Open Source Technologies

Introduction

Nowadays the words 'Open Source' have become exceedingly common and everyone hears them at least once a day. The reason this is happening because the open source idea has revolutionized the world of computers and human life in general. 'Open Source' is generally heard in the context of software and operating systems (Linux and Android are two major examples). Another term commonly heard is 'FOSS'. It stands for 'Free Open Source Software'. Now let me clear a misconception. Open Source tech does not imply it is free. Only FOSS tech is both open source and free, others may not be.

Why is open source better?

Open source means that the source code of that particular technology can be viewed by anybody in the world. Each tech has its own Internet forum where developers post suggestions and changes in the code. Every few months, the best ones are picked up and a new version of that tech is released. Neat, huh?

Now the reason this is better is that the code can be viewed by independent third parties, which means they may point out gaping holes the developers might have missed. This improves the user experience with a better interface and makes it extremely hard for miscreants to hack. So things like antivirus softwares (which are useful but far from bulletproof, don't even get me started on that) are rendered redundant. And developers who specialize in front end and back end can work on the respective components of that tech without disturbing the other. And in the end, the way everything seamlessly integrates to form a stunning piece of tech is just breathtaking.

Open source v/s Proprietary softwares

Proprietary software products are the ones you have to pay for, and pay repeatedly for license renewal, unless you are the type who would painstakingly obtain cracked versions. Open source softwares have no such thing as 'licensing period'. The latter often fall short for which the former makes up. Common examples are:

• Gimp as a replacement for Adobe Photoshop
• Mozilla Firefox instead of Internet Explorer
• Office Suite instead of Microsoft Office

How do open source technologies make money?

This is a very good question. As I said earlier, not all pieces of Open Source software are free. But for those who are, there are several ways of making money.

• The download can be free but they may charge a fee for the source code
• They may sell the documentation
• They may charge for support and installation qualification, like in the case of RedHat for Linux or Revolution for R.
• They may provide maintenance services online, which is somewhat like SaaS (Software as a Service), but I digress.
• If they get very famous, VCs (Venture Capitalists) may want to invest in them and set them up with a market share structure. They will then sell their shares.

It is not a surprise therefore that OpenSource is stealing a steady march over paid, licensed software.

So, in conclusion, open source tech is the future. I'm a huge fan of this idea, just in case you didn’t already guess from from how much I've been gushing about it throughout this article. I develop and contribute to this movement in my own little way, checking source codes of various software packages and trying to edit the code.

Come, consider joining the movement.

Cheers!