Open Source Software, a phrase that excites many while terrifying others. Some companies hate it, some even loathe it, while there are others who have embraced it. My wife often asks why we use certain programs like Open Office or ClamWin and I explain to her the financial benefits of these programs while demonstrating that we achieve the same functionality as the same programs we’d have to pay for. On several computers I have installed and troubleshot over the past few years have been loaded up with open source software. Sure the people complain about it not being Microsoft Word or the virus scanner not having the Symantec name attached to it, but once they realize the they are getting the same functionality with a lot less expense they quickly quiet down.
What started this? Well to be honest it was Firefox, but this was back when Firefox went by the name Phoenix and was severely an alpha release. I was stuck in using Internet Explorer and hated it but when my friend showed me Phoenix, I was sold instantly. I instantly realized that I could have a lot of the things I liked about web browsing without having a lot of the things I didn’t and that opened a whole new world to me. As the years went on I began using more and more open source software, even switching to a linux only lifestyle for about one year of my life. I started to understand that the ability to have a machine that only had what I wanted on it and nothing more was a possibility and that I could get it without spending a dime on software made it that much more appealing.
See one has to understand, that I was raised to believe that stealing is wrong and these days to have legitimate software you have to pay out the nose for it. Have you seen the prices for Windows XP (heck even the prices for the upcoming Windows Vista?) or Microsoft Office? Symantec requires a yearly subscription to receive virus definition and other security updates. I have a strong desire to run legitimate software on my PC and while I’ll admit that I don’t always do that, I can say that my Windows XP is legit and that WGA will have zero effect on my PC.
So how does open source software help me? For starters it allows me to freely use software that I need. Open Office is invaluable as I type documents and do spreadsheets. When my sister’s boyfriend needed to create a PowerPoint presentation, I was able to load up Open Office Impress and send him on his way. And all the files are very compatible with Microsoft Office programs. I do this without having to pay the Microsoft premium. My virus scanner is ClamWin which is based on the open source virus scanner ClamAV. I get virus definitions updates almost daily and the memory footprint for ClamWin is small, 4 megabytes is the most memory I’ve seen it use at any given moment. Another great piece of open source software that I use almost daily is PDFCreator, this program installs a “printer” called “PDFCreator” onto my computer and allows me to print anything to PDF. It does wonders when scanning bills or other important documents to my computer. In fact both my websites (this one and http://www.thekobys.com) are run on open source software including (but certainly not limited to): Apache, Drupal, PHP, and MySql.
You might be asking yourself, “Michael, are there downsides to using open source software?” and I do have to be honest and say that yes, there are some downsides. First and foremost is support, while the communities for open source in general as well as the individual projects themselves can be very helpful, you are out of luck if your the only person experiencing a problem. Also, the idea of a corporate entity supporting the open source software is pretty much non-existent (except in like maybe 2-3 cases) so a lot of times you are left to your own devices for solving a problem. Other downsides include compatibility. For instance, I own an iPod, and while there are several open source options for iPod synchronization, iTunes remains the best options for some of the things I do like smart playlists, photos, and videos. The other item on the compatibility list is Open Office, there are some things that will break either going to Microsoft Word or opening something from Word in Open Office Writer, same with Excel and Open Office Calc. Things just still are not 100%. Though with the acceptance of the Open Document Standard, you might see a lot of those issues go away. However, I have yet to have major compatibility issues with any of my open source software, but everyone’s mileage will vary based upon the different needs of the public.
Now, what would I recommend for the person new to open source? For starters, drop Internet Explorer and download Firefox, it’s simple interface should be easy to migrate to and since it will import your favorites from Internet Explorer a new user can hit the ground running. After that I would advise moving over to Open Office for all the office-ing needs of documents, spreadsheets, and powerpoint presentations. There is an option (Tools\Options\Load/Save\General) for the user to decide what the default file format they save as will be and for me I have set them all to the Microsoft Office equivalents. Once they have Open Office installed, they should probably move on to ClamWin for Antivirus.
Anyone have experience with open source software they would care to share? Leave a comment.
