What is Open Source Software

what is open-source software at the most fundamental level it's software that's code is available for all users to inspect modify copy and use in almost any way they choose while many casual users of open-source software may never utilize this defining feature its inclusion brings with it significant philosophical and developmental implications computer software is developed by writing code in one of any number of programming languages before this code can be run as a computer program however it first must be compiled this process converts the programmers code into computer binary which is necessary to be run by a computer but makes it indecipherable to people commercial software often called proprietary software also has additional licensing that further prohibits people from attempting to reverse engineer this process but with open-source software the original programming is made available alongside the final executable program this means skilled programmers can modify applications to improve or customize them students can study how the programs were written and the programs can be easily copied and distributed over the Internet proponents of open source software believe open collaboration allows software to evolve via the contributions of many users and they believe people should have the right to use their software in whatever way they want without licensing restrictions critics often worry the open source approach can lead to difficulty in managing the program and they wonder how reliable and sophisticated programs can be developed without a clear profit incentive these concerns are not unfounded there are hundreds of different versions available the open source operating system Linux even a Hannah Montana version and because distribution of open source software isn't managed by commercial entities trying to uphold their reputations it's easy to find poorly developed buggy and outdated open-source projects online but this doesn't mean the open source approach doesn't work to the contrary much of the internet was built on open source software and many people use open source software on a daily basis without even realizing it according to its website WordPress powers 26% of all websites Firefox whose market share has been slipping in recent years is still the third most popular web browser in the world VLC media player has almost a hundred million downloads Moodle remains the number two LMS and higher education and Apache software is still the most popular way to run a web server so who builds all this free software many contributors are the same people that use them and want to make them work better in fact many companies hire programmers to make improvements to open source software for their own purposes but which are then shared back with the rest of the software's community students and new programmers may also contribute to projects as a way to practice and build a reputation even large for-profit companies like Google and IBM contribute to open source projects because they know the power of crowdsourcing and that building software that benefits everyone can benefit them as well open source software is not a new idea but many people are unaware of what it is and how it works a little more understanding about how the open source philosophy works and the potential of open source software can give you a new perspective on how you think about computer software and collaboration in general

Channel: Brian Daigle

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Id: 1ehpgbb3XD0

Length: 3min 21sec (201 seconds)

Published: Wed Oct 19 2016