This year, we recently partnered with the Digital Freedom Foundation (DFF) to help reignite global enthusiasm for Software Freedom Day (SFD). The DFF reached out to us in May and asked us for our help in reviving SFD, as they’ve been noticing a massive global decline in participation, especially in the US—which had zero participation last year. 

To revive the event, we added SFD & DFF stickers to our global sticker rep program, sending these stickers to Pop!_OS and COSMIC reps around the world to distribute and imploring reps to host and register a local SFD event.

We sent out a press release and even got some great coverage! 

Brodie captured the event and DFF’s goals best.

DFF had around 64 registered events this year! But we hope to continue to see participation grow as the years go on! 

DFF also hosted a graphic design contest for participants worldwide to create original artwork using Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) on the theme of digital autonomy and freedom. You can read more about the contest on the DFF Blog.

The countdown begins! 360 days until the next year, and we’d love your involvement in making it the biggest Software Freedom Day in history!

"This year was an important year for the future of Software Freedom Day! The number of events rose again... from 34 in 2022 to 49 in 2023 and we got up to 63 events this year! The name is starting to ring a bell and for next year, we're aiming higher again. We hope to be able to hand out even nicer prizes (*wink* *wink* System76) and find financial support to distribute swag packs. For that, we'll be needing your support and that of a few dedicated companies," explained Jurgen from the Digital Freedom Foundation.

SOFTWARE FREEDOM CELEBRATION AT SYSTEM76

We had an epic Software Freedom Day at the factory in Denver, CO! A few dozen software freedom supporters made way to System76 over the weekend to share their love and enthusiasm for free software.

While everyone was enjoying some good eats, the event started with a presentation on software freedom and why it’s important for our digital rights. You can find a link to the slide deck here.

Linux Bingo was next. All of our favorite terms in a cozy little box led to an exciting double bingo. The winner, Jeremy, received a Cheers to Pop!_OS kit, complete with Pop!_OS pint glasses, lemonade mix and other poppin’ swag!

Open Source Trivia followed, and bragging rights were awarded to Cory for getting almost every question correct! He walked away with a System76 Timbuk2 laptop bag for his brilliance.

A visit to System76 wouldn’t be complete without a factory tour! Software Freedom is a gateway to hardware freedom, so we showed off our open hardware Thelio desktop and the System76 Launch keyboard assembly process. Then everyone got hands on with the laptops in our QA area.

ABOUT SOFTWARE FREEDOM DAY

Software Freedom Day is a global event, hosted in many countries around the world. The mission is to promote free software and share resources for people to become advocates and users of free software. 

Community efforts play a big role in spreading the word and it would be great to see more events in the U.S. next year! You can find more information on DigitalFreedoms.org.