Open Source

							   Group 6
Will Culberson
      and
 Ben Henley
            What is open source?
   Open source software is similar in meaning to
    freeware or shareware.
   Open source software is usually available for free,
    and then you can legally give it away.
   The term source in open source refers to
    computer language source code, such as
          Java
          C++
          BASIC
   Not only do you get the running software, but
    you get all of the source code behind the running
    software.
   The source is open to the public, and thus the
    term open source.
                 History
   First started in January 1998 due to
    Netscape’s release of the source
    code for Navigator.
   In February 1998 the Open Source
    Initiative was formed.
         Open Source Initiative
   Founded February 1998 by Eric S.
    Raymond and Bruce Perens
   Sought to bring a view of the practical
    benefits of freely available source code.
   Perens created the Open Source
    Definition.
   Eric S. Raymond’s essay The Cathedral
    and the Bazaar gives a model for how
    open source software should be used.
            Open Source Definition
   Under the Open Source Definition, licenses must meet ten
    conditions in order to be considered open source licenses.
           Free Redistribution: the software can be freely given away or sold. (This
            was intended to expand sharing and use of the software on a legal basis.)
           Source Code: the source code must either be included or freely obtainable.
            (Without source code, making changes or modifications can be impossible.)
           Derived Works: redistribution of modifications must be allowed. (To allow
            legal sharing and to permit new features or repairs.)
           Integrity of The Author's Source Code: licenses may require that
            modifications are redistributed only as patches.
           No Discrimination Against Persons or Groups: no-one can be locked
            out.
           No Discrimination Against Fields of Endeavor: commercial users cannot
            be excluded. Distribution of License: The rights attached to the program
            must apply to all to whom the program is redistributed without the need for
            execution of an additional license by those parties.
           License Must Not Be Specific to a Product: the program cannot be
            licensed only as part of a larger distribution.
           License Must Not Restrict Other Software: the license cannot insist that
            any other software it is distributed with must also be open source.
           License Must Be Technology-Neutral: no click-wrap licenses or other
            medium-specific ways of accepting the license must be required.
                             Bazaar Model
   Users should be treated as co-developers
     •   The users are treated like co-developers and so they should have access to the source code of
         the software. If a lot of users view the source code they will eventually find all bugs and
         suggest how to fix them.
   Early Releases
     •   The first version of the software should be released as early as possible so as to increase
         one's chances of finding co-developers early.
   Frequent Integration
     •   New code should be integrated as often as possible so as to avoid the overhead of fixing a
         large number of bugs at the end of the project life cycle. Some Open Source projects have
         nightly builds where integration is done automatically on a daily basis.
   Several Versions
     •   There should be at least two versions of the software. There should be a buggier version with
         more features and a more stable version with fewer features. The buggy version (also called
         the development version) is for users who want the immediate use of the latest features, and
         are willing to accept the risk of using code that is not yet thoroughly tested. The users can
         then act as co-developers, reporting bugs and providing bug fixes. The stable version offers
         the users fewer bugs and fewer features.
   High Modularization
     •   The general structure of the software should be modular allowing for parallel development.
   Dynamic decision making structure
     •   There is a need for a decision making structure, whether formal or informal, that makes
         strategic decisions depending on changing user requirements and other factors.
                       Examples
   Linux - operating system based on Unix
   Eclipse - software framework for "rich-client applications"
   Apache - HTTP web server
   Tomcat web service - web container
   Moodle - course management system
   Mozilla Firefox - web browser
   Mozilla Thunderbird - e-mail client
   OpenOffice.org - office suite
   OpenSolaris - Unix Operating System from Sun
    Microsystems
   Mediawiki - wiki server software, the software that runs
    Wikipedia
   Drupal – content management service
   GNU Compiler Collection - Programming language compiler
    for C, C++, Java and other languages.
                       Non-software
   Beverages
          OpenCola
            • Soft drink giants like Coke and Pepsi hold their formulas as closely
              guarded secrets. Now volunteers have posted the recipe for a similar
              cola drink on the internet. The taste is said to be comparable to that of
              the standard beverages.
          Beer
            • A beer recipe called Vores Øl. The beer was created by students at the
              IT-University in Copenhagen together with Superflex, a Copenhagen-
              based artist collective, to illustrate how open source concepts might be
              applied outside the digital world.
            • In 2002 a beer company in Australia, Brewtopia, started an open
              source brewery which invited the general population to be involved in
              the development and ownership of the brewery, but asking them to
              vote on the development of every aspect of their beer, Blowfly, and its
              road to market. In return for their feedback and input, they received
              shares in the company, which is now publicly traded on one of the
              Stock Exchanges in Australia. The company has always adhered to its
              Open Source roots and is the only beer company in the world that
              allows the public to design, customize and develop their own beers
              online.
                 Non-software cont.
   Media
           Open source journalism
           Weblogs, or blogs, are another significant platform for open source
            culture.
           Messageboards
           OpenDocument is an open document file format for saving and
            exchanging editable office documents such as text documents
            (including memos, reports, and books), spreadsheets, charts, and
            presentations.
           Open source movie production is either an open call system in
            which a changing crew and cast collaborate in movie production, a
            system in which the end result is made available for re-use by
            others.
           An open source documentary film has a production process
            allowing the open contributions of archival material, footage, and
            other filmic elements, both in unedited and edited form.
           Open Source Filmmaking refers to a form of filmmaking that takes
            a method of idea formation from open source software, but in this
            case the 'source' for a film maker is raw unedited footage rather
            than programming code.
           Positive Outlook
   FREE!!
   Allows users to build something that
    works best for them.
   With so many people working on the
    software, bugs are more likely to be
    worked out.
   Available to everyone
           Negative Outlook
   No monetary gain
   Companies will be less likely to
    produce software.
   Software will no longer be able to be
    commercialized.
        Effects on Businesses
   Some businesses are concerned that they
    will lose businesses with open source
    products
   Businesses will have to discover new
    ways of making profits, such as
    providing services that support the open
    source software
   More businesses will be able to offer
    similar products, which will increase
    competition in the industry
     Effects on Consumers and the
             General Public
   As competition increases, consumers
    will have more bargaining power
   Prices of products will decrease
    as consumers have more choices
   Increased freedom will encourage
    innovation and in return provide
    better products for consumers