We've previously supported the work of the folks at Raptor Engineering. This time, rather than a crowdfunding effort, we are asking you to support their work by pre-ordering the Talos II. The system comes in a variety of forms to meet your needs, from a workstation to rack-mounted to the board by itself. Raptor Engineering has put in a great deal of effort researching and prototyping this system, and now it is ready for prime time. The Talos II is great for any hacker who needs a powerful machine, perfect for developing even more free software.

The Talos II is the first system to support PCIe 4.0, which offers lower power consumption and higher performance. To pair with this increased performance, the Talos II comes with plenty of slots for DDR4 RAM, so you can order (or add later) as much as you need. Of course, we can't forget about the 4-core IBM Power9 CPU. You can even go with more than one for extra processing power. By pre-ordering a Talos II, you could be one of the first users to own a Power9-based system.

Why is that such a big deal? The unfortunate reality is that x86 computers come encumbered with built-in low-level backdoors like the Intel Management Engine, as well as proprietary boot firmware. This means that users can't gain full control over their computers, even if they install a free operating system. Developers are working hard to fix these issues and getting closer every day, but for the time being, this is why many current Respects Your Freedom (RYF) offerings are refurbished older devices. For the future of free computing, we need to build and support systems that do not come with such malware pre-installed, and the Power9-based Talos II promises to be a great example of just such a system. Devices like this are the future of computing that Respects Your Freedom.

That is Raptor Engineering's ultimate goal as well, to create a machine that can pass RYF certification. They've already been working with us on the details, and things are looking good. We'll have to do another evaluation once it is actually produced to be sure it meets our certification standards, but we have high hopes. Here is what you can do to help:

• Pre-order a Talos II by September 15th.

• Support our work on the RYF certification program, to help get more devices made that run free software by design, by becoming an associate member or making a donation.

Every week free software activists from around the world come together in #fsf on irc.freenode.org to help improve the Free Software Directory. This recaps the work we accomplished at the Friday, September 1st, 2017 meeting.

Last week we had a "Back to School" theme, focusing on educational entries. Many of the entries in the category were relatively up to date, with almost all having been at least reviewed by last year's meeting with the same theme. It may not be as exciting as adding new entries to the Directory, but this work is just as critical for ensuring that the entries we do have remain current and useful.

We also had a discussion about how to prevent people from choosing licenses that restrict commercial use. Such licenses are non-free, but there is a common misconception that non-commercial licenses are a good thing, like a nonprofit. It couldn't be further from the truth. Such licenses mean that even nonprofit groups can't use the work for things like fundraising, and no one can use the work if they only use freely licensed works. Lots more work needs to be done in this area in terms of educating people about non-commercial licenses.

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).

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!

September 8th marks the anniversary of the 1966 debut of Star Trek, introducing the world to the U.S.S. Enterprise and its intrepid crew of explorers. The universe created by this series is still expanding today, and this fictional universe has even bridged the gap to non-fiction, providing the name for the first NASA orbital shuttle, as well as numerous asteroids. To honor this well-loved cultural touchstone, the theme of the Directory this week will be physics, those fundamental laws that make worlds spin.

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!

This week we return to school, with a focus on educational software. With many kids heading off to class, we want to make sure they have all the free software tools they need to succeed. We'll be looking to update and add new software useful for students and educators.

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.