DIT1221 – FREE AND OPEN SOURCE

SOFTWARE

CHAPTER 1
By: Mr. Kato Kenneth– FICT Faculty.

Diploma in Information Technology

 What is the meaning of open source?
2

❑ The term "open source" refers to something people can modify

and share because its design is publicly accessible. The term
originated in the context of software development to designate a
specific approach to creating computer programs.
❑ Today, however, "open source" designates a broader set of
values—what we call "the open source way“. Open source
projects, products, or initiatives embrace and celebrate principles
of open exchange, collaborative participation, rapid prototyping,
transparency, and community-oriented development.
❑ To summarize the meaning of Open Source, we are actually
looking at projects that are not proprietary, free to use, free to
alter and are based on community-oriented development.

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 What is open source software?
3

❑ Open source software is computer software that has a source

code available to the general public for use as is or with
modifications. This software typically does not require a license
fee.
❑ There are open source software applications for a variety of
different uses such as office automation, web design, content
management, operating systems, and communications.
❑ Open source software is unique in that it is always released under
a license that allows users to access, modify and redistribute the
source code. The key fact that makes open source software (OSS)
different from proprietary software is its license.

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 The open source software definition
4

❑ As copyright material, software is almost always licensed. The

license indicates how the software may be used. OSS is unique in
that it is always released under a license that has been certified
to meet the criteria of the Open Source Definition.
❑ These criteria under the Open Source Definition include the right
to:
❑ Redistribute the software without restriction
❑ Access the source code
❑ Modify the source code
❑ Distribute the modified version of the software.

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 Proprietary software vs open source software
5

❑ Some software has source code that only the person, team, or
organization who created it—and maintains exclusive control
over it—can modify. People call this kind of software
"proprietary" or "closed source" software.
❑ Only the original authors of proprietary software can legally
copy, inspect, and alter that software.
❑ And in order to use proprietary software, computer users must
agree (usually by signing a license displayed the first time they
run this software) that they will not do anything with the software
that the software's authors have not expressly permitted.
❑ Microsoft Office and Adobe Photoshop are examples of
proprietary software

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 Examples of free and open source software
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❑ Linux (operating system)

❑ KDE, GNOME, Xfce (desktop environments)
❑ Android (phone operating system/environment)
❑ Apache (web server)
❑ MySQL, PostgreSQL (DBMS's/servers)
❑ Perl, PHP, Python (scripting languages)
❑ OpenOffice (office software suite)
❑ GCC (GNU compiler collection)

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 Examples of free and open source software
cont’d
7

❑ GNU toolchain: Autoconf, make, etc.

❑ Git, Subversion, CVS (version control systems)
❑ OpenSSH (SSH server)
❑ Sendmail, Postfix (email transport software)
❑ Octave (GNU Matlab clone)
❑ GIMP (image manipulation a la Photoshop)
❑ Wordpress (blogging)
❑ Drupal (content management system)

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 Characteristics of open source software
8

❑ Often built collaboratively via Internet.

❑ Support for FOSS is typically provided via mail lists, newsgroups,
and web forums.
❑ Most FOSS is free of cost (“free beer”), so no continual cost for
“upgrades.”
❑ Not limited to running single instance or having to guarantee
license provisions are being met.
❑ Many companies exist to provide support or customization for
businesses using FOSS.
❑ Open source software usually is distributed under an open
source license that a user has to accept to use the software.

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 History of free and open source software
9

❑ 1960's and 1970's: software was largely provided by computer

companies and freely shared
❑ 1969: UNIX developed at AT&T Bell Labs.
❑ 1969: ARPANET created
❑ 1970's: AT&T provides CS departments with UNIX source code
and encouraged modifications (could not sell due to 1974
antitrust findings)
❑ 1975: Microsoft founded, first product is BASIC for MITS Altair
(an early microcomputer)
❑ 1976: Bill Gates accuses hobbyists of stealing his software, thus
preventing “good software from being written” (of course he
paid nothing for BASIC)

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 History of free and open source software cont’d
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❑ 1976: US amends copyright law, no longer requires explicit

registration, etc
❑ 1980: US copyright law amended to cover software
❑ 1980: Microsoft launches UNIX-clone XENIX for16-bit
microprocessors
❑ 1981: Bill Gates makes deal to buy DOS for $50,000 (without
mentioning pending IBM PC deal)
❑ 1981: Launch of the IBM PC with MS-DOS
❑ 1980's: rise of proprietary software, companies quit sharing
code and allowing modifications, and started charging lots of
money for software.

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 History of free and open source software cont’d
11

❑ 1980's: IBM is #1 computer company with DEC #2 (DEC strongly

associated with ARPANET but DEC anti-UNIX despite UNIX being
developed on PDPs)
❑ 1982: AT&T divestiture (breakup) allows UNIX to be sold and
the “UNIX wars” begin
❑ 1982: Sun Microsystems born: UNIX workstations
❑ 1982: Larry Wall creates patch utility for UNIX, enables
distributed, collaborative development
❑ 1983: DARPA-funded BSD UNIX TCP/IP released
❑ Early 1980s: ARPANET and UNIX hacker communities begin to
converge on UNIX and C

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 History of free and open source software cont’d
12

