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The power of the tech community

One of the really great things about the internet is that it has enabled the creation of powerful networks of tech-savvy people.

Back in the late 1970s, I recall that if you wanted to network with other people who were tinkering with these new-fangled microcomputer systems you'd have to jump on your bike and ride across town to visit them or attend a group meeting.

That assumes you even knew there were others who were sharing your interest/passion.

So many of us operated in isolation, simply because we were totally unaware that the guy across the street was also getting to grips with the complexities of writing software and building hardware.

Today however, it's a trivial process to find and stay in touch with like-minded people right across the face of the globe.

Thanks to this ease of communication, we've also see the rise in community-created software, usually released under one of the many open-source copyright licenses.

Perhaps the most high-profile of these open-source software systems is Linux, an OS that rivals or exceeds even Microsoft and Apple's best proprietary offerings -- for free!

The cornerstone of open-source software are those software licenses, most of which are designed to ensure that anyone who downloads and modifies the software is obliged to also share that code for free.

This is essential because without such protection, it becomes very tempting for commercial entities to simply grab a piece of open-source software, modify it or integrate it into their own systems and then charge customers for it. Clearly it would be patently unfair for any company to profit so much from the efforts of those who have created the base code for free.

Recently however, one company has tried to do exactly that, and worse.

Bambu Lab, a Chinese company, has developed some of the most useful and easy to use 3D printers on the market today. To reduce their own costs, they took a piece of open source software (the Orca slicer) and modified it for use with their own proprietary hardware. As per the AGPL license under which Orca is made available, Bambu Lab has been making its modified code available to the community.

So what's the problem?

Well recently Bambu Lab decided to modify the way its version of the software works across a network connection.

Critics of the changes allege that this allows Bambu Lab unprecidented ability to monitor a user's printing activities and effectively provides them with an "off switch" whereby they could disable such functionality at any moment -- perhaps even switching to a subscription model to boost revenues and profits.

To get around this, a developer from Poland decided to take the code that Bambu Lab had published under the terms of the AGLP and "fix" it so that full control was restored to the owners of these printers.

This upset Bambu Lab who demanded that he remove his modified code from the internet or face legal action under provisions of the DMCA that prohibit the circumvention of access control technologies.

The problem is that, under the AGPL, this developer is fully entited to modify and distribute the code, including the changes that Bambu Lab had made. By using the Orca Slicer code as the basis for their own offering, they effectively agreed to the terms of the AGPL and are not legally allowed to change those terms and conditions unilaterally.

Bambu aren't threatening to sue for breach of copyright however, they're threatening to file charges that this developer has circumvented an access protection mechanism that they have added to the code. Such a prosecution could result in significant penalties for the developer, if upheld in the courts. Legal opinion, from *real* lawyers operating in the tech-space is that this is very much a mis-use of that piece of law.

However, what Bambu Lab didn't count on is the strength of the open source and tech-savvy community.

As soon as this situation was made public, some of the leaders of the tech community began to step up to the plate in defense of this developer and the whole concept of the AGPL.

Louis Rossmann, a long-time advocate for the right to repair and consumer rights in the tech world immediately pledged US$10,000 to fund the legal defense of this developer if he agreed not to pull his code from the internet as Bambu had demanded.

Still afraid of the costs and legal implications however, the developer did pull his code, so then Louis Rossmann uploaded it to his own website and challenged Bambu to sue him.

Within a very short period of time, over 1,600 other people had also downloaded the code from Louis's website and posted on their own sites. This included the very popular Gamers Nexus YouTube channel who are also strong advocates for consumer rights in the tech space.

In something similar to the Streisand Effect, Bambu have well and truly shot themselves in the foot. Instead of one lone developer hosting a fork of their code that restored control to the owners of these printers, now there are probably upwards of 2,000 such instances of this code floating around on the internet from where printer owners can download and install it.

Even worse for Bambu Labs, some other high-profile figureheads in the tech-space have come out and said that they no longer recommend Bambu Lab printers and will not be buying them.

Owch!

How to go from being the darling of the 3D printer world to a villain in one easy step!

In a ridiculous attempt to divert the flak, Bambu has come out claiming that to allow the distribution of this new fork would open its users up to security vulnerabilities and risks of being hacked.

The community is not buying it.

I'm hoping that this particular situation sends a very strong message to other companies that might be tempted to either violate the AGPL or to update their systems in an attempt to move existing functionality (bought and paid for when you purchased the devices) beind a subscription paywall after the fact.

I haven't included many links in this colum because I know that Aardvark readers have powerful GoogleFu capabilities but it's well worth doing your own research on this and marvel at the power of community in today's modern tech world

Carpe Diem folks!

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