 Number 271 - December 2005 |
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| What is Open Source? | |
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by Grant Fuller, Big Blue and Cousins: The Greater Victoria PC Users' Association August 2005 | |
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Back in the sixties there was a group of people who believed the existing establishment of capitalism was so rigid and controlling that it actually removed the very freedom it boasted. After all, a society purely in the pursuit of money would produce products that sell on the basis of popularity and not consider quality, health or safety of the consumer. Various groups of those who felt the commune way of life more promising, went into the wilderness to set up a society where they would farm and share their produce and each do their part. The goal would be one of virtue and not greed. The values would be those of humility and not self-centredness. I have recently installed an Open Source program called OpenOffice. This is not new but it is a very good example of the quality of program available and how advanced the Open Source world has become. It contains a word processor, presentation creator, spread sheet, HTML editor, and a basic drawing program for business purposes. One of the most important features is its help files and tutorial instruction for beginners. Then they discovered that marijuana grows faster than carrots and potatoes and the whole idea pretty well went up in smoke. The basic premise is strong enough to have lasted and is reborn a couple of decades later when the power of the personal computer is realised. As a tool for storing and sharing knowledge, the computer would instantly antiquate all other methods ever conceived. This gives rise to the notion that access to this information should be free, much like the way we operate libraries. It also sparks an idea in others that if you have something that everyone wants, you can make lots of money. Once again the pursuit of money dominates all other objectives and the gold rush for control is on. We all know who the big winners are. There are new winners being added to that list every day as better hardware and software ideas surface above the sea of failures. But there is something else going on quietly and unnoticed in the background. The dedicated followers of the free knowledge concept have been at work. There are programs being written by this group and made available to the public for free. There are many inherent problems because there is no real structure to this group as there is in a company and the nature of these contributions is haphazard and confusing. The programs are modular and each part that was created by a different person may not function properly when first added to the assembly. There are no tutorials available. Beginners cannot learn to use this free software and therefore it is not attractive to anyone but the real geeks. |
The name given to this whole concept is Open Source. For years it seemed to be somewhere in the background and some wondered if it had faded away as so many other good intentions. But for those who were directly involved, it was certainly alive and beginning to bubble on the back burner. The contributors were evolving to a higher level and the groundwork done by many was starting to show its value. This attracted more attention from more highly qualified sympathisers and the snowball effect was starting. The quality of open source programs has become something to impress the skeptics. It has also attracted those who have the talent to bridge the gap between the techy types who create this stuff and the new consumer who is trying to use it. Their contribution is in the form of tutorials that are well done and easy to understand. The world of software creators, whether Open Source or commercial, has begun to accept certain common denominators in their program designs, which they understand is important if they want us to use them. We need to know where to look for answers, so buttons and commands need to be consistent. There was a time when many programs had a different interface and we had no idea where to begin. I have recently installed an Open Source program called OpenOffice In addition to the vastly improved help files and tutorials, there are community forums on the internet where other users of these programs will offer free help and advice. Post a question and someone will answer. Eventually these searchable forums develop a large knowledge base and most questions are already asked by someone else. Have a look at Open Source before spending a bundle on software. Copyright (c) 1990-2005 by Big Blue and Cousins: The Greater Victoria Personal Computer Users' Association. http://www.bbc.org |
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Number 271 - December 2005
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