Resistance is Futile: Disney’s Open Source Brainwashing

Interesting link in the comments of the article: http://www.disneyanimation.com/technology/opensource.html

Quoting:Open Source Software has a special meaning for Walt Disney Animation Studios (WDAS). The Studio has a deep history of technological innovation, ranging from pioneering the use of digital methods for creating hand-drawn animation using the Academy Award® winning software, CAPS, to developing 3D painting and rendering techniques in Deep Canvas, also Academy Award® winning software. Through the years, the Studio has continued to innovate in all aspects of creating animated works. As the state of the industry has changed, allowing Open Source Software to become a common foundation for many technologies, WDAS has championed the use of and now contributes to such software. In short, we want to contribute back to the community; therefore, we have established this platform. We encourage you to investigate and use the technologies we are sharing. We also very much welcome your collaboration and contribution in these areas.

smallboxadmin: We actually put an edit at the top of this article to reflect that comment and mention all of the open source projects Disney is a part of.

Let us also not forget how Disney uses KDE in their animation workflow:

https://mindplusplus.wordpress.com/2010/08/23/entertainment-...

But FOSS is bad for everyone else.

It can't be said enough at this point: Hypocrites.

This comment in the sitcom was not about Disney or anyone else having any bias against Open Source software.

It was about the simple minded nature of sitcom writings. Anytime they approach anything too technical they just try to throw words together that have something in common and hope the audience gets the concept: this character is speaking technical mumbo jumbo and knows more than you do so just be impressed.

There's no real hatred or intolerance here.

@2briancox,

You don't watch the Disney Channel much, do you?

Or did I miss the sarcasm?

I doubt this is actually significant.

I've been told that even for shows shows aimed at "geek-y" audiences like the Star Trek franchises the Star Gate/Atlantis franchise, etc, script writers basicly indicate something equivalent to "insert techno-babble here".

It's also an issue in CSI-type shows or hospital/medical drama series -- though apparently in those cases they at least make a small effort to consult actual lab-techs, doctors, and nurses so as not be too egregiously wrong or nonsensical (they don't like it when working professionals talk about how badly they get it wrong -- part of their sell is that it's true-to-life" realistic drama). But story flow, dramatic presentation, director's "vision", and the time/resource constraintson getting the finished product "in the can" on time and on budget of course all take precedence).

- - -

TLDR;

some low-level script assistant doesn't know or care about the difference between open source (aka "free software") and "freeware".

This isn't a story, unless/untill it exemplifies a broader pattern. Till then -- August is "silly season" for journalists, who need light filler to bolster slow news queues, that inattentive summer readerships can swallow in small bites between barbeques, picnics, family vacations and days at the beach.

@2briancox

Clearly, the character in the Disney show should have used Visual Basic (instead of open source software) to create her GUI interface: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hkDD03yeLnU

Yeah, I don't watch Disney. But I watched the clip.