What is Open Source?

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Posted by michael on Tuesday June 24, 2003 @05:05AM from the if-you-have-to-ask dept.

s390 writes "The Inquirer is running an article by Olliance about "What is Open Source?" It appears to be the first of a two-part series for managers about how to engage with the open source community. The writers seem to know their material. Are they on target or have they missed something important? Do PHBs really need to read this sort of introduction to get comfortable with the idea of using Linux and other open source software?"

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Re:GNU's definition by ronfar · 2003-06-24 05:19 · Score: 4, Informative

Actually, I think here is a more accurate view of the GNU Foundations ideas about Open Source Software.

--
All the creatures will die, And all the things will be broken. That's the law of samurai. (Jubai, 1605)
Re:Not obvious by Milo+Fungus · 2003-06-24 05:59 · Score: 4, Informative
Agreed. As a greenie geek I spent a lot of time just getting up to speed. To save you some Googling (which is a great way to learn about OS/FS), let me post some links for you. These were articles that I've found particularly helpful.
- GNUWin II Articles Directory - A good collection of famous FS/OS articles.
- Philosophy section of the GNU Project - This is the extreme left wing of free software. I personally prefer a more moderate approach, but the ideas are engaging.
- Interview with Andreas Pour of the KDE Project - This interview did much to convert me to open source philosophies.
- Legal Concepts section of CreativeCommons.org - Masterminded by Lawrence Lessig, the legal champion of the public commons. One of the greatest minds working for the cause of FS/OS. He also has a couple of books that you might consider reading. I've read the first one and found it quite interesting.
Some of these weren't around when I was getting into things. Creative Commons came a bit later. Most of my earliest reading was from GNU. You've already found Slashdot, which is one of the best resources for learning about FS/OS, especially as it relates to current developments.

One word of caution: FS/OS is a religion. People can be very zealous about their views on it. Be careful as you formulate your own opinions, which will likely change over time. When in doubt, choose a more moderate approach. (If you're interested, my personal views can be found here.)

I hope this is helpful. Well, off to more reading myself...