How Would You Argue for Open Source?

Nate asks: "I am currently working for an international corporation, and the site I am working at was (until very recently) entirely run on Windows. We recently purchased a Solaris server, and I am in charge of setting it up and resetting the global UNIX standard. The problem is that management doesn't want to install software that does not have 24 hour, worldwide support available along with it, yet they want the capabilities that only open source software can provide on a UNIX platform (VNC, OpenSSH, etc..) without spending insane amounts of money. I was wondering how the Slashdot community deals with convincing management that Open Source software is safe to use when creating a global standard, and what your solutions have been to supporting users working with open source software." Two years ago, Slashdot tackled the Enterprise Support question. Now, say you had that particular problem solved and the only thing left is that all-important pitch to Upper Management. What arguments would you use in your attempts to get their approval? What statistics and references would you point to, in order to back everything up?

Comments

For stats, see "Why OSS/FS? Look at the Numbers!"

[dwheeler]

For statistics about open source software / Free Software, see my paper, "Why Open Source Software / Free Software? Look at the Numbers!", at http://www.dwheeler.com/oss_fs_why.html . It has a large collection of information you'll probably find useful.

You just can't beat

[PotatoHead]

this guy if you want all the Microsoft dirt present and future.

http://www.aaxnet.com/editor/edit021.html

That is his latest. Look around on the site a little. Lots of stuff there with many current references.

24 Hour Linux/OSS Support

[BrianWCarver]

No, I don't work for them, but Linuxcare has a professional looking website using the CEO-lingo that might comfort the big-wigs you need to convince. There are other companies that support Free Software too, check out Red Hat's Support Services. A site called OpenEnterprise looks to have a ton of resources on exactly what you're asking for.

Also, take a look at IT Management's special report on Linux. It offers a lot of ammo to you in making a presentation. You can point to the other heavy-hitters that are using Free solutions and have concrete examples of success.

The same site even has an article entitled Selling the 'Suits' on your IT project which looks to have some good advice for you.

Re:She's right.

[MmmmAqua]

Um, I'm all for MySQL (we use it locally on my company's web servers), but are you also going to estimate the labor costs involved in recovering a failed MySQL database, or the labor costs involved in making MySQL fault-tolerant?

MySQL has many strengths, but reliability on an enterprise scale isn't one of them. MySQL is best suited for "edge" services, or for convenience services in-house. Oracle may gouge you for every cent they can, but there really aren't any databases that can compete with Oracle for enterprise features.

That said, TCO shouldn't be one of your arguments. In my experience, the best arguments address the suitability of the package/software to the problem, the ease of deployment, and scalability. Every time I've heard someone bring up TCO, somebody else asks about support. And USENET is not a suitable answer for most technical directors. If your company uses Oracle, BTW, you should point out that Oracle's recommended platform for new installations is Linux. You don't get a much better endorsement than that (at least, as far as your bosses are concerned).

#include "disclaimer.h"