On Sat, 10 Nov 2007 14:03:37 -0800, dapunka wrote:
>>> And anyway, why the hell is Microsoft proposing the law change? I'd
>>> have thought voting system law is there to serve the interests of the
>>> voters, not the manufacturers of voting systems.
>>
>> They're proposing the change because they believe that they shouldn't have
>> to be forced to submit to examination of their code just because somebody
>> chooses their software to make a voting machine.
>>
>> I think most people who consider their products to be trade secrets would
>> feel the same way.
>
> They shouldn't be trying to change the law. They should just refuse
> to allow their software to be used for this sensitive job. The voting
> process needs to be transparent. As you pointed out to me, escrow
> doesn't require Microsoft to open their source. If they don't trust
> the escrow process and the independent examiners, they can refuse the
> electoral authority a software license.
Well, that's basically what's happening, since their lobbying was not
effective. NY doesn't have a lot of options though. There aren't any open
source companies stepping up to the plate to provide open source voting
solutions, and all the other solutions are running on MS softwre. That
means either NY has to go back to manual voting or ignore the law.
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