To properly appreciate open source, you need an open mind. However, if you’re here, you’re likely on the right track . If a piece of software is open source, it means that the source code is available. Do you know how there is always that damn thing in Microsoft Word that you hate? Well, if it were open source, and if you or someone you knew could program, then it could be fixed. I don’t think Micro$oft would like that though…

Open source is a simple system, originating from how people treat the code behind the software that they program. Basically, it goes like this: if you program something, you not only give away the final product, but also how it was done (the source code). This code is usually free of charge. This means that people can then not only use your program, but also modify it to their needs. It’s a very simple idea, but it stretches very wide (in terms of application), and is very effective.
So why is this great for software? Because people work together, possibly without even realizing it. Someone makes a mediocre program. Someone else takes it, makes it a bit better, gives it back to the world as open source. Someone else takes it, makes it a bit better, gives it back to the world. The cycle goes on. In this way, programs aren’t thrown away, they are improved. Second twist: these programs are also often free. This means that people don’t generally make money from them. This also means that things like upgrading your product, with useless features or a new look, does not happen that often, because the software itself is not used to generate corporate income. This creates a cycle of software creation in which the software is a) free, b) does what it needs to, not what generates the most sales, and c) is evolving (compared to being replaced — like a tree compared to a building).

This form of software creation has been around for roughly 15-20 years in terms of organized work, and was also the default way of working before corporations got their hands on software development. The system was refined over the years with unified bug tracking systems, unified ways of submitting your modifications, and unified groups of developers, graphical interface designers, translators, artists, fanatics, etc. Basically, open source software (OSS) grew up.

If you’ve never heard of it before this article, chances are you have. Probably best known is Firefox, which is an open source web browser. Firefox is safer, more stable, and more feature-filled than Internet Explorer (Microsoft’s closed source web browser). It is also completely free of charge. Secondly, what about Wikipedia? Wikipedia’s webpage software is open source, as well as the information on the site. You’ll notice that at the bottom of each page it says that, “All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License.” GNU is an open source organization that does a lot of the legal work for open source licencing. (In terms of text, open source means: free, belongs to people of the world, and not just owned by one person or Wikipedia.) Also, you may have heard of a collection of software that is quickly taking over computers all over the world, The Linux Operating System (Linux OS for short). (An operating system is what the rest of your software runs on top of. It’s like Windows compared to Excel.) The Linux OS has been around for about 15 years and has grown to be a full and stable replacement for Windows, both on the desktop and the server platforms. Currently, Linux is the second or third most used OS in the world (some say before, some say after Macintosh). Also currently, Linux has almost always replaced Unix (an old server OS) on the server side, and is likely the most used OS for web servers. It is also quickly making its way onto desktop computers, with wonderful versions of it, such as Ubuntu available. I personally use all free and open source software for everything that I do with computers (at home), including working on this site — and that turned out pretty OK, right?

The open source system actually works so well that it is slowly replacing the traditional system of software development. For example, open source has been proven as capable of creating excellent free 3D games that compare very well against their paid competitors. Examples of such games include Tremulous (FPS/RTS) and Planeshift (MMORPG). I’ve personally played both and they are fantastic, multiplayer, 3D games with good graphics. Also, a fairly well-known essay, called The Cathedral and the Bazaar (a bazaar is like a modern supermarket, but made up of individual stalls), compares the two main software development models: open source and closed source (the latter often being called ‘proprietary software’, generally made by companies seeking to make money). The metaphor used is very good: closed source is like a cathedral — concealed, organized, paid, and unavailable to the general public; whereas open source if more like a bazaar — apparently chaotic, but in fact comprised of many people working together for their mutual benefit. A bazaar is available to anyone and is comprised of individuals working together to create something massive and directly useful. A bazaar is organic, whereas a cathedral is strictly regulated and static.

So. For a normal user all this really means is this: your software is getting cheaper and better. In fact, often free-er.

Stub/Summary: “Open Source Is — a method of software development where the source code is available; rapidly spreading; often free”

This entry was posted on Wednesday, July 26th, 2006 at 3:25 am and is filed under Open Source. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.