Starting point: Software

Even though sharing and collaboration has been around for as long as humans began to group together into tribes and civilizations, probably the most talked about Open Source projects have been software, in modern times.  We'll list some well known and some not so well known Free or Open Source software at the end of this article.


For this post, I will stay away from IP law regarding copyright and patent except to mention them in passing as one of the key elements that has created huge risk for those who wanted to share a DIY project.  Without a significant understanding of IP law, creating anything new and sharing it with the world, either for free or by way of business, can put a person at risk of copyright or patent infringement.

So it was that, while most people speak of Open Source, it was the ideals of an earlier, 1980's movement known as the "free software movement" that developed the underlying principles of what we have now.  As cited in the wikipedia article (which itself is described as a form of Open Source knowledge) of "Free Software : History", when computers were first being developed and used, software was often free to use, share, and change, and it was strongly encouraged for people to change software and share those changes.

The free software movement defined a lot of the etiquette around the sharing of software and source code, and also began to describe the framework for the legal concerns of copyright.  From the free software movement sprang the "Open Source Movement" in the late 1990's which many felt was more friendly to the corporate world.  While free software is free to use and possibly change, Open Source software isn't always free to use, although the code is generally free to change and / or share depending on certain rules, dependant on the licensing.

As the years went by, a number of different licenses were created to help ensure the protection of the original authors as well as those who might use, change, and share the software.  Nevertheless, we now have a very strong and effective Open Source software community producing some excellent options for everyone.

Well known companies such as Apple and Sony use open source software in their products.  Both use derivatives of Linux in some of their operating systems and Sony uses certain Open Source applications in their PS/3 and PS/4 gaming consoles.  There are many other companies that use open source and if you have an Android device, you are using open source as Android itself is based on Linux.  The benefits to a company that utilizes open source is vast.

With that, here is a very short list of Open Source software that you may or may not be aware of and is generally available free of charge, as well:

Linux (for those who do not know, it is an operating system just as Windows or OSX is)

Mozilla software (such as firefox browser and thunderbird email)

Apache web server (The premiere web server software that pretty much started the internet as we know it and is still believed to service over 90% of all web sites, world wide

ClamAV (while linux and derivative operating systems are not prone to viruses due to their underlying security, this very capable antivirus program has been created for operating systems which are more targeted and vulnerable)

OpenOffice / LibreOffice (office productivity suites like Wordperfect or MS Office)

Gimp (a graphics program like PhotoShop)

Gnu Cash (a double entry accounting program like Quickbooks or Simply Accounting)

PiTiVi (a non-linear video editor like iMovie or Adobe Premiere)

LMMS / Ardour (audio DAW which are commercial quality and directly compete in markets that are serviced by Pro Tools)

Open Source games (from first person shooters to card games, RPG, side scrollers and more)

For many more open source software, one need look no further than Source Forge.  One of the original web sites which encouraged and helped enable those who wanted to start open source software projects.