Google Data Liberation Group Seeks To Unlock Data

Several sources are reporting that The Data Liberation Front, a new engineering group within Google, is trying make it easier for users to move their data in and out of Google products. They have already "liberated" about half of Google's offerings (including Blogger and Gmail) and have plans to liberate Google Sites and Google Docs in the near future. "In a blog post this morning, Data Liberation engineering manager Brian Fitzpatrick, uses a good analogy to explain why the company sees this is an important step: 'Imagine you want to move out of your apartment. When you ask your landlord about the terms of your previous lease, he says that you are free to leave at any time; however, you cannot take all of your things with you - not your photos, your keepsakes, or your clothing. If you're like most people, a restriction like this may cause you to rethink moving altogether. Not only is this a bad situation for you as the tenant, but it's also detrimental to the housing industry as a whole, which no longer has incentive to build better apartments at all. Although this may seem like a strange analogy, this pretty accurately describes the situation my team, Google's Data Liberation Front, is working hard to combat from an engineering perspective.'"

So...

[Drunken Buddhist]

So the idea is that making it easier to leave google makes you more likely to stay with google?

I need to try this on my girlfriend!

Do No Evil?

[Anonymous Coward]

This is an even-numbered, "Do No Evil" week.

Watch out next week though.

The Life of Google

[Anonymous Coward]

Guy 1: Are you with the Data Liberation Front?
Guy 2: No, we're with the Liberation Front for Data!
Guy 1: Oh, well at least you aren't with the Front for Data Liberation!

Re:Bad analogy

[Yvan256]

No way dude, they wouldn't do something evil like that. I really take my stuff and they keep the low-quality copy!

OMG

[sonicmerlin]

I am SO sick of Google. They are giving every corporation a bad name by being so unevil.

Re:So...

[Philip K Dickhead]

This is Slashdot. The appropriate version of this plattitude goes:"The more you tighten your grip, Tarkin, the more star systems will slip through your fingers".

At the suggestive notion of Princess Leia, and the salacious interpretation of "Slip through your fingers", many of the regular posters will now compulsively grasp their crotch, as the OggTheora of "Slave Leia's Supplication" is summoned from Portable VNC on the USB key, once again...

hippies

[ArhcAngel]

Damn capitalist hippies!

It's getting where an evil mega-corp can't make a bazillion bucks anymore.

Re:So...

[m.ducharme]

Must....not....fap....

Re:Bad analogy

[0xdeadbeef]

Dude, did you know the government puts fluoride in the drinking water? It's true!

Re:The Life of Google

[Anonymous Coward]

SPLITTERS!

so, aside from free search, email, blogging, maps, docs, apps - what has Google ever done for us?

Re:The Anti-AOL

[imunfair]

AOL is actually free now, but back when they charged it was more of a feature than a problem that they wanted to retain customers. As long as you were willing to call them every month or two you could obtain completely free service. Sign up for a trial and when it was about to expire just call and say you wanted to cancel - they would usually help you find an excuse to extend your trial by a month or two more. Once the extension was nearly up - call again. As far as I could tell you could do that forever - I tried it for about a year.

Story bonus: They also had little surveys you could fill out for discounts off your subscription fee ... but if you were on a trial account they would actually mail you a check for the amount you 'earned'. It was only a few dollars but I found it amusing to get paid to have an AOL account.

Re:So...

[Anonymous Coward]

Ask Sting: "... If you love somebody, set her free... "

Names

[dazjorz]

Google More Obvious Name Group Seeks To Make Names More Obvious

Re:So...

[jdgeorge]

Hmmm.... my mind goes back to a girl I left long years ago, who told me, "I, for one, welcome my new, liberating overlord."

Gah! Meme conflict... or... hey....

Re:So...

[bitt3n]

You should. If you are not jealous and trust her, she'll feel more "free" in the relationship and stay with you. On the other hand, if you keep watching her and always remind her that she's yours, she'll get away.

this is one of those situations where either solution will work, just don't use half measures. It's either "complete freedom" or "manacled in a half-mile deep concrete bunker somewhere in a remote region of desert in New Mexico." Mutual respect and devotion, or such abject desolation as sucks out the will to live, leaving a mere husk of a living thing groveling at one's feet for death. Every relationship is different, and romance is always about surprises, so don't hesitate to go with your instincts.