked readers why they switched to Linux and received a plethora of answers

I told you. You didnt belive me, but I knew it.

[BWF89]

This is such a great idea.

The next thing they could do to improve upon the Freedom Toaster is build in a printer so that you can print up guides on how to do simple tasks like setting up networks or installing packages.

[newbie2]

Freedom Toaster
Rebekah Kendal
Fri, 17 Aug 2007

Frustrated by the exorbitant cost of computer software and the painfully slow (not to mention expensive) bandwidth in South Africa?

Fear not, for the Shuttleworth Foundation's Freedom Toaster is coming to your rescue.

Conceptualised by Jason Hudson — the Technical Project Manager for the Shuttleworth Foundation — the Freedom Toasters are open source software 'vending machines'. More importantly, the merchandise is free.

The self-contained 'bring and burn' facilities, which can be found in 16 major cities/towns around South Africa, are preloaded to dispense free digital products. These products range from Linux operating systems to open source software and free literature, photography or music.

Software for the masses

Mark Shuttleworth — the man behind the Shuttleworth Foundation and the Ubuntu Linux operating system — had the following to say about the necessity for and benefits of the Freedom Toaster:

"One challenge in developing countries is that free software is generally distributed online, and in those countries the bandwidth is often expensive or non-existence (sic) so free software does not reach those communities that most stand to benefit from it."

"The Freedom Toaster is a way of making free software (and in fact many forms of content) available in these places."

'Open source' software refers to software which has been built by a global community of programmers who believe that software should be freely available. The software available on the Freedom Toasters can be legally copied and redistributed for free.

In fact, that is entirely the point.

There are no restrictions and you are encouraged to make as many copies as you please. Taking the notion of free information a step further, the foundation encourages the more intrepid computer fundi to make their own Freedom Toaster — the instructions are freely available on the site. There is also the possibility of uploading free content/software onto existing Freedom Toasters for others to share.

The Shuttleworth Foundation has suggested that the Freedom Toasters could potentially be used to distribute important information for awareness campaigns (HIV, TB, polio etc) as well as skills-based, self-help training programmes in the fields of health, agriculture and environmental sustainability.

And the strange moniker? The Linux term for burning a CD is 'toasting' and the software/content is free, hence the name: Freedom Toaster.

Quick, simple and free

So, how do you go about getting your hands on some of this free software?

Simple. Check out the Freedom Toaster site to find a Freedom Toaster near you. Insert a writable CD/DVD into the Freedom Toasters' CD/DVD drive and select the product you would like to duplicate.

The Freedom Toaster has a touchscreen LCD interface which provides useful and objective information about each of the available products as well as useful tips such as the number of CD/DVDs you will need to copy the product.

The Freedom Toasters offer four CD/DVD writer devices which enable you to write more than one CD/DVD at a time, making the process quick and simple.

Products available on Freedom Toasters

The Freedom Toasters offer a number of Linux operating systems as well as software which is compatible with both Linux and Windows and other content based products.

Here is a selection of some of the products offered by Freedom Toasters.

Ubuntu Install and Live CDs
Ubuntu is an open source Linux operating system, launched by Mark Shuttleworth in 2004, which is based on the successful Debian distribution. It is relatively easy to install and use and comes with a range of open source software, such as OpenOffice.org, Firefox, and Thunderbird.

Take note that Ubuntu's default installation wipes your computer clean of existing software or operating system (e.g. Windows). So, if you are uncertain about whether or not you wish to install it, opt for the Live CD first which, although slower, will run off the CD without installing it and interfering with your existing software, giving you the opportunity to take Ubuntu for a trial run first.

Debian
Nicknamed the 'Universal Operating System', Debian is a stable and advanced Linux distribution, which includes thousands of open source software titles.

Mandriva Linux
Mandriva, which is available in a wide range of languages, is based on the Red Hat Linux distribution and is known for its comprehensive range of open source applications and programming tools which are included with the distribution.

Edubuntu
Edubuntu is a Linux distribution customised for use in the learning environment. It is easy to install and configure and is currently used in the Shuttleworth tuXlabs project for schools.

Firemonger
Firemonger contains the open source Firefox web browser and the Thunderbird mail client. Easy to use, it comes with beginner's guides.

OpenCD
OpenCD is a collection of open source applications for Windows. Using OpenCd, Windows users can obtain top open source applications without switching over to Linux.

OpenOffice.org
OpenOffice.org, the most popular open source office suite, is compatible with both Windows and Linux. The CD will allow you to install OpenOffice.org regardless of which operating system you use.

Gutenberg CD and DVD
Gutenberg, with 17 000 titles, is the oldest publisher of free electronic books on the internet. The CD/DVD gives users easy access to ebooks from any genre, which can be read on the computer or printed out.

For more available products or Freedom Toaster locations, check out the website at www.freedomtoaster.org.
http://cooltech.iafrica.com/features/420662.htm
:popcorn:

[@trophy]

I can just see the derivatives...

One that visits questionable websites to download your pr0n so you don't have to! Your web history will be pure as the driven snow when you use the pr0n-toaster!

Or how about that one that the kool doodz haxx0r3d to make it serve warez? Long live the w00t-toaster!!!

LOL The possibilities are endless.