Code: And Other Laws of Cyberspace, Version 2.0There’s a common belief that cyberspace cannot be regulated-that it is, in its very essence, immune from the government’s (or anyone else’s) control. Code, first published in 2000, argues that this belief is wrong. It is not in the nature of cyberspace to be unregulable; cyberspace has no “nature.” It only has code-the software and hardware that make cyberspace what it is. That code can create a place of freedom-as the original architecture of the Net did-or a place of oppressive control. Under the influence of commerce, cyberspace is becoming a highly regulable space, where behavior is much more tightly controlled than in real space. But that’s not inevitable either. We can-we must-choose what kind of cyberspace we want and what freedoms we will guarantee. These choices are all about architecture: about what kind of code will govern cyberspace, and who will control it. In this realm, code is the most significant form of law, and it is up to lawyers, policymakers, and especially citizens to decide what values that code embodies. Since its original publication, this seminal book has earned the status of a minor classic. This second edition, or Version 2.0, has been prepared through the author’s wiki, a web site that allows readers to edit the text, making this the first reader-edited revision of a popular book. |
Contents
Four Puzzles from Cyberspace | 9 |
REGULABILITY | 23 |
Architectures of Control | 38 |
Regulating Code | 61 |
REGULATION BY CODE | 83 |
What Things Regulate | 120 |
The Limits in Open Code | 138 |
LATENT AMBIGUITIES | 156 |
Free Speech | 233 |
Interlude | 276 |
Competition Among Sovereigns | 294 |
The Problems We Face | 313 |
Responses | 325 |
What Declan Doesnt Get | 335 |
Appendix | 340 |
Notes | 347 |
Other editions - View all
Common terms and phrases
allowed Amendment American answer architecture argued argument authors balance become behavior believe better block build chapter choice citizens claim Congress consider constitutional constraint context copy cost course Court create culture cyberspace described e-mail effect enable example fact fair filtering give idea imagine important increase individual intellectual property interest Internet kind Law Review least less limits live machine mean monitoring norms original particular person political porn possible Press problem produce protection published question real space reason record regime regulation require response rules sense simply social space spam speech story there’s things tion understand United University values York