Recently, a computer science student at the University of Illinois did some class homework and posted the answers to GitHub, the code-sharing platform widely used by open-source software developers. And the university was peeved.
Last week, using a DMCA takedown notice, the standard way to request removal of copyrighted material from the net, the university tried to force GitHub into vanishing the coursework from its service. After criticism from students, the school has rescinded the notice, but the incident goes a long way towards describing how the software world has changed in recent years.
In short, the world’s developers are moving towards a model of open collaboration. And though that works well for them, it clashes with the way the world of programming traditionally operated—as embodied by the University of Illinois.
Jonathan Becker on 06 Oct 14"Three types of courses make up the CopyrightX Community: - a residential course on Copyright Law, taught by Prof. William Fisher to approximately 100 Harvard Law School students; - an online course divided into sections of 25 students, each section taught by a Harvard Teaching Fellow; - a set of affiliated courses based in countries other than the United States, each taught by an expert in copyright law."
