This is the first in a regular series of short posts highlighting open source / free software / free culture projects that I feel are deserving of your support and / or cash. With these kinds of projects many people seem to think that code, documentation or other time and skill based contributions are all that is needed. While these things are certainly one of the biggest components of such projects it’s often forgotten that they need cash too. With this in mind I thought maybe I can help, even just a tiny bit, by highlighting a different individual project on a regular basis. This series is hereby named (in a somewhat tongue-in-cheek manner) Splash Your Cash!
So, first up is Creative Commons.
I chose Creative Commons for the first feature because they help such a wide range of people - musicians, writers, poets, bloggers, coders - anyone that creates content of any kind. And let’s not forget the users / consumers of CC licensed products. I’ve no doubt that without the existence of Creative Commons there would be far fewer freely available products out there.
What is Creative Commons?
To quote from their website - “Creative Commons is a nonprofit corporation dedicated to making it easier for people to share and build upon the work of others, consistent with the rules of copyright.
We provide free licenses and other legal tools to mark creative work with the freedom the creator wants it to carry, so others can share, remix, use commercially, or any combination thereof.”
I’m a big supporter of their work and have recently switched all of my own websites over to a CC license. In todays age of DRM madness they are a breath of fresh air. I can’t help but support the sharing attitude that I think helps makes the internet a better place to be.
How can you give your support?
The various ways in which you can support Creative Commons are detailed here. Following the link will take you to a page listing all the different ways you can give your support or make a cash donation.
If you opt to ’splash your cash’ you may also be eligible to become a CC network member which, amongst other things, will give you a nice profile page like mine which details all the works you have licensed under CC and also gives you a CC domain OpenID. An annual network membership costs $50 or $25 for students. An absolute bargain!
And there ends my first Splash Your Cash post.
If you have any suggestions for future projects you’d like me to feature here (must be open source / free software / free culture related) you’re welcome to send them my way. I’m particularly interested in hearing about smaller projects - I do love the underdogs! You can pass on your suggestions by leaving a comment below or sending me an email using the contact page.
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