Open Source: Freedom and Community

Open Source:
Freedom & Community
Nicole C. Engard
Vice President of Education, ByWater Solutions
Documentation Manager, Koha
nengard@gmail.com
nengard@bywatersolutions.com

What isn’t Open Source?
Common Open Source FUD (Fear, Uncertainty &
Doubt)

“Isn’t that insecure?”

“I don’t want to share my data!”

“How can it be any good if it’s free?”

“We don’t have the staff to handle open source.”

“We’ve never had success with homegrown systems.”

Comic: Author: Unknown | Year: Unknown | Source:
Unknown

What is Open Source?

to run, distribute, study and modify for any purpose.

d that harnesses the power of peer review and transparency of process to deve

sands of developers and customers all over the world to drive innovation.2

1,2 http://connect.educause.edu/display/47941

What is Free Software?
ar Free & Open Source Software (F/OSS) in conjunction.
e Definition
hilosophy/free-sw.html) is similar to, but not identical to the Open S
e.org/docs/definition.php)
an free of cost - it means Free as in Freedom

Four Freedoms of
Free Software
You need all four of these freedoms to
have free software
Freedom of use
Freedom to copy
Freedom to modify
Freedom to contribute

http://www.web2learning.net/archives/4263

Sharing of ideas
"If you have an apple and I have an apple
and we exchange apples, then you and I
will still each have one apple. But if you
have an idea and I have an idea and we
exchange these ideas, then each of us will
have two ideas."
Attributed to Bernard Shaw

http://ftacademy.org/materials/fsm/1#1

The Cathedral & The Bazaar
The Cathedral
(proprietary software)

Development occurs behind walls
Source code is usually not provided - kept
locked up
Corporate hierarchy

The Bazaar
(open source software)

Code developed over the Internet with
several others in public view
Source code open to all users
“Given enough eyeballs, all bugs are shallow”
http://www.catb.org/~esr/writings/cathedral-bazaar/cathedral-bazaar/

Open Source Governance

who reviews the code and approves it before adding it to the final rele

s the governing body behind all decisions related to the software. The

Open Source Community
out more than free software
cial to the growth of open source
nowledge and collaboration the project will not grow
ommunity is a right reserved for those who have proved themselves by makin
tions”1
pen source can collaborate and contribute in many ways with the community

tion Graphic From: http://eaves.ca/2009/07/28/remixing-angie-byron-to-creat

, and Anthony D. Williams. “Embracing open source culture and strategy.” In Wikinomics: How mass collaboration changes everything, 82-83. Expan

Open Source Crowdsourcing

brought it into high relief: labor can often be organized more efficiently in the context o

Howe, J. (2008). Crowdsourcing: Why the power of the crowd is driving the future of business. New Yor

Believing in Openness

people who believe what you believe. If you hire people just because t

Simon Sinek: How great leaders inspire action
http://www.ted.com/talks/simon_sinek_how_great_leaders_inspire_action.html

Open Source is Easy!

out 15 minutes. Now, before I add my next point, keep in mind that I manage a staff whose averag

libraries aren't sacrificing a thing by switching over to open source software. If anything, open so

-- Mark at the The Rahway Public
Library

Who’s Using Open Source?

Government Agencies
All Kinds of Businesses
Schools (K-colleges)
Librarians

Open Source in Business
In 2010 a survey of 300 large organizations in both the private and public
sector found:
50% are fully committed to open source in their business
28% say they are experimenting with open source and keeping an open
mind to using it
38% expecting to migrate mission-critical software to open source in
next 12 months
The cost was no longer viewed as the key benefit, instead:
76% cited quality as a key benefit of open source
70% cited improved reliability
69% said better security/bug fixing

http://newsroom.accenture.com/article_display.cfm?
article_id=5045

Making money on open source
“IBM not only accepted open source software products and processes
but also its philosophy, which is to spur quality and fast growth rather
than just profits based on proprietary ownership of intellectual
property.”

“Giving up so much control is unconventional to say the least, but the
rewards for doing so have been handsome. IBM spends about $100
million per year on Linux development. If the Linux community puts in $1
billion of effort, and even half of that is useful to IBM customers, the
company gets $500 million of software development for an investment
of $100 million.”

Tapscott, Don, and Anthony D. Williams. “Joining Linux.” In Wikinomics: How mass collaboration changes everything, 79-82. Expanded Edit

Open Source on the Web
Total Active Servers: 8/2000 to
5/2012

http://news.netcraft.com/archives/2012/05/02/may-2012-web-server-survey.html

Why so popular?
Reliability through Peer Review
Freedom to Innovate
No Vendor Lock-in
User-centric Development
Collaborative Environment
Zero License Fees

Open Source & Libraries
Libraries and Open Source Both...