❑ 1984: MIT hacker Richard Stallman starts GNU project to

promote “free software.”
❑ 1984: X Window project begun at MIT to develop GUI for UNIX,
supported by most UNIX vendors
❑ 1985: POSIX starts to standardize UNIX
❑ Mid 1980's: DEC Vaxes running UNIX begin to take over
ARPANET/NSFNET infrastructure duties
❑ 1985: NSFNET created (ARPANET successor, and start of the
civilian Internet)
❑ 1985: Intel releases i386 chip, first 8086 CPU with flat address
space that could support UNIX well

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 History of free and open source software cont’d
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❑ 1987: Larry Wall releases PERL, FOSS scripting language, for

UNIX
❑ 1987: first version of GNU C compiler released, and GNU
development toolset largely complete
❑ Late 1980's: DEC and UNIX vendors continue to ignore the rise
of Pcs and Intel microprocessors, allowing Microsoft to take over
much of the market, and ultimately leading to the demise of DEC
❑ 1987: source code (in C) for MINIX (mini UNIX like OS) released
for educational purposes by Prof Andrew Tanenbaum (but does
not become FOSS until 2000)
❑ 1990: first serious effort to port UNIX to i386 chips was begun:
386BSD (but project collapsed when sponsors wanted
proprietary licensing)
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 History of free and open source software cont’d
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❑ 1990: Berkeley begins effort to remove all proprietary AT&T

code from BSD UNIX
❑ 1991: Finnish CS grad student Linus Torvalds announces Linux
project on USENET, with goal of producing a UNIX-like OS for Pcs
(like MINIX), due to high cost of commercial UNIX like Sun Solaris
❑ 1992: AT&T sues Berkeley over BSD UNIX, largely halting UNIX
development at Berkeley
❑ 1994: AT&T/Berkeley lawsuit settlement allows BSD UNIX to be
released, free of AT&T code
❑ Mid 1990's: liberal BSD license allows companies (including
Microsoft) to use BSD code in their products, leading to Berkeley
sockets becoming the de facto network programming API.

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 History of free and open source software cont’d
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❑ Mid 1990's: Linux with GNU tools becomes the primary UNIX-
like OS on PCs
❑ 1995: Red Hat Software is founded, one of the first commercial
Linux distributions
❑ 1996: KDE desktop project started, but relied on non-free
Trolltech QT toolkit
❑ 1997: FOSS projects GTK toolkit and GNOME desktop are
started over concerns about QT
❑ 1997: Eric Raymond publishes The Cathedral and the Bazaar,
arguing that open source development models produce better
code, which he summarized with what he termed “Linus Law”:
“with enough eyes, all bugs are shallow.”

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 History of free and open source software cont’d
16

❑ 1998: Trolltech re-licenses QT under “free” license

❑ 1998: Netscape decides to open source its primary product,
Netscape Navigator browser
❑ 1998: Eric Raymond and others found the Open Source Initiative
(OSI) to promote “open source software” and to counter
Stallman's extremism
❑ Late 1990's: Intel-based platforms running Linux begin to
commoditize the UNIX workstation market, starting the decline of
UNIX workstation vendors such as Sun and Silicon Graphics
❑ Late 1990's: Apache web server on Intel-based Linux machines
begin to dominate the Internet web server market

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 History of free and open source software cont’d
17

❑ 2000's: Linux is increasingly widely used in corporate

environments, particularly for servers
❑ 2000's: Linux development is supported by numerous
corporations that view it as commoditizing operating systems,
reducing their reliance on Microsoft and eliminating the “Microsoft
tax.”
❑ 2000's: open source software projects involving Internet-based
collaborative programming become common, and commoditize
many types of software
❑ 2000's: virtually all supercomputers run Linux
❑ 2003: SCO sues IBM over claimed “UNIX IP” illegally
transferred to Linux

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 History of free and open source software cont’d
18

❑ 2007: SCO loses in court against Novell over ownership of UNIX

IP, effectively ending IBM suit (plus repeatedly fails to prove
UNIX is in Linux)
❑ 2007: Sun finally re-licenses Java under free license (but see
below)
❑ 2007: Google releases Android OS based on Linux
❑ 2010: Oracle sues Google over Java-related technology
patents in Android
❑ Late 2000's on: Microsoft threatens Android over claimed Linux
patent infringements (that it won't name!), extorts license fees
from HTC and others
❑ 2011: Android becomes the most widely sold OS on smart
phones

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 How is open source software useful to
businesses
19

 Lower Costs: Open source software usually does not require a licensing
fee and its lower cost is generally one of the key reasons why small
businesses choose to adopt this software. Make sure that you consider
the total costs of ownership when considering open source software.
 Flexibility: A programmer can take a standard software package and
modify it to better suit business needs. You can usually hire a
programmer to add a particular function to open source software.
 Reduces “Vendor Lock-in”: If you are using proprietary software you
may be restricted to using certain vendors. Switching vendors in this
case usually involves significant costs. Keep in mind though that choosing
an OSS product may not make you totally independent of vendors. For
some OSS products there may be a limited number of vendors that can
provide you with services, upgrades or security patches.

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 How is open source software useful to
businesses
20

 Reliability and Quality: When looking at improved quality, you have

to compare the products themselves. It is impossible to say that open
source software is better than proprietary software in terms of
reliability and quality – both have a range of products.
 However, mature open source software is generally viewed to be of
good quality and reliability. If your business is not familiar with open
source software, you may only want to review some of the more
mature products (e.g. Linux, Apache and Sendmail).
 Affordability: Free and Open Source software is generally
affordable and small businesses can use the software with little pay
or even use it totally free.

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21

Thank you

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