Jared, the ubuntu one file sharing client software that this post is discussing *is* free software just like the rest of the software that is included in Ubuntu (modulo the well known exceptions for some binary video card drivers etc), so it’s inaccurate to say that you have to rely on Canonical to do the bugfixing. The code is here: https://code.launchpad.net/ubuntuone-client . It’s true that some of the server code is not released as open source, but the traffic shaping being discussed in this article is all implemented on the client side.

I can tell you that if Ubuntu One doesn’t turn out to be compelling for the users, then it will have truly been a waste of time and effort, so I hope we don’t fail that badly at making some features that end up being generally useful

The problem is, though, we have to depend on Canonical to do all the bugfixing, because unlike Launchpad and Ubuntu itself, Ubuntu One is not Free / Open-Source. And it’s good to see that they have this commitment to making it good right now, but where’s our assurance that it will always be this way? I get the feeling that Ubuntu One is less about us, the users, and more about Canonical.

I’m all for making money off of Ubuntu. I’d just really be more comfortable with the excitement surrounding Ubuntu One if it weren’t closed off like this. And even then, I would be less uncomfortable if it weren’t Ubuntu-branded and being tied into Ubuntu.