Open Source Archive

Concerns about open source use can fuel internal naysayers at the acquiror who favor an internal solution over acquisition, says LinuxInsider. Embedded open source software may raise questions about maintaining segregation of the acquired code after the acquisition or potential costs to replace portions of the acquired code base.

Despite the growing success of the Open Source movement, most of the general public continues to feel that Open Source software is inaccessible to them. This paper discusses five fundamental problems with the current Open Source software development trend, explores why these issues are holding the movement back, and offers solutions that might help overcome these problems.

While Linux is by no means complete, the broad strokes have been filled in: the operating system, the server software, the database. But at the same time, the stereotype of the lonely programmer working in the wee hours is seriously outdated. The second generation of open source projects responds to specific business demands, and the people building these applications are getting paid -- even if the code they write will be free.

What's easier? To completely move to a FOSS-compliant OS immediately, or to start the transition to FOSS world by using their apps on Windows? Sam Rawlins investigates.

There is so much controversy surrounding the Open Source General Public License (GPL) - especially with regard to the SCO v IBM case - that it makes a sense to review the simple basic legal points involved, writes Bloor Research president Robin Bloor.

"Is it possible that, despite all the hype, open source is not necessarily the best way to develop software? That it's not about to take over the software industry, and that it's no more a threat to Microsoft than were Netscape, the Macintosh or Word Perfect?" Read the analysis by Tony Healy.

We all know about the benefits of open source software in lowering total cost of ownership, offering more choice and the increasing quality and functionality of the code. The rise of Linux as an edge server and now migrating toward the data center is clear validation that the open source model has taken root. But there are still significant barriers to overcome before Linux and other open source projects are broadly accepted across enterprises, says ZDNet's Dan Farber.

Marc Andreessen, co-founder of trailblazer Netscape Communications, can spot a long-term trend. So when Opsware Inc.--another company Andreessen co-founded and chairs--introduced its Opsware System 4 software on Linux in December, some of his faithful fans doubtless took the move as a sign of things to come.

The Open Source model – and by Open Source we mean products that adhere to the Open Source Initiative (OSI) guidelines – doesn't, and may never, work for many important software domains. All religious fervor aside, this is a reality because customers say so. We may want it to be otherwise, but the ultimate arbiters in the Open Source versus proprietary debate are customers.

Once every three months, Alan Nugent, chief technology officer of billion-dollar software company Novell, sits down with a small group of colleagues to decide what software the company will give away for free.

Last week saw the 20th anniversary of Richard Stallman's decision to quit the MIT and start the GNU Project in 1984, with a goal to creating a platform using 'free' software that a user can run, copy, distribute, study, change and improve: the GNU operating system which used widely today in its GNU/Linux form. A year later he founded the Free Software Foundation, a body that seeks to further the development and use of free software. He is also the author of the GNU General Public Licence, the licence under which free software can be distributed. Read his interview with Matt Whipp at PCPro.

Richard Stallman wrote a short editorial on the 20th anniversary of GNU. It's a summary of what he considers needs to be done now.

In preparation for the upcoming FOSDEM confrerence, organizers have posted interviews with Jonathan Corbet, author of the reference book "Writing Linux Device Drivers" and Denis Oliver Kropp, one of the main developers for the DirectFB project, two of the planned participants.

This article intends to clear up some misconceptions about open source software development practices. It can help developers, IT and business managers transition from a closed development environment to an open one characterized by shorter time-to-market and lower costs. The author, Tom Adelstein -- an experienced CPA, code developer, project manager and consultant -- makes clear the notion that Open Source Software bears a mark of professionalism. Full Story