Reply #25: the whole question of Open Software is a huge issue [View All]

[garybeck]

that I don't think most of us understand yet (me included).

The problem is that for a program to run, it has to be compiled first. That basically means you wrap up all the code into an EXE file.

Once it's in an EXE file, the code is invisible. There is no way to crack open an exe file or un-compile a program. If there was, software companies would go nuts.

So the question is, if a company makes its code available to the public, how can you know that the EXE file on the voting machine is actually compiled from the same code you are inspecting?

I'm getting hazy on facts at this point but my understanding is that it involves reporting a "chain of ownership". This is discussed in a paragraph that was recently added to Holt's bill.

I am concerned about this because reporting the chain of ownership seems to be open to fraud in itself. If they report false information on the chain of ownership, how would anyone know?

This speaks to Landshark's assertion that computers are inherently problematic with voting. The public has a right to be able to view the vote counting process. As long as it is happening inside a computer, there is no way to view it and there is no way to know if it's being done properly. Perhaps if you were a computer expert you could find a way to verify many of the steps but it should be something that anyone can watch.

Gary