Believe that information should be
freely accessible to everyone

Give away stuff

Benefit from the generosity of others

Are about communities

Make the world a better place

-- Horton, G. http://tinyurl.com/3jvumn


es and Open Source make the perfect pair

st ethically required to use and develop open source software."
Crawford, R. S. http://www.lugod.org/presentations/oss4lib.pdf

http://www.flickr.com/photos/cavort/151687944/


at value system should extend to the intellectual work we do on our access syste

tal collaborators. Can you think of any other group of institutions that share their

-- Lucia, J.

Being Misunderstood
“I believe one parallel which could be drawn between
open source software and public libraries is only a
partial understanding for the general public. How
many times have people who do not frequent the
library comment that you must enjoy spending time
reading when you mention that you are a librarian.
If you are not fully emerged in the OSS
environment, a similar partial understanding may
present itself.”

– Student in Practical Open Source Software
for Libraries course

Being Misunderstood
“I can't tell you how many times in the over 30 years I have been involved in the library
world, people say how nice it must be "to read books all day" or "how quiet it must be".
Good grief. They have obviously not spent much time in a public library after 3pm. And
besides, there is so much behind the scenes work that goes on to make the library appear
so seamless to the public.
The same with open source, or many forms of technology and software.
Those not in the know or at least familiar with things just expect it to
work the way it always has. When it does not, they whine and fuss until it
does. It is all a matter of education and understanding. Libraries and open
source communities are both putting themselves out there to improve the
lives of those around them.”

– Student in Practical Open Source Software
for Libraries course

Common questions libraries have:

Is there support? Do I have to know
how to program?
Do I have to skimp on features?
Isn’t Open Source risky?
Can I do it myself?

Support for Open Source
Is there support?

person next to you – if they don't work with a support provid

Do I have to know how to program?
Turn to the person next to you ...
Local Students
Freelance Developers

Do I have to skimp on features?

elopers follow the rule of “Release early and release often”

heir dollars and time

op on your own

heir products

http://www.flickr.com/photos/programwitch/2505184887/

Risk of Proprietary Software
“Closed-source efforts often suffer from
flaws and problems which the original
development team never anticipated. Lack
of inspection of the code by other
programmers can mean that inappropriate
design constraints and other errors might
not be discovered until the code is already in
use.”

Pavlicek, Russell. Embracing insanity : open source software development. I

Software is Risky!

isks, you need to evaluate open source the same way you do proprietary syste

Risk to consider:

issues
st as secure if not more secure than proprietary systems because of its transp
urce software no differently than you do other software!

s and acquisitions
n the code to your system you are not tied to one support source and will neve

Can I do it myself?
Absolutely, with the right
in-house skills
Linux server
management
Web programming
Perl / PHP / MySQL
Systems knowledge

Additional Links
Top 50 Programs that Drive You Crazy & their OS Alternatives:
http://tinyurl.com/2xju2m

OSS Watch, open source software advisory service:
http://www.oss-watch.ac.uk

Open Source as Alternative
http://www.osalt.com

Nicole’s Delicious bookmarks:
http://delicious.com/nengard/opensource

Open Source Living
http://osliving.com

OSS & Libraries Links
en Source Software in Libraries
p://infomotions.com/musings/ossnlibraries/

en Source Software and Libraries Bibliography
ero.org/groups/freelibre_and_open_source_software_and_libraries_bibliogr

en Network Libraries http://onl.org.nz
rimer on Risk
p://www.libraryjournal.com/article/CA6611591.html

ctical Open Source Software for Librariesopensource.web2learning.net/blog

Open Source Blogs
The Open Road http://www.cnet.com/openroad/
Open Ended from Ars Technica http://arstechnica.com/open-source
The H Open Source http://www.h-online.com/open/
ZDNet Open Source http://blogs.zdnet.com/open-source
New York Times - Open http://open.nytimes.com
OpenSource.com http://opensource.com
Open Source at Datamation http://itmanagement.earthweb.com/osrc

Online Reading List

rrowing the Divides between Education, Business, and Community
educause.edu/display/47941
ree Software & Open Standards: Introduction to Free Software http://ftacademy.org/m
ware Tools And Directories: Where To Find Them, How To Evaluate Them
ternewmedia.org/open-source-software-tools-and-directories-where-to-find-them-how
urity Bibliography
ro.org/nengard/items/collection/QKWPIXK9
brary
ro.org/nengard/items/collection/1796131

Print Reading List

Source Software in Libraries by Nicole C. Engard

and the Bazaar: Musings on Linux and Open Source by an Accidental Revolutionary by Eric

nity: Open Source Software Development by Russell Pavlicek

open source by Steve Weber

ce alternative: Understanding risks and leveraging opportunities by Heather J. Meeker

2.0: The Continuing Evolution by Chris DiBona, Mark Stone, and Danese Cooper

Thank You
Nicole C. Engard
nengard@gmail.com
nengard@bywatersolutions.com

Open Source: Freedom and Community

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