🤖 White Claw Claw Machine, Public Domain 2020, and the Battle for Open Source
The Claw! The claw is our master.
2020 is here! Woohoo! Are you ready for 02-02-2020, 10-15-2020, and all the other fun dates coming up this year? 🤣
What big events will happen this year? What great changes will the world see? Who knows. We don’t know - but we’ll have to wait and see, won’t we?
This is the decade that millennials hit their 30’s, Gen Z storms the work force, most Baby Boomers retire, and we say farewell to the last of the greatest generation. Think about it - this is probably the decade that we bid adieu to the Queen, Pope, Dalai Lama, and all the surviving vets of WWII.
That’s pretty heavy for a Monday morning - but we must never forget - Time marches on, and waits for no man.
Anyway, let’s get to this week’s fun stuff, shall we?
White Claw Claw Machine
There’s a new game out in Wisconsin, and it doesn’t have anything to do with Cheese. A White Claw claw machine (You know, like the Claw in Toy Story, but with alcohol) has been introduced in several bars, and it’s been all the rage.
According to Scott Schaefer, the owner of both Milwaukee watering holes, it’s been a huge success. “White Claw is very hot right now. It’s one of the most popular drinks at pretty much every bar,” Schaefer tells the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. “People love playing it, and it’s been a massive hit.” At only a buck per play, how could it not be? Source
Honestly, I’m not surprised at all. It combines three things that all people love - games, alcohol (one of the most popular ones at the moment), and being cheap. Think about it - it’s only a buck to play. If you spend $7 and get 3 White Claws, you’ve spent less money on the White Claw than you would’ve at the bar.
Worth a try at least? Of course it is. As a Millenial with some money in your pocket, you’re going to do your best to win some “basically free alcohol.” It’s one of the easiest sells I’ve ever seen. People show up for the White Claw machine - but they end up buying food and alcohol at the bar. It’s a unique way to get people in the door - and that’s all that matters, right?
It just goes to show how repurposing old ideas with a viral twist can go a long way! Read the article at the link.
2020 - Public Domain breaks free!
It’s been a long time since anything good has entered the public domain. Why? You can blame Disney, Hollywood, and the infamous Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act of 1998. Well, here we are at 2020 and times are a changing.
You see, it used to be that copyright was only extended for 75 years, then the creative work entered the public domain. Back in 1998, a bunch of celebrities lobbied to make the limit 95 instead of 75 years. That’s why we haven’t seen everything from 1924 break into the Public Domain. We’ve literally waited 20 years for Public Domain to work as it was originally intended. Source
The beauty of public domain is that it allows new generations to build upon the past. Young creators can use old silent films, poetry, and other mediums without getting trouble with copyright holders.
Among the liberated are musical compositions like George Gershwin’s “Rhapsody in Blue,” films like Buster Keaton’s Sherlock, Jr. and books like E.M. Forster’s A Passage to India. Now, anyone—from historians to recording artists to iPhone-savvy middle schoolers—can make these works and more their own with annotations, additions and modifications. They can even profit from them, if they so choose.Source
It’s pretty awesome. You can read more about it below at the Link!
The Battle for Open Source
Similar to the concept of public domain, open source has been incredibly important to the development of the internet. Basically - there are vast amounts of code available online that anyone can use to build whatever they want. Websites like Github serve as as repositories for all this free code.
However - a new ethical question has been brimming to the surface. The code may be open source, but does that mean anyone can use it? Usually the answer to this question is yes - but things seem to be getting complicated.
For example, several thousand Github developers got very upset when they discovered that ICE had a contract with with their company.
Some were troubled by the idea that their code might in some way be used to help agents detain and deport undocumented migrants. But their outrage—and the backlash to it—reveals existential questions about the very nature of open source. Source
According to the official explanation of the definition of Open Source Initiative, a non profit founded in 1998 to promote open source, “Open Source licenses may not discriminate against persons or groups. Giving everyone freedom means giving evil people freedom, too.” Source
In essence, the true meaning of open source truly means - it can be used by anyone - regardless of whether or not we agree with them. Once you start putting “asterisks” around something that is open source - it is no longer truly open source.
Here’s a snippet of what the CEO of Github, Nate Friedman had to say about the controversy.
A world where developers in one country or every country are required to tell us what type of software they are creating would, in our view, undermine the fundamental rights of software developers. Just as Microsoft for more than three decades has licensed Microsoft Word without demanding to know what customers use it to write, we believe it would be wrong for GitHub to demand that software developers tell us what they are using our tools to do. Source
It’s a very important point to consider as tech begins to wade more and more into politics. What do you think? I’d love to hear your thoughts. Here’s a link to a article from the Atlantic that summarizes a bit more of the situation.
The Land of Random
Here we are again, with more crazy links. Yes. I did save the last for best on this issue :)
The Millenium Falcon - Inflatable bouncy house!
Yes. You can buy a inflatable Millenium Falcon bouncy house. The thing is huge. If your kids love Starwars and bouncy houses, I guess you might like this? This was so utterly strange, I simply had to share it - and the link of course.
Build a tiny city - in your browser
This cute little game lets you build a little isometric city in Java. It works best on computers, but might work on your phone. Click on the demo link on this github page to check it out. Heck, you could even fork it to make your own little city game if you wanted to.
Back to Samsung
Remember that Gen Z focused Samsung ad I mentioned a few weeks ago. Well, there are more of them. Here’s another one. It’s so hilarious!
Worst New Year’s Eve Ever
There is a bit of language in this post, and I don’t know if it’s real. However, it’s one of the most unfortunate trips to another country that I’ve ever heard about. Read about the experience at the link. You don’t want to miss this!