saluti,
aniello
------- Messaggio inoltrato -------
> Da: Brenno J.S.A.A.F. de Winter, WGASA <brenno@???>
> Rispondi-a: smallsister@???
> A: smallsister@???
> Oggetto: [Smallsister] Small Sister Mail - Alpha Version available
> Data: Mon, 24 Nov 2008 01:06:22 +0100
>
> Dear all,
>
> Finally out of Small Sister Central. We have a alpha release of our
> software available. But this the time I explain some more on what
> happened over the last couple of months. So that you understand.
>
> A few month ago I launched the plan for the application and got little
> feedback. Also only few people felt like programming at that point. We
> were clearly missing a starting point and that was a problem. I think
> everybody on this list sees the importance, so that wasn't the problem.
> At such a point you have two options: quit or persist. People who know
> me, I'm not fond of quitting. So I went out and searched for ways
> achieving away to launch a tool. That solution was found.
>
> I contacted NLNET, a Dutch foundation that helps initiatives that
> improve the internet, for a subsidy. In the past they – among other
> things – sponsored the realization of the GPLv3 and this year their main
> focus is privacy. So I pitched my plan and had to do some rewrites. The
> consequence is that I had to turn silent in order not to disturb the
> process. Ultimately the foundation granted a massive eur. 25,000 (VAT
> included) or approx $31,500. Maybe that isn't much for an ICT-project
> that is done by governments, but for us it is an amount to get the ball
> rolling. One of the conditions is that we choose an open source
> license, which is – obviously – the GPLv3.
>
> The programmer is Peter Roozemaal, a bright, privacy-aware, result
> focussed open source guy. He's working very hard to have a good demo
> ready during CCC in December. That is very important place to get more
> support from the community that we are looking for. As many of you know,
> making noise is an important part of the project. I know that in the
> community some people are very negative towards paid for development.
> But please remember that Peter is doing donating hard time and he is
> paid far less than normal and then still only charges part of his
> devoted time. The same goes for me. The money is a survival tool for the
> project. I hope people can accept that reality and still support the
> project.
>
> So what are we building? This alpha is a very first step towards a
> solution that probably will undergo some changes based on your
> testing/feedback. It's an data retention resistant e-mail-like solution
> to begin with. The server runs behind a hidden Tor-service, so you must
> know where you need to find the mailserver. This has two advantages:
> it's doable to build and it makes e-mail distributed so several
> communities of users can grow. So it's obscure what what data doing
> where. All messages are GPG-crypted in order to prevent abuse on the
> server and increase security if the traffic is compromised.
>
> Now some of you will probably determine that this is not totally
> distributed and still relying on central servers. That is so true, but
> making this is the first step something more holistic (to use a terrible
> word). In December there will be a graphical interface and then we have
> a solution that undermines data retention and protects free speech.
> Meanwhile I'm in the process of making that journalist start using it
> and the first results are looking good.
>
> This alpha is not done by far. So far it runs on Linux (Ubuntu tested).
> Mac and Windows are still in need for help with testing. Please test!!
>
> At this point you can create a mailbox, send a message and retrieve it
> again. So what do you need to do to test and play with the software?
> - Download the zip or tar.gz files from
> http://smallsister.org/tiki-list_file_gallery.php
> or get your source from the git repository at
> http://smallsister.org/git/SmallMail.git
>
> - Verify that you have python, gpg, gpgme and pyme installed
> - Read the README and INSTALL files for further instructions.
>
> What can you do to help further? Well: you could try and find bugs,
> write improvements (please be in touch to avoid disappointment), make it
> work on Windows and Mac. Give feedback. Become active on the list with
> new ideas that make the tool better or add value to privacy in general.
>
> Of course this is not the only thing I'm working on. In another mail
> I'll brief you on that really soon. This should be enough to start the
> brand new week properly.
>
> Cheers,
>
>
> Brenno
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> Smallsister mailing list
> Smallsister@???
> http://dewinter.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/smallsister
