What is open source software?
Open Source software refers to software with open source code. Anyone can view the source code, copy it, change it and distribute it under the same terms as the original software's licence.
Why do people like Open Source?
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Control: View and change the code to your own needs. The free access to source code also means you can check it to make sure the code does not include anything you do not need.
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Training: Become better programmer by studying others' software, making your own software, sharing your work, and inviting people to comment and make improvements.
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Security: Work on the same piece of open source software with a worldwide community. The bugs, errors identification and correction is very fast since developers can propose solutions to the original author by known platforms such as GitHub, BitBucket or GitLab.
Please note that not all open source software is secured for users. Before considering an open source software, please do a quick research on it. The bigger the community contributing to the software, the safer and the better it is.
Where can you use your Open Source Software
The licence does not restrict anyone from making use of the program in a specific field.
When can you be charged for an Open Source Software?
Many of us misunderstand Open Source Software as free software. As we have seen before, Open Source simply means that the source code is open to everyone to examine, copy and modify. Below are the two most common cases when users can be charged for open source software.****
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Open source software programmers can charge fees for the open source software they create or to which they contribute. The source code stays available to you and others.
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Programmers can charge users for software services and support. The software remains free, they make money from installation, implementation or troubleshooting.
Who is it for?
- Programmers
- Non-Programmers
How could you benefit from it?
- Programmers : View source code and improve software freely.
- Non-Programmers: Free software to work and use.
At ACTE Technology we like to think that Open Source software is beyond all attitude. It is a worldwide community with the willingness to create, share and collaborate with others to improve software. It is about giving everyone access to source code so they can play an active role in improving software. It teaches people to work together, to mind more about people around them and to know how to listen to others.