Where was Linus when we needed him?

I don't know Linux creator Linus Torvalds, but I like him. I wish he'd been there when IBM was hunting for an operating system for their PCs. The world would have been a better place because I really believe computers wouldn't suck so much today.

I think television would've been better off if, when color technology was developed, it had been done from scratch, like HDTV. FM would have been better too, if stereo broadcasts didn't have to play to mono sets. Beta was better than VHS, cassette was better than 8-track and grandpa was a lot nicer than dad, but people sometimes tend toward choices that benefit them in the short term.

But I also think people can make new choices if they believe they can make a difference. If we vote with our feet, stop buying products from a bloated company with a bloated bottom line through bloated code -- for a while at least -- maybe the big guys will start looking at our needs as a way to a fair profit.

I'm not for a boycotts, but would it hurt to buy something Open Source this week or this month?

War driving for Skype

You may have noticed that I like VoIP. Probably because I like the idea of paying nothing to call around the world more than I like paying 30 cents or more per minute. In fact, I think I'll be carrying a wifi VoIP handset soon, and you may see me driving around the neighborhood looking for a hotspot during a Qwest DSL outage (and judging from the last month, that'll probably be tonight).

But the minute you introduce the PSTN (Public Switched Telephone Network largely via old copper), you start paying real cash, especially if you're in business. Telecom costs add up fast.

No loyalty for ma bell
If small businesses understand the importance of having broadband and have the willingness to use programs like Skype -- and trust me, they do -- then the telecom trend will move that way even for larger organizations and individuals alike. The phone was a novelty in 1920, as was the fax machine in 1980, and they're both essential to business today. VoIP will be too, but the learning curve is getting a lot sharper.

By the way, I won't be a bit surprised if I'm getting WLAN from Google in the next five years, to enable my VoIP addiction. Perhaps I'll have a Gphone account then too!

Taxing VoIP?

Your friends in the government are suggesting you pay twice into the Universal Access Fund -- the pot that subsidizes rural telecommunications -- by forcing companies like Vonage to pay into the fund, despite the fact that they're already paying those fees to their telco providers.

Look, I get it. I understand that there needs to be reasonable access to telecommunication services in sparsely populated areas, but not on the backs of taxpayers tens states away; ultimately, people choose where they live.

With companies like ExtremeSat, a community, a county or a coop group can provide universal access to broadband and telecommunications services. It may cost a bit more, but isn't that to be expected if you live in the boonies?

Here's an easy answer to the tax: if the FCC wants to tax net phone calls for anyone with a telephone number, then don't have a telephone number. There are plenty of free examples of free VoIP applications that only require both ends to have broadband and a user ID.

Ultimately, I think the free market should be the decider in such cases, not pseudo-authorities like the FCC.

New taxes could slam Net phone users | CNET News.com