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Why Choose Open Source?
Posted On June 25, 2010 by Shruthi S filed under Open Source
HTML clipboardOpen source means the software code is available to users and developers, with few restrictions on usage, modification or distribution. Open Source Software is widely deployed by corporations and governments for robust applications in business, education and science.
Why is OSS better than proprietary software?
1 Vendor independence
In a recent survey by Computer Economics, users named vendor independence as their prime reason for choosing OSS. As the source code is available under public use licences with few restrictions, users aren’t locked into vendors, developers, IT partners or costly software upgrade cycles. OSS gives users genuine freedom of choice and more control over their IT environments.
It may appear counter-intuitive at first, especially to someone used only to dealing with proprietary software, but whilst the models for obtaining support and accountability for Open Source software are clearly different, the Open Source outcome is generally better than for all but unusual cases of user-vendor relationships.
One of the most common counter-arguments to the use of Open Source software is characterised as the ‘who do I sue?’ question; in other words, who is liable if the software doesn't work?
This argument seems plausible in theory. Unfortunately, though, that isn't what aplies in all but the rarest of circumstances. A moment's inspection of typical EULA (End User Licence Agreements) will dispel that myth. All usual software licences explicitly disclaim responsibility or liability for anything more serious than defects on the distribution medium, with the responsibilities being a one-way street and resting on the user, not the supplier. Proprietary software licences are intended to absolve the vendor of liability for almost any problem you may incur. Major vendors have large legal teams whose job it is to prevent the vendor from being liable for anything. This does not seem unreasonable – the vendor wants to sell software, not spend months or years at a time defending protracted tort and liability suits.
Open-source software does not differ from proprietary software in this respect. Open-source licences typically disclaim all liabilities and warranties, including such basic warranties as merchantability and fitness for purpose. Those in the know, who have adopted Open Source Software already, will shrug their shoulders and choose the practical benefits of increased reliablility and security over illusory options to sue or pursue other remedies from a negligent vendor.
2 Lower TCO
Lower Cost is the second reason why many organisations choose Open Source Software. With no licence cost in most cases, OSS starts with a clear advantage over proprietary software and this has lasting impact on the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO). The adoption of Open Standards can also yield cost benefits; for example, the Dutch government expects to save $8,000,000 a year just by adopting the Open Document Format (ODF), which facilitates document exchange.
Most current Open Source projects are also available free of royalties and fees, leading to the confusion around the commonly used term `free software'. Regrettably the English language does not have separate concepts for free-of-charge and free as in unconstrained; other languages are better equipped to describe the difference between `freedom' and `free of charge' (libre vs. gratis). Proponents of free software licences tend to emphasise liberty over cost although in practice the main open source projects are free in both senses of the word.
From a business perspective the purchase cost of software is only one factor; total cost of ownership (TCO) is what really matters. Other things being equal, the solution with lowest TCO is usually the most desirable one. Arguments in favour of low TCO for open source software include:
* Possibly zero purchase price
* Potentially no need to account for copies in use, reducing administrative overhead
* Claimed reduced need for regular upgrades (giving lower/nil upgrade fees, lower management costs)
* Claimed longer uptimes and reduced need for expensive systems administrators
* Near-zero vulnerability to viruses eliminating need for virus checking, data loss and downtime
* Claimed lower vulnerability to security breaches and hack attacks reducing systems administration load
* Claimed ability to prolong life of older hardware while retaining performance
3 Better Fit
Open Source also gives customers the freedom to customize or enhance the code to suit their exact needs. This flexibility is of real value to organizations with special needs that can’t be met using standard software. Many enhancements to Open Source applications have been contributed by customers or their integrators.
In a business context, software flexibility is about being able to choose solutions suitable for the needs of the users. Many commercial software products will claim flexibility as a built-in feature and some will undoubtedly be correct. Our view is that that flexibility should really mean business flexibility, so that as requirements in the business change, solutions should not be unreasonably constrained by software. In particular, we view this as being especially important in the area of infrastructure components — the architecture of the IT solution rather than any one package.
4 Tighter security
Open Source Software suffers fewer attacks than the large base of proprietary software, which most malware writers are targeting. Since Open Source code is widely published, many eyes in the OSS network see the code, and potential exposures are spotted and fixed rapidly. That makes OSS inherently more secure than proprietary software.