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Michael Koby 
Open Source Software and Why I Use It
Open Source Software, a phrase that excites many while terrifying others. Some companies hate it, some even loathe it, while there are others who have embraced it. My wife often asks why we use certain programs like Open Office or ClamWin and I explain to her the financial benefits of these programs while demonstrating that we achieve the same functionality as the same programs we’d have to pay for. On several computers I have installed and troubleshot over the past few years have been loaded up with open source software. Sure the people complain about it not being Microsoft Word or the virus scanner not having the Symantec name attached to it, but once they realize the they are getting the same functionality with a lot less expense they quickly quiet down.
What started this? Well to be honest it was Firefox, but this was back when Firefox went by the name Phoenix and was severely an alpha release. I was stuck in using Internet Explorer and hated it but when my friend showed me Phoenix, I was sold instantly. I instantly realized that I could have a lot of the things I liked about web browsing without having a lot of the things I didn’t and that opened a whole new world to me. As the years went on I began using more and more open source software, even switching to a linux only lifestyle for about one year of my life. I started to understand that the ability to have a machine that only had what I wanted on it and nothing more was a possibility and that I could get it without spending a dime on software made it that much more appealing.
See one has to understand, that I was raised to believe that stealing is wrong and these days to have legitimate software you have to pay out the nose for it. Have you seen the prices for Windows XP (heck even the prices for the upcoming Windows Vista?) or Microsoft Office? Symantec requires a yearly subscription to receive virus definition and other security updates. I have a strong desire to run legitimate software on my PC and while I’ll admit that I don’t always do that, I can say that my Windows XP is legit and that WGA will have zero effect on my PC.
So how does open source software help me? For starters it allows me to freely use software that I need. Open Office is invaluable as I type documents and do spreadsheets. When my sister’s boyfriend needed to create a PowerPoint presentation, I was able to load up Open Office Impress and send him on his way. And all the files are very compatible with Microsoft Office programs. I do this without having to pay the Microsoft premium. My virus scanner is ClamWin which is based on the open source virus scanner ClamAV. I get virus definitions updates almost daily and the memory footprint for ClamWin is small, 4 megabytes is the most memory I’ve seen it use at any given moment. Another great piece of open source software that I use almost daily is PDFCreator, this program installs a “printer” called “PDFCreator” onto my computer and allows me to print anything to PDF. It does wonders when scanning bills or other important documents to my computer. In fact both my websites (this one and http://www.thekobys.com) are run on open source software including (but certainly not limited to): Apache, Drupal, PHP, and MySql.
You might be asking yourself, “Michael, are there downsides to using open source software?” and I do have to be honest and say that yes, there are some downsides. First and foremost is support, while the communities for open source in general as well as the individual projects themselves can be very helpful, you are out of luck if your the only person experiencing a problem. Also, the idea of a corporate entity supporting the open source software is pretty much non-existent (except in like maybe 2-3 cases) so a lot of times you are left to your own devices for solving a problem. Other downsides include compatibility. For instance, I own an iPod, and while there are several open source options for iPod synchronization, iTunes remains the best options for some of the things I do like smart playlists, photos, and videos. The other item on the compatibility list is Open Office, there are some things that will break either going to Microsoft Word or opening something from Word in Open Office Writer, same with Excel and Open Office Calc. Things just still are not 100%. Though with the acceptance of the Open Document Standard, you might see a lot of those issues go away. However, I have yet to have major compatibility issues with any of my open source software, but everyone’s mileage will vary based upon the different needs of the public.
Now, what would I recommend for the person new to open source? For starters, drop Internet Explorer and download Firefox, it’s simple interface should be easy to migrate to and since it will import your favorites from Internet Explorer a new user can hit the ground running. After that I would advise moving over to Open Office for all the office-ing needs of documents, spreadsheets, and powerpoint presentations. There is an option (Tools\Options\Load/Save\General) for the user to decide what the default file format they save as will be and for me I have set them all to the Microsoft Office equivalents. Once they have Open Office installed, they should probably move on to ClamWin for Antivirus.
Anyone have experience with open source software they would care to share? Leave a comment.
[Technorati Tag: Commentary]
[Technorati Tag: Technology]
[Technorati Tag: Open Source]
[Technorati Tag: Software]