Advocacy
The basic idea behind open source is very simple.
When programmers on the Internet can read, redistribute, and modify
the source for a piece of software, it evolves.
People improve it, people adapt it, people fix bugs. And this can
happen at a speed that, if one is used to the slow pace of
conventional software development, seems astonishing.
We in the open-source community have learned that this rapid
evolutionary process produces better software than
the traditional closed model, in which only a very few programmers can
see source and everybody else must blindly use an opaque block of
bits.
The Open Source pages exist to make this case to the commercial world.
Open Source for You
Whether a techie/hacker, a businessperson, or a customer, you'll win with open source software. Read the case histories to find out how.
Frequently Asked Questions
We maintain a page answering Frequently Asked Questions.
Case Studies and Press Coverage
Here you can learn what third parties have to say about the power of
the open-source model. Much of this material discusses Linux, but the
lessons are not specific to Linux; they apply to open source in general.
Jobs for Hackers
We don't think the triumph of open-source will doom anyone to
starvation. But to understand why not, we need to take a fresh look
at the economics of software and the work that programmers actually do.
What Does Free Software Mean, Anyway?
We discuss the ambiguity of "Free" in the phrase "Free Software."
The Other Side of the Coin
Businesspeople tend to assume that secrets are assets. But the
value of holding a secret has to be traded off against
the cost of doing so. Are there circumstances under which going closed makes sense? The answers may surprise you.
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