Some of the design considerations in popular open source software makes it even better. For example most Linux users rarely work with root (master admin) permissions, while in Windows it’s the reverse, making the latter operating system more vulnerable to attacks.
5 Greater Scalability
Since Open Source Software is hardware-independent by design, applications are highly scalable. A prime example is Linux, which was designed to run on PCs yet is now employed on both business servers and supercomputers. With OSS, scalability is assured and IT systems won’t be a barrier to business growth.
Open Source Software is not a panacea in the world of ever-changing software, but the worst effects of vendor-push can be mitigated. The way that Open Source products tend to conform closely to standards efforts has an inertial effect, since standards change but slowly and interchange formats are often particularly stable. As a result, incompatible file formats can be less of an issue. If they are standards-based then they typically aren't an issue at all, and if they are formats unique to the software product — proprietary formats in a sense - then they cannot be undocumented since the source code that uses them is itself published. In practice the track record of Open Source projects is usually good; when incompatible formats are used it is commonplace for a Perl or similar converter program to be shipped with them which will upgrade data to the new format.
In the real world, no business is static and software changes to meet new requirements. A choice to use Open Source software can provide a counter to the pressures to upgrade for the vendor's commercial purposes but cannot shelter every user from any change. Having access to the source code can allow a business to choose to support itself on an old version where necessary and we belive that in general it gives more options and choice to the users. Nonetheless, some upgrading and maintenance effort will always be needed. Putting the choice in the hands of the users rather than the suppliers is hard to criticise.
6 Easier collaboration
Collaboration was the catalyst for creating OSS and is still one of its key benefits. With no licence restrictions creating major obstacles, collaboration between business partners in the vibrant OSS network is easy, expected and encouraged.
It may appear counter-intuitive at first, especially to someone used only to dealing with proprietary software, but whilst the models for obtaining support and accountability for Open Source software are clearly different, the Open Source outcome is generally better than for all but unusual cases of user-vendor relationships.
7 Free Exchange
Open source code is designed for others to use, so it is written with modular components that can be easily interchanged. This modular approach fosters wider exchange, provides greater flexibility and enables easier migration to new hardware or operating environments.
Business users are most likely to obtain long-term flexibility through the careful choice of standards for interworking and data exchange, followed by vigilance to ensure that freedom from proprietary lock-in is maintained in critical areas. The drawback is that standards inevitably lag in terms of glamorous features, making the feature-based ploy an easy one for proprietary vendors to use. Open Source products are strong in this area, not only from the point of view of adherence to standards but also by helping to mitigate against insidious lock-in if they are chosen as core infrastructure components.
8 Open Standards
The Open Systems Initiative publishes, updates and monitors open standards and protocols, from networking to document formats. Open Source Software must comply with published Open Standards so that disparate systems can readily exchange vital information.
A rarely-understood benefit of Open Source software (any software where the source code is published) is its auditability. Closed-source software forces its users to trust the vendor when claims are made for qualities such as security, freedom from backdoors, adherence to standards and flexibility in the face of future changes. If the source code is not available those claims remain simply claims.
By publishing the source code, authors make it possible for users of the software to have confidence that there is a basis for those claims. Whether this takes the form of an cursory and informal inspection or more rigorous auditing, what's clear is that without access to the source, third party inspection is impossible. At present the industry does not insist on third party inspection or certification, but it's possible that as open source models become more popular then expectations of audits will rise.
9 More Innovation
Free collaboration in a network of talented developers has fostered innovation and close, productive relationships with leading software vendors. The internet is built on Open Source technology, as are Linux, Mozilla FireFox and Apache Web Servers (half the web servers around the world run Apache). Its robust performance has made OSS the preferred software for the world’s financial markets and most of its supercomputers.
10 Confidence in numbers
Education and government were the early adopters of Open Source Software. As OSS has matured and grown more feature-rich, commercial organizations have also embraced it. Large corporations like Renault, ABN Amro and UPS have replaced major proprietary systems with Open Source Software. Open Source has truly reached maturity.
Shobha Rani commented, on August 9, 2010 at 3:40 p.m.:
Which is the best opensource Language?