Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) provides many benefits
Community
Open source software projects are supported by a large community of passionate and helpful people. Both amateurs and professionals, they volunteer their time to collaboratively improve the project. They can contribute to the areas they are passionate and knowledgeable in, allowing the best people to make the best code.
Cost
Most open source software is provided free of cost. The core of the Drupal Content Management System is estimated to have a development cost equivalent of over one million dollars, and the additional features many times that. This allows people at all levels, from personal blogs to large organizations, to utilize professional software applications at reasonable cost.
Security
Because thousands of developers and users have access to not only the program but the code behind it, security issues are quickly found and resolved no matter how trivial they seem. Open source software projects consistently have fewer bugs and issues than proprietary software. Most importantly they have fewer critical issues, and those that do occur are fixed much sooner.
Licensing
Free software licenses guarantee that your license to the software cannot be taken away arbitrarily, and in many cases ensure that the software and its updates will remain freely accessible in the future. No user limits, no yearly payments for re-licensing; it's yours to use and keep as you require.
It also removes vendor lock-in. Your data can always be retrieved and moved to another system, should the current one no longer meet your needs. If you have someone else manage your software system, you can easily migrate to another provider who offers the same services.
For more information on Open Source Software and Licensing, and how it can benefit your organization, please contact us.
Additional Information
To learn more about Open Source Software, visit these sites
Significant open-source applications
- Mozilla Firefox web browser and Thunderbird email application
- Open Office software suite
- GNU Image Manipulation Program
TED.com has some excellent talks related to the collaborative system behind open-source software and social applications