Learning Entry Blog 8 - Open Source Software

Open Source Software (OSS) is a concept that began in 1983 which calls for software to be made open to the public to edit for their needs instead of having it controlled by the company that makes it. One of the more famous OSS programs on the internet today is the Mozilla Firefox browser. Unlike Windows' Internet Explorer, which is made and monitored by Microsoft, Firefox is made by the public and is controlled by the public. There are many different apps and themes and buttons that can be downloaded for Firefox. All of these were made by people for the purpose of bettering Firefox and were not made by any large company for the sake of making money.

OSS is great in that there is virtually a free program for every brand name product out there. This is great for people who are on a budget or even just for people who want to have fun with a program but don't want to spend a lot of money on brand name software. There are free versions Microsoft Office and Photoshop, both very pricey programs, that people who are tight on money, such as students and people with low incomes, can afford.

While OSS is great it does have limitations. First, while there are many equivalent programs to brand name programs they are still not quite equal. Brand name programs have a lot of money put into them by their developers in order to insure that they work properly while OSS might not be developed as thoroughly. Also when something goes wrong with a brand name program you can call up the developer and they will help you with your problem. OSS, if it is developed by a single person or small group, might not have that option. And finally, if a program is to be used by a large business they will probably want a brand name program for its tech support and guarantee.

I think that OSS has a place in the medical field or any field for that matter. It is very useful regardless of what profession you are in. Whether you are a med student, a doctor, or work in a hospital there is no reason why OSS would not be useful.

Here is a link to Source Forge, a very useful website with lots of OSS programs.