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Author Topic: Blog Essay: Open Source vs. Closed - Another Look  (Read 5576 times)

mouser

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Blog Essay: Open Source vs. Closed - Another Look
« on: September 20, 2006, 10:03 AM »
Open Source vs. Closed - Another Look
An interesting article (and pointer to another), well worth a read even if you disagree.

In the past, it has been taken for granted by open source supporters (myself included) that the more open the process, the more easily one could build a community, fix bugs, add features, and trample the competition. However, I'm beginning to wonder if software need not necessarily be open source to actually derive the same benefits usually associated with the open source process. I've never been sold on open source as a means to get developers to write code for free. Rather, I always chalked up open source's continued success to a couple of factors: the more open process usually wins because the bar to access is lower and the internet has driven down the price of commodity software, thus creating an environment conducive to open source proliferation


housetier

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Re: Blog Essay: Open Source vs. Closed - Another Look
« Reply #1 on: September 24, 2006, 12:38 PM »
If only I could concentrate long enough to write down something like that. I have a myriad of ideas myself, but they never stick around long enough to "fix on paper".

I do take inspiration from this blog post, well from one of the comments. Highlighting the benefits for the user is a good argument I think.