Posts Tagged ‘proprietary software’

Just curious. What are the key features that MS Office has over other free word processors that make people pay hundreds of dollars for it? I am by no way saying that Open Source is better than proprietary software, in fact, most proprietary normally has more user-friendly options and sometimes more features, but I think people should consider it.
Open Office and Libre Office is compatible with MS Office files too.

I have a friend who has been using proprietary software since long. How can I introduce her to the open source community. Which websites should I show?
Yes everyone! I’ve shown her a DVD of Mint and she would like to join the community. Now how to take her into the community?

Hiya,
I got someone to write a piece of code for me that was meant to be proprietary software (i.e restricted to my terms). I have since found out that it uses a library that was written under the GNU GPL license.
My question is whether this whole program is now automatically open source / free (is the whole thing under the GNU GPL now?)?
Would be great if people can back up their answers with some references!
Thanks!

If a proprietary software provider want to open source its products, what are the principles or conditions it should take into consideration when deciding which software to be opened software and which not?

I am into Open Source. Every year, the competition with proprietary software just keeps on getting harder. It doesn’t help that our principal does not understand how our market works as well. It’s all about the numbers and the worst of it is that the principal has no money for marketing.

Once new software is unleashed into the current market, those who decide to use or develop the new software are often faced with the challenges of updating, protecting, maintaining, and overall improving the product. Because of the differences in structure between open and closed source software, the way in which it is supported and maintained varies as well.

Support for Closed Source

Closed, or proprietary software, is much different than open source software. The main difference between the two is the access of the source code. For closed source, access to the source code is denied and solely controlled by the developer of the software. This means that if a problem arises, or updates need to be made, the developer of the software is the only group that can make the appropriate changes.

This puts many companies and organizations at the mercy of the closed source software developers. If the developers choose not to update or fix any problems, the organization that utilizes the software will be stuck with a useless product. Having to filter any and all problems through one location causes problems to be solved at a very slow pace. Users are not given the opportunity to attempt to fix the software on their own. While there may be alternative fixes, these are often illegal to use with proprietary software.

The main argument for closed source software is the ability to control the quality of the product. While this is a valid argument, the needs of all users can often overwhelm the developers, causing changes to come very slowly, if at all.

Support for Open Source

Unlike closed source, open source software makes the access code accessible to all users and developers. This allows users and developers to quickly take care of any issues that arise with the software. Instead of having to take all of your concerns to a centralized group, the users and developers are given the chance to create their own fixes.

This kind of innovation allows users to truly customize and control their software, with the support of the developer whenever needed. The resources available to users of open source software far exceeds those who use proprietary software. The potential for users to customize their software to meet the needs of their organization is practically endless. Organizations are only limited to the reaches of their own creativity.

While closed source software is less customizable, open source is less simple to control as far as quality is concerned. The potential of the software is completely in the hands of the users, meaning that development can either be very fast of very slow. Without careful planning, open source software can cause confusion, inconsistencies, and even compatibility problems. Users of open source software must be careful to avoid this type of confusion.

Contact an open source software developer [http://www.mpoweropen.com/support.shtml] to learn more about the advantages and disadvantages of open source software.

Author: Joseph Devine
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
Provided by: Hybrid and Electric Cars