Linux/Unix + Free & Open Source Software (FOSS).

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Description

Free and open source software is software that:

1. is free to use, copy, study and distribute
2. the source code is freely available

Note: the word free here means both Free as in freedom/liberty (libre) and free as in no cost (gratis). They are also known colloquially 'free as in speech' and 'free as in beer' respectively.

A more detailed description of FOSS is available on Wikipedia here.

FOSS Examples

Examples of FOSS are: Linux, Firefox, Thunderbird, LibreOffice, Apache Web Server and GNU, just to name a few.

A Note

Some open source software is provided by commercial entities. You can even buy open source products. What usually happens is that you can get the software for free and only pay for support. An example of this is Zabbix. Another way is that you buy the software in binary (executable) form (and get updates and support), but can freely get the source code. An example of this is Red Hat Enterprise Linux. See the Linux/Unix section for more details.

non-FOSS

In contrast, commercial proprietary software (CPS) is the opposite, it:

• usually costs money (some very expensive), though, some are free as in beer, but none are Free as in speech.
• is usually only distributed only in binary form (executable). So the source code is not available to users, therefore cannot be audited or modified by its users.
• is usually licensed in a manner to restrict is use and distribution.
• its interoperability with other 3rd party software is often hindered if not non-existent. This is what is called 'vendor lock-in'.

non-FOSS Examples

Examples of commercial proprietary software are: Microsoft Windows, Apple iOS, Adobe Photoshop, Oracle Database and Symantec Norton AntiVirus.

A Note

It is worth noting that some companies provide 'Open Source' version (or edition) of some of their products, but reserved the most valuable features for their commercial/enterprise versions, i.e. paid versions or through closed source extensions, modules, plugins or add-ons. One example of this is Oracle VirtualBox.

What does this all mean?

First, FOSS costs nothing to aquire (gratis). Also, since it is open source, it can be modified to suit its user's needs (open). The code can also be audited for security freely by anyone who wishes to do so. FOSS projects are usually communities of people that contribute to the project in whatever way they can, whether is code or support or documentation.

Another benefit is education. A person can simply take the source code and study it and learn about software development or how an operating system works or how does a web browser display a page or how a mail server works or whatever.

Everybody benefits from using FOSS. See the Solutions section for concrete examples of FOSS that can help you.

Not Convinced?

Only the bottom line matters? Here is a quick cost analysis:

Lets say we want software for a Basic home/small office desktop PC. You'll want: an operating system (OS), an office suite (Word Processor, Spreadsheet, Presentation), an antivirus application. Using the lowest prices found at popular stores:

Software Component	Name	Price (rounded) (CAD)
Operating System	Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium	$110
Office Suite	Microsoft Office Home & Student 2013 (non commercial use)	$130
Antivirus	Symantec Norton Antivirus 21 (one year only)	$40

Note: Prices based on October 2013 search of popular sources. Prices are in $CAD before taxes and/or shipping.

That's a total of $280 plus taxes for a very basic, limited software stack encumbered by usage restrictions. For a, lets say $400 system (hardware only), that is a considerable amount. Oh, and that's for only one PC, if you have another PC, guess what? That's another $280 plus taxes.

Now let's say we want software of a small or medium business with several employees and we need a bit more applications. You'll need the 'professional' editions: an 'Pro' OS, a fuller office suite (Word Processor, Spreadsheet, Presentation, Drawing Applications, Email Client, Database) and an Antivirus.

Software Component	Name	Price (rounded) (CAD)
Operating System	Microsoft Windows 8 Pro Upgrade (which means you have to add the price of an existing Windows OS)	$250
Office Suite	Microsoft Office Professional 2013	$250
Antivirus	Symantec Norton Antivirus 21 (one year only)	$40

Note: Prices based on October 2013 search of popular sources. Prices are in $CAD before taxes and/or shipping.

That's a total of $540 plus taxes per PC. Let's you there are 10 employees, that's $5400! Don't forget, if you want to do more, you have to pay more in the commercial/proprietary world.

What if you're a tinkerer. Well, in the proprietary world, you don't get to see what's running under the hood. Something is not running right? You only have access to a very limited set of tools and diagnostic information. Oh, you can get better tools, but guess what? Yup, that's right pay more! Welcome to the prison that is commercial and proprietary software.

Another ugly facet of commercial software, though not all, is the invasion of privacy. Certain software, which might not be considered malware, gathers information about its users and is sent to the makers or a 3rd party for their own use, sometime without the user's knowledge or consent. Without being able to see the source code, the users are in the dark as to what is REALLY gathered or sent.

Freedom!

Now compare that to a FOSS solution: OS: a Linux distribution, Office Suite: LibreOffice 4 with a Word Processor, Spreadsheet, Presentation, Database, Drawing program, Math program, email: Thunderbird, antivirus (not that it's that critical on a Linux system): ClamAV. Cost: $0!.

Also, let's say you are stuck using Windows, at least you can still use the Windows version of LibreOffice, Thunderbird and ClamAV.

Another great feature of a FOSS solutions is that it applies to any settings: home, small office, big business, school, community center, non-profit whatever! There are no usage restrictions. You want to do more, just do it! You don't need to budget for software or licensing when using FOSS. Ask yourself this:

Why would I waste money on software when free solutions exists with less restrictions?

To see what specific FOSS solutions exists for what you want to do, consult the Solutions section.

A Note

With that being said, I just want to clarify that I don't think that all commercial software is bad. There are times where specialized software is only available in commercial form or that the need it fills is so unique that it requires a lot of R&D and therefore money to develop. But that should be the exception, not the norm.

The more people have access to tools without restrictions to build, to educate, to create, etc..., the better it is for real innovation to shine through!

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