Every week free software activists from around the world come together in #fsf on irc.freenode.org to help improve the Free Software Directory. We had an exciting month working the Directory with our wonderful stable of volunteers. These folks show up week in and week out to improve the Directory. It's also important to note the valiant efforts of those volunteers who can't make an appearance at the meeting, proper but still plug away at Directory entries during the week. With all these efforts, we are looking towards 16,000 entries.

We split our time this month between new entries and two theme days. The November 10 meeting focused on evolution in a myriad of forms. We also had an interesting discussion about the terms of service of Ancestry.com's DNA analysis. We also talked some about how free software has evolved over the years.

The following week we delved into Human Interface Devices (HID). While adding entries, attendees discussed some of alternate forms of HIDs, and agreed on a favorite, the one-handed keyboard.

Finally, we closed out the month with a meeting focused on new entries -- this meeting was slower than most since it fell on an American holiday.

If you would like to help update the directory, meet with us every Friday in #fsf on irc.freenode.org from 12 p.m. to 3 p.m. EDT (16:00 to 19:00 UTC).

Give a current or potential free software supporter a Free Software Foundation (FSF) Associate Membership today, and your support of the FSF will be doubled!

Thanks to the generosity of the Frâncu family, the impact of all new memberships between now and December 9th will be matched, up to $10,000. Giving a membership now will count double, and you'll also help us reach our goal of 700 new members, powering up our work for 2018!

By donating an FSF membership, you'll be helping a nonprofit that's earned Charity Navigator's highest rating in fiscal responsibility and transparency, and you'll also be helping to defend and promote computer user rights -- human rights. You will get the warm fuzzy feeling that comes from knowing your gift will be working to build a stronger community, and your gift recipient will be able to enjoy a number of cool benefits: an ultra-slim USB membership card, the opportunity to take advantage of the FSF member email-forwarding service, free attendance at the annual LibrePlanet conference, a 20 percent discount on FSF merchandise, a 5 percent discount on ThinkPenguin hardware, a print copy of the FSF's biannual Bulletin, discounts on training classes and eligibility for LibreOffice certification, an fsf/member IRC cloak on Freenode, an FSF button for their Web site, use of an XMPP (Jabber) service, and Digital Credit Union eligibility.

Giving a membership as a gift is easy: make a donation of $60 for a student membership or $120 for an Associate Membership, or any larger amount you wish, then email us at membership@fsf.org with the gift membership recipient's:

• name,
• email address, and
• mailing address (provide this if you would like us to mail the membership welcome packet directly to them, including the membership gift).

From now until December 31st, 2017, for Associate Memberships of $120 or more, you can also select our newest Four Freedoms t-shirt for the recipient of the membership (be sure to let us know their size)!

We will then let them know that the gift is coming from you, inform them of the benefits that come with being a member, and create their membership account.

If you wish to give the recipient the welcome packet yourself, and save the surprise for later, please just let us know.

The FSF receives very little funding from corporations, so donations from individuals like you truly power our work. Your gift will help us start 2018 off with a bang! As of this writing, we need 618 more members to reach 700. Hope you can help us get there!

We will mail gift membership packets from Boston, Massachusetts, USA, on a rolling basis.

We create resources like the Ethical Tech Giving Guide because software freedom is necessary to people's freedom. Will you power up the free software movement by supporting the FSF today? Our annual fundraiser is happening right now, and we want to welcome 700 new members and raise $450,000 before December 31st. As a special bonus, all new and renewing Annual Associate Members ($120+) can choose to receive our new Four Freedoms t-shirt! Become a member or make a donation today.

With the holidays, Black Friday, and Cyber Monday on the horizon, we know that a lot of you are on the lookout for cool tech gifts to thrill your loved ones. However, we also know that you don't want to trap them with proprietary software and insidious technologies like Digital Restrictions Management (DRM).

Thankfully, we at the Free Software Foundation (FSF) research the best user freedom-respecting products available. We're excited to share these with you in the 2017 Ethical Technology Giving Guide.

Over the past year, the number of Respects Your Freedom certified products increased dramatically. We saw renewed enthusiasm for creating DRM-free art, games, and media. We read great books, tried out new toys, and found even more things to share in the Guide than before.

This year's Giving Guide includes mobile phones, laptops, desktops, wireless accessories, books, games, music, movies, and a list of nonprofit charities who are working hard to protect your rights online, in digital spaces, and in your devices. Sellers are offering discounts for users of the Guide and FSF members.

If you're looking for something a bit more lo-fi, you can head over to the GNU Press Shop. We've got a brand new scarf and hat set to keep you warm this winter, and plenty of tees to keep you stylish through this summer (if you're in the Southern Hemisphere). As always, FSF members get a 20% discount at the GNU Press Shop.

When you're buying gifts this year, please remember that we're not just trying to protect ourselves from spyware, surveillance, and other threats brought on by proprietary software. This encroachment of our rights as users doesn't just affect us. It's not enough to choose to not buy Google Home or Amazon Alexa for ourselves -- we need to help keep these proprietary technologies out of the homes of our families, friends, and loved ones. We can do this by educating them about threats and helping them make better choices -- and to give you a hand, we've included talking points with each Giving Guide item to explain why the proprietary alternative is a bad buy.

Share the Guide with your friends and use it yourself! While we understand if you want to keep your gifts a surprise, we hope you'll consider sharing how the Guide directed your choices this year on social media, or by emailing us at the FSF.

Happy holidays and happy hacking!

Participate in supporting the Directory by adding new entries and updating existing ones. We will be on IRC in the #fsf channel on irc.freenode.org.

Tens of thousands of people visit directory.fsf.org each month to discover free software. Each entry in the Directory contains a wealth of useful information, from basic category and descriptions, to providing detailed info about version control, IRC channels, documentation, and licensing info that has been carefully checked by FSF staff and trained volunteers.

While the Directory has been and continues to be a great resource to the world for over a decade now, it has the potential to be a resource of even greater value. But it needs your help!

This week we're back to work on adding new entries to the Directory. The backlog of unapproved packages continues to dwindle, but we want to get it all the way down to zero, and keep adding more. Each new package helps to make the Directory a better resource for finding any sort of software that you may need. The Directory is one of our most visited resources, so keeping it growing ensures there's lots for all those users to see.

If you are eager to help, and you can't wait or are simply unable to make it onto IRC on Friday, our participation guide will provide you with all the information you need to get started on helping the Directory today! There are also weekly Directory Meeting pages that everyone is welcome to contribute to before, during, and after each meeting.

Participate in supporting the Directory by adding new entries and updating existing ones. We will be on IRC in the #fsf channel on irc.freenode.org.

Tens of thousands of people visit directory.fsf.org each month to discover free software. Each entry in the Directory contains a wealth of useful information, from basic category and descriptions, to providing detailed info about version control, IRC channels, documentation, and licensing info that has been carefully checked by FSF staff and trained volunteers.

While the Directory has been and continues to be a great resource to the world for over a decade now, it has the potential to be a resource of even greater value. But it needs your help!

It was 47 years ago on November 17th that Douglas Engelbart received the first patent on the computer mouse. This advent in the realm of human interface devices (HID) would open the world of computers to many new people. To this day though, a battle rages in terms of the mouse's general use: the classic battle of window managers between the mouse-less Awesome and mouse-centric Mutter. This week, the Directory theme for entries is mice as input devices, and we will be discussing HIDs in general.

If you are eager to help, and you can't wait or are simply unable to make it onto IRC on Friday, our participation guide will provide you with all the information you need to get started on helping the Directory today! There are also weekly Directory Meeting pages that everyone is welcome to contribute to before, during, and after each meeting.