Open Source Software. Chris Moylan Group 5...I think

Definition. Software is made up of lines of code Commercial software is “closed-source” Code is considered a trade secret It is not freely available Open Source software allows users to view and alter source code, and then redistribute the software with their modifications.

Example of source code

History – UNIX. Originally, computer companies only sold hardware. Users had to write their own programs. The number of computer programmers was small and they shared their programs with one another.

History – UNIX – Bell Labs develops Multics 1969 – Bell Labs abandons Multics Ken Thompson begins work on UNIX Thanks to Anti-Trust laws, AT&T is unable to profit from non-telephone business, so Bell Labs freely distributes UNIX to anyone who wants it.

History – Creation of GNU – Richard Stallman  Becomes a programmer at MIT  Admires the college atmosphere of cooperation 1983 – Discouraged, Stallman creates the GNU Project, whose goal is to create a free Unix-like operating system. “GNU's Not Unix” GNU project struggles with kernel.

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History – Linux – Linus Torvalds begins work on a Unix-like operating system. GNU Project had developed many components of an OS, but not the kernel itself. GNU picks up “Linux” and uses it as their kernel.

Philosophy. “Free Software” should be thought of as “free speech” and not “free beer” Software should be used for any purpose. You should be free to study it, and learn how it works. You should be free to distribute copies, to help others. You should be free to improve the program and re release it so that everyone benefits.

Philosophy. Software is more like an idea, than a physical product. “Given enough eyeballs, all bugs are shallow.”

Open-source Licenses. Developers license their software, saying who can use it and how it can be used. Many open-source licenses. GNU General Public License.

GNU GPL. Grants user free use of a software product, for whatever purpose. Allows the user to view, modify and redistribute the source code. “Copyleft” uses Copyright law to restrict user from releasing software, except under the GPL. Therefore, GPL software will always be open- source.

Commercial Model. What?! Companies like Red Hat and Novell sell Linux distributions as bundles. They don't actually sell Linux, they sell other services (tech support) with Linux.  Red Hat - $278 million  Novell - $1.2 billion

Why should you care? Open-source software is just as useful as closed-source. You can be cooler than your friends. You can stick it to “the man.” IT'S FREE!!!! and legal.

Examples – Firefox – Netscape releases source code under GPL. Mozilla foundation was formed. Mozilla releases a suite of web applications – Dave Hyatt and Black Ross scale down “bloated” Mozilla browser – Firefox is released.

Advantages over IE. Extensions Themes Integrated popup blocking Tabs More security

Disadvantages. Takes a little longer to start up.  Because it isn't integrated into the operating system.  This is a good thing. Some websites do not show up right.  Mainly ones that don't follow W3C guidelines.  These websites are bad anyway.

Examples – Open Office. mid-1980s – StarDivision founded in Germany.  Release StarOffice as commercial software – Sun Microsystems buys StarDivsion 2000 – Sun releases source code of StarOffice.  Sun organizes a project to create an open-source office suite.  Later than year, OpenOffice 1.0 is released – OpenOffice 2.0 is released.

Advantages. Cross-platform. More logical organization that MS Office. Frequent updates and patches. File formats don't matter as much as MS Office.  Uses OpenDocument format Compatible with MS Office.

Disadvantages. Slightly slower. Not 100% compatable with MS Office. User interface is slightly different than MS Office, but arranged more logically.

Examples – Linux. The free operating system. Holy Grail of the open-source world. Many different distributions – called 'distros'

Advantages. Security Runs on a wide range of hardware Constant updates/patches Tons of Linux software. Never have to restart

Disadvantages. Poor hardware support Most Windows software will not easily run on Linux  Windows emulators like Wine HQ  Virtual machines  Dual booting

Why you should use Open Source. You probably already use Firefox. You probably already use Firefox. Open Office is very similar to M$ Office. Open Office is very similar to M$ Office. You don't feel like shelling out $400 for Vista Ultimate. You don't feel like shelling out $400 for Vista Ultimate.  Although I have found copies for $180.  But $180 > FREE.

Conclusion. Digital Divide.  Open-source offers a way to close the gap.  Vista Home Basic = $180. (or $89)  Hardware to run Vista = $400 - $600  MS Office 2007 = $130 - $150  Total = $619 minimum

Sources “13 reasons to used firefox over IE” Introduction to Open Source: Firefox Section Multics AT&T Philosophy Red Hat htp:// The entire Wikipedia site