Most of us are of a perception that Open Source means “Free Software”. However, this is not exactly the case.
Open Source means
• Freedom to Use
• Freedom to Redistribute
• Freedom to Manipulate
Not all Open Source Applications are free. The author can charge the user in order to use his application. What is free is the author’s knowledge! You are free to study the code, modify it according to your needs, redistribute it, and even use it for your business needs. I am not giving you the exact picture of Open Source, neither am I giving you the wrong one (I hope).
I did not realize how much powerful Open Source is. May be I still do not know it as well, but I would like to share the little that I know with you all.
“It is easy to get a pirated copy of Microsoft Windows 7/Vista/XP. Try installing an Open-Source Operating System instead. Firstly, you feel happy that you are not stealing. The rest you will come to know when you use it. Do not frown that you do not have IE or MS Office. You will have thousands of options to choose from, and every one of them will be better!” This is what one of my Open-Source fanatic friends had to say.
You find Windows easier to use than any other Operating System. This is what we are told and made to believe. However, this is not exactly true! In fact, it is a plain lie. For Ages, I was under the notion that Linux-Based Operating Systems use command line arguments! Note that I have written “Linux-Based Operating Systems”. Yes, Linux is a Kernel, not an Operating System.
I felt embarrassed, even stupid when I learnt that Linux was as good as Windows, no even better. Read as no viruses and no frequent crashes without any reasons. That is why Linux-Based Operating Systems are used Servers. And yes, it has a user-friendly GUI. (Aren’t all GUIs? Think… Think…)
Of course, every OS has its flaws and one of the major flaws that Linux-Based Operating Systems (Red Hat, Fedora, Ubuntu, etc) have is “They are not marketed as well as Windows”.
It is widely believed that Windows Vista was the first OS to have brought 3D effects to the user. The Professor who enlightened us on Open Source begged to differ. Linux Fedora 7 had 3D Effects long before Windows Vista hit the markets!
Let us get back to our topic before I get carried away. Operating Systems are not the only Open-Source products that are available in the market. Surprised? Don’t be!
The next common Open-Source application that most of us will be aware of is “Mozilla Firefox”. Not only is the Firefox safer than the Internet Explorer, but it comes with loads of customized add-ons as well. Yep, it is fun! From email-clients (Mozilla Thunderbird) to Photo-Editors (Paint.NET) and PDF Readers (SumatraPDF), there is an Open Source Application for anything and everything.
The next time that you are not able to open a file format… Instead of googling for a “free download” of a Microsoft product or an Update for a Microsoft product e.g. Windows Media Player, try downloading the VLC Media Player. You might not get disappointed after all!
P.S. The irony about this piece of writing is… I am typing it out in Microsoft Word. It is bad that my company does not endorse Open-Source, completely. However, I am happy that I would have to open this document in Star Office writer at my home!
Open Source means
• Freedom to Use
• Freedom to Redistribute
• Freedom to Manipulate
Not all Open Source Applications are free. The author can charge the user in order to use his application. What is free is the author’s knowledge! You are free to study the code, modify it according to your needs, redistribute it, and even use it for your business needs. I am not giving you the exact picture of Open Source, neither am I giving you the wrong one (I hope).
I did not realize how much powerful Open Source is. May be I still do not know it as well, but I would like to share the little that I know with you all.
“It is easy to get a pirated copy of Microsoft Windows 7/Vista/XP. Try installing an Open-Source Operating System instead. Firstly, you feel happy that you are not stealing. The rest you will come to know when you use it. Do not frown that you do not have IE or MS Office. You will have thousands of options to choose from, and every one of them will be better!” This is what one of my Open-Source fanatic friends had to say.
You find Windows easier to use than any other Operating System. This is what we are told and made to believe. However, this is not exactly true! In fact, it is a plain lie. For Ages, I was under the notion that Linux-Based Operating Systems use command line arguments! Note that I have written “Linux-Based Operating Systems”. Yes, Linux is a Kernel, not an Operating System.
I felt embarrassed, even stupid when I learnt that Linux was as good as Windows, no even better. Read as no viruses and no frequent crashes without any reasons. That is why Linux-Based Operating Systems are used Servers. And yes, it has a user-friendly GUI. (Aren’t all GUIs? Think… Think…)
Of course, every OS has its flaws and one of the major flaws that Linux-Based Operating Systems (Red Hat, Fedora, Ubuntu, etc) have is “They are not marketed as well as Windows”.
It is widely believed that Windows Vista was the first OS to have brought 3D effects to the user. The Professor who enlightened us on Open Source begged to differ. Linux Fedora 7 had 3D Effects long before Windows Vista hit the markets!
Let us get back to our topic before I get carried away. Operating Systems are not the only Open-Source products that are available in the market. Surprised? Don’t be!
The next common Open-Source application that most of us will be aware of is “Mozilla Firefox”. Not only is the Firefox safer than the Internet Explorer, but it comes with loads of customized add-ons as well. Yep, it is fun! From email-clients (Mozilla Thunderbird) to Photo-Editors (Paint.NET) and PDF Readers (SumatraPDF), there is an Open Source Application for anything and everything.
The next time that you are not able to open a file format… Instead of googling for a “free download” of a Microsoft product or an Update for a Microsoft product e.g. Windows Media Player, try downloading the VLC Media Player. You might not get disappointed after all!
P.S. The irony about this piece of writing is… I am typing it out in Microsoft Word. It is bad that my company does not endorse Open-Source, completely. However, I am happy that I would have to open this document in Star Office writer at my home!
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