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What is Open Source Technology? | ||||||||||||||||||||
| In its simplest form, Open Source technology is the antithesis of proprietary technology. Open Source technology prides itself in exposing ‘the guts’ (source code) of what makes an application tick. Typically collaborative, application development team members (programmers, testers, architects, project managers) from around the world contribute in building applications. One of the most attractive features of Open Source technology is that it is by nature offered free of cost.Professional Open Source organizations engage in the support and maintenance of Open Source technology comparable to that of proprietary technology.
Typically Open Source organizations are passionate about certain technology and are not driven by profits or margins. The Open Source Initiative defines the following requirements for technology to be called Open Source:
For a description of the requirements, please visit the Open Source website. |
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Licensing in Open Source | ||||||||||||||||||||
| The most popular licensing models in Open Source are: GPL, LGPL and BSD licensing models. GLP and LGPL and defined by the GNU Project, while BSD (Berkeley Software Distribution) is defined by University of California, Berkeley. | |||||||||||||||||||||
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What are the benefits of Open Source? | ||||||||||||||||||||
The following are some of the benefits of Open Source:
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Why is Open Source the wave of the future? | ||||||||||||||||||||
| The lost cost of acquisition of Open Source technology promotes its adoption. Most care providers cite the lack of incentives as the basis for the slow rate of adoption of standards based Healthcare Information Management Systems. Open Source technologies offer care providers an increased ROI compared to proprietary systems. | |||||||||||||||||||||
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Mitigating Risk | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Because Open Source software is free, it is not bundled with the level of support and maintenance that proprietary vendors offer. Organizations wishing to adopt Open Source technology must weigh the pros and cons of Open Source versus other proprietary technology before choosing the best fit. Organizations seeking to adopt of Open Source technology will require professional who can maintain and support the technology. Professionals supporting Open Source technology implementations should be familiar with the various security aspects so as to make the implementation as secure as possible. | |||||||||||||||||||||
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Lack of proper testing and documentation | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Because Open Source technologies typically do not follow well defined development methodologies, they sometimes overlook testing and documentation. Organizations that choose to adopt Open Source technology should be able to gauge the reliability and vulnerability of their implementations.Knowing where the risks lie (identifying the points of failure) is crucial in making choices between Open Source and proprietary technology. | |||||||||||||||||||||
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To Know More | ||||||||||||||||||||
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Open Source Definition
Licensing Models
Open Source Healthcare projects
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