Open Source for SETI Software?

CommonModeNoise asks: "The SETI Institute is thinking about going to an open source model for some of our software. We have little experience with Open Source so we would like to ask the following: To what degree can an open-source project be self-managing -- how many of our staff will be needed to keep such an activity running productively? How can we deal with the lunatic fringe that will be attracted to something as provocative as SETI? Can open source development proceed at the same speed as traditional in-house development, or will it be slower? Some of our software controls hardware, for example the Allen Telescope Array; can such control software be developed using open source methods or are we better off focussing on the software-only systems, such as the next generation of our signal detectors? Finally, could we please get some suggestions as to what to read to get a better grasp of the varieties of open source development models and their respective good and bad points."

Comments

Re:As a seti@home troll.....

[Pharmboy]

I dont know nothin either, all I know is if a program is running on my computer 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, I'd really like to have some insight as to what its doing.

So you don't use Windows then? Ever? You ever install RPMs or any binaries without reading the source? You compile your own kernel and read ALL the source code of a Linux distro before you install? If you DID read all the source, how many hours would it take? Are you qualified to find any security problems with it? I am guessing not since you say you don't know nothing.

No matter who you are, you are running binaries on your system that you don't have the source
for, or have not read and analysed the source for.

To imply you don't want to run it soley because you can't see the source that you admit you wouldn't understand, qualifies you as a bonified troll.