Open Source Software: The Case Against

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Open Source SoftwareThe Case Against

• Brian Kelly
• UKOLN
• University of Bath
• Bath, BA2 7AY

Email B.Kelly_at_ukoln.ac.uk URL http//www.ukoln.ac.
uk/
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What Is Open Source?

• Open source can mean
• Free as in free beer
• For the educational section with limited funded,
  this must be good
• Free as in free speech
• Freedom to view source, modify source,
  redistribute source and redistribute modifications

Free software is a matter of liberty not price.
Free software is a matter of the users' freedom
to run, copy, distribute, study, change and
improve the software.
http//www.gnu.org/philosophy/free-sw.html
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60s Thinking?

• Make love not war
• Was Paul a hippy?
• What have we learnt?

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Big Business?

• Its not hippy-thinking - big business now likes
  open source!

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The Public Sector

• The Public Sector (Universities, Government, EU,
  )
• Has a responsibility to make deliverables freely
  available to taxpayers
• Is in a position to build on open source products
  (Apache, etc.) and ensure independence from
  commercial software vendors
• We should be doing this!

Isnt open source software developed in HE often
intended to provide proof-of-concept or pilots,
and once the concept has been accepted commercial
products will be deployed to provide a service

• But
• This is a simplistic view
• Public sector has a responsibility to provide
  value for money and this could include
  financial exploitation of its IPR (exist
  strategies, paying for staff on short-term
  contracts, etc.)
• It was a mistake for the Government to run a Dome
  why expect public bodies to become software
  developers
• Links between commercial and public sector is now
  mainstream - and to ignore the prevailing
  cultural ethos is hippy crap!

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Has It Taken Off?

• Much Talk, Little Action!
• ltwww.opensource.ac.ukgt was set up in 1998, but
  the home page hasnt been updated since June 1999!

Viewing using the free (as in beer), ad-funded,
closed source, standards-compliant Opera browser
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Open Source Delivers Quality?

• Open source will deliver quality software, as
  millions of developers can contribute to the code
  base and review the software! Apache proves this.

• But
• This is a simplistic view
• Netscape / Mozilla is a good example of
  difficulties
• Netscape 6.0 released, based on open source
  Mozilla
• considered slow and buggy, and adoption has not
  been high
• Mozilla project started in 1998 whats it
  delivered, who uses it?
• Just because source code is available doesnt
  mean large nos. of developers will enhance it

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More Than Software

• There is more to the provision of quality IT
  services than just the software
• User requirements
• Documentation
• Ongoing support and maintenance

• Some comments
• End users tend not to be interested in open
  source
• Software developers often dont prioritise
  readable, user-oriented documentation
• Software developers dont like maintenance
• Who is interested in maintaining software
  developed under TLTP, eLib, ? Theyre not sexy
  anymore (no XML, no XSLT, no Java,)
• The software may be free but the institutional
  costs can be high

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What Do Users Want?

• Paraphrase of a recent conversation on train with
  IT Services director

We wanted to get rid of MS Office, due to the
increased licence fees. A Student Union rep
pointed out that the cost came to 9 per student,
and this was very cheap as it provided students
will experience of widely-used software, and this
expertise would be a valuable skill to be
mentioned in CVs. The Student Unions would
complain strongly on behalf of the student body
if MS Office were removed
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A One-Dimensional Approach

• What should you choose
• An open source product which
• Requires special libraries to be installed
• Requires manual editing of config files in a DOS
  window
• The documentation was written by a programmer for
  other programmers
• A free product for which
• No source is available
• Its used by millions
• Widespread documentation is available

• Web site on your Palm
• BK AvantGo link available
• AS Dont use AvantGo the source isnt
  available, use Plucker

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Free As In Beer

• Software which we dont have to pay for can be
  good value, and is often what we want
• ht//Dig
• Open source software for searching Web sites
• Most popular search tool in UK Universities
• But no evidence of mods made within community

• Google
• Popular global search engine of increasing use
  to search University Web sites (e.g. Leeds, )
• Free (as in beer)
• Closed and no control (algorithms secret and
  liable to change without warning, hosted
  remotely, no user groups, no financial
  relationships)
• But popular!

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Managerialism

• Familiar grips?
• Why doesnt senior management understand
• Why cant I get the resources I need for my Web
  team?

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Why You Should Reject The Motion

• The house believes that the future of Web in UK
  Higher and Further Education communities lies in
  the adoption of open source software
• Reject this motion because
• This one-dimensional motion ignores many equally,
  if not more, important issues
• Usability ? Skills ? User requirements ?
  Support
• Ignores organisations culture, background,
  mission, expertise,
• Forces organisations into a particular approach,
  and denies them choice

Note that a mixed open / closed source
environment is fine (and Apache is excellent)
but that isnt what this motion calls for
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What We Should Be Doing

• Open source does have a place, but
• There is a need to acknowledge there is not just
  a single approach
• We should be more tolerant in our communications
• We should acknowledge peoples rights to disagree
• We should be focussed and thoughtful in
  communications

Comments on positive features of licensed
software or reservations about open source
software seem to generate reactions similar to
George W Bushs reactions to those who criticise
US foreign policy!