Freedom from the system

Open source software is a free and sometimes more efficient alternative to Microsoft.

By: Romy Misra

Posted: 10/10/08

Firefox is better than Internet Explorer. Almost any browser is better than Internet Explorer.

Firefox, a high quality product, was not developed with the financial backing of a giant software company. It is distributed freely and can be modified by anyone who wants to improve it or tailor it to meet his or her requirements.

Enter the world of open source software, which encourages continual software innovation by anyone.

Software is meant to be dynamic and fluid. If there is a bug or something does not function according to my needs, I want it changed immediately, not when a company releases its next version. Software is best when it develops intuitively to suit the user's needs, which means it has to evolve continuously. Releasing new versions is not sufficient or timely.

When using open source software instead of Excel 2003, any function that could not be found or that worked inadequately could be changed immediately instead of remaining broken until the release of Excel 2007.

Open source software can be changed by anyone - according to a set of standards - to suit one's requirements. This is possible because the source code of the software is freely available to be improved, changed and distributed. With software, the best feedback is obtained from the users who use it most. Empowering them to modify it according to needs leads to improvements in the product.

That does not mean that what is developed is always good. Some products are great - Firefox, Linux Apache server, PhP, MySQL - and some disappear.

Microsoft has had a monopoly in the software market, but open source software challenges it. Firefox threatens Internet Explorer and sets higher standards in a transparent, challenging and fair manner. Linux is being adopted by corporations such as Amazon and HP because of cost-effectiveness and flexibility. It is compatible with all file formats, comes with a choice of different distributions, has security against all viruses and can be improved when required. This non-corporate juggernaut is penetrating the impervious Windows OS market. It is difficult to swallow, but true.

An open source product is transparent and great for users and both amateur and professional software developers. The latest web browser from Google has been released as open source software. Google acknowledges the help it got from Mozilla to build Google Chrome. The latest Google mobile platform is open source - if only Microsoft would learn.

Professor Srinivas Shakkotai, from the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, uses the operating system Linux and said he is appreciative of open source software.

"The drivers for adoption of any piece of software are usually price, usability, stability and security," Shakkotai said. "Open source software, by its very nature of peer-based creation and monitoring, has traditionally scored high on three of these aspects. While the economics of open source can be convoluted [e.g. IBM supports Linux since it helps it sell servers] the flexibility of applications that arise on open source platforms [e.g. mobile applications on Android] will drive its increasing use."

Open source software developers are aiming at creating better software products. The spirit of this community is commendable. If you are the programmer, you can learn from the software and improve it. If you are a consumer, you get to download it for free. You don't have to participate in the creation process to enjoy the fruits of open source software.