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The Linux distillery Grokking open source
The Linux distillery Grokking open source | Grokking open source |
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| by David M Williams | |
| Thursday, 20 March 2008 | |
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Page 2 of 3 Another common question asked of open source software is simply “How can it be any good?” After all, what type of programmer gives away his or her code? And surely it’s only supported in a lame way, on nights and weekends if even that. Not to mention that it can never be innovative; surely open source developers are just copying what’s already out there – they’re not working to break whole new ground. Right?Perhaps ironically the people asking these questions may well have participated in some form of service organisation in their home towns. My own father was a long-time member of Rotary and is a past President of his local club. The members of Rotary are business people who donate their time to raise funds for schools and for health and to give school children opportunities to spend a year abroad in an exchange program, among other things. Similarly, there are service clubs and volunteer organisations which specialise in building homes for others, for helping homeless people be warm and well fed, and not to mention the brave volunteer firefighters and others who put themselves in the line of danger. On the one hand it may be tenuous to suggest that giving away software in any way compares to the pure nobility of these activities. Yet, on the other hand, open source software helps provide affordable computers to children in developing nations by totally eradicating any fees for operating systems or applications. It would be quite wrong of me to suggest all open source software is self-sacrificing in that way. However, even so, open source software makes it possible for small business to become competitive when they otherwise could not be. It provides some of the finest network administration tools available anywhere. It is the backbone of the entire Internet. It unfurls a world where people can run a rich suite of applications on their computer without having to resort to piracy if they cannot afford, or do not wish to pay for, the items they desire. The open source community has built itself on a shared set of ideals and values that has given rise to such remarkable achievements as the Linux kernel and the Apache web server – the most used web server on the planet. Further, open source provides trust and confidence. I wrote previously about a terrible application called G-Archiver which purported to help backup your Gmail mailbox but sneakily e-mailed your username and password to the author. This problem would not have happened in an open source system. Please do read on. CONTINUED |
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