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Open source software is often considered to be an attractive option because it is 'free' in a financial sense – there is no licence fee to be paid. However there are other kinds of 'free' that are maybe just as, or even more, important. For example the 'free' as in freedom as highlighted below:
the free availability of the source code and the right to modify it.
the right to freely redistribute modifications and improvements to the code.
the right to freely use the software in any way.
- there is no one with the power to restrict, in a unilateral way, how the software is used.
- there is no single entity on which the future of the software depends.
- no "black boxes" are possible – full inspection and verification of the source code is guaranteed.
- there is always the possibility of 'forking' – or creating an alternative code base if the current one is in some way perceived as wrongly managed.
One benefit of such freedom is the availability of a worldwide developer community as an extension of your own resources rather than having just the team employed by a proprietary vendor. This community is specifically interested in the software for both what it is and how it works. They are attracted by the right to redistribute and the consequent benefit to users is to keep the developers involved in continuing the development of the software.
Another benefit arises from the contrasts between the following situations. A proprietary software vendor can decide not to upgrade some software products for an old platform. In such cases, users can only stick to the old version of the software, or switch to another product. If open source software is used, customers can carry out their own development for the desired platform, or look for other vendors to provide the upgrades (of the very same product).
In an extreme case consider that a company uses a software product, and relies on the proprietary vendor for upgrades and continued development. If they go out of business or decide to discontinue development of the product, no one has the right to take the program and continue development on it, effectively killing its usability in the market. Open source is a good protection against such a risk. |
