[libreplanet-discuss] Cost of Freedom

[hellekin]

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After an intense book sprint of 5 days in Provence, the book Cost of
Freedom was released today in PDF and EPUB, under the CC0 license, in
support of Syrian developer and free culture activist Bassel Khartabil,
imprisoned since March 15th, 2012 in Syria.

Last month the prison where he was was bombed and Bassel was transfered
somewhere else, but there's no register as to where he is located now.
That prompted his friends and family, of the http://freebassel.org/
campaign, to organize this book sprint.

You can now read the book at http://costoffreedom.cc/ and join the
mailing-list to discuss it: mailto:book-subscribe@costoffreedom.cc.

A book sprint is a short and intense event where people gather to write
a book from scratch.  This method, inspired by the UnConference, was
created by Adam Hyde of FLOSSManuals.org fame.  Adam couldn't make it to
the book sprint, but he contributed remotely.  Normally a book sprint
only takes local contributions, which is already a big work.  This time
we decided to accept remote contributions, and received 44 of them from
across the globe.

I highly recommend this method for writing technical documentation.
Maybe it could inspire people to run "wiki sprints" and bring new
contents to the LibrePlanet wiki.  LP local teams could run "translation
sprints" and expand the availability of existing contents to their
respective language groups.  The process is a great motivator to write,
and to learn how to collaborate.  I would insist on the quality of food,
and a nice environment: our group had the chance to include many people
who like to cook and this helped make lunch and dinner a privileged
moment, where people could bind and relax.

The book itself, despite its imperfections, is surprisingly
well-structured and coherent as a whole.  The variety of contribution
styles and points of view make it a more interesting read than I would
have expected last week, before we even got started.  I hope you enjoy
it, and that it can bring new perspectives on important questions facing
free culture.

==
hk

P.S.: the authors can be reached at people@costoffreedom.cc
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