How to plan for popularization of open source Software compared with the proprietary software?

1. HOW TO PLAN FOR POPULARIZATION OF OPEN SOURCE SOFTWARE COMPARED WITH
THE PROPRIETARY SOFTWARE ?
By Waruna Kodituwakku, University of Colombo
INTRODUCTION
In terms of the users’ rights, software solutions can be generally classified into several categories.
Two of them are Open-source software (OSS) and Proprietary software (PS). PS is owned by an
individual or a company and users are given licenses to use it under certain conditions. Generally,
the Source Code (SC) is not given to the user while modification, further distribution, or reverse
engineering of PS by the user is restricted. Comparatively, OSS is available with the SC and the user
gets the rights and opportunities to modify or customize it on his own.
COMPARATIVE ADVANTAGES OF OSS
The public perception is that PS is more dependable and easier to implement. But in reality the PS
often needs to be customized to suit the user’s requirements and such modifications would be done
only by the proprietor’s staff or agents who may not be familiar with the local environment. (The
alternative would be that the user changes his systems and procedures to suit the PS.) Periodic
updates and trouble-shooting too would be handled similarly. All this adds to the total cost which
includes annual subscription too. A greatest risk is that if the proprietor of the PS ceases operations
due to bankruptcy or other reason, the user may become helpless and the PS becomes useless.
Comparatively, the initial cost of the OSS would be free or low, but for the user it requires dedicated
and competent staff for implementation as well as for maintenance. The cost of this may appear to
be substantial at first sight, but it has to be set off against the benefits of avoiding the regular fees
payable for PS. Other benefits of OSS are that it can be modified according to the user’s
requirements and trouble-shooting is attended promptly by in-house staff.
HOW TO POPULARIZE OPEN SOURCE SOFTWARE
If PS is being used today by a substantial number of organizations it is due to a historical
reason; when companies did not have sufficient IT expertise and were not confident about
OSS they opted for PS. Therefore, the key to popularize the OSS lies in making both the
public and private sectors aware of the comparative advantages of OSS. The private sector is
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2. concerned about the efficiency and cost and hence it would be easier to convince them the
advantages of a tailor made OSS and its lesser costs. However, the public sector may give
priority to the reliability of the system to handle large volumes of transactions. The fact that
OSS is less risky in the long run and would not require changing of existing processes and
procedures should be stressed for them. One pre-requisite to implement OSS is that
organizations should have the required IT expertise in-house.
This popularization plan of OSS can have the following components:
I. Organize exhibitions, discussions, or conduct special seminars to promote OSS. In
this way the public will understand and learn the relative advantages of OSS. To this
the services of experienced trainers and experts on OSS would be needed. In these
sessions free distribution of popular OSS will be also attractive.
II. Advertise OSS in mass media. Publish articles giving details of OSS’s relative merits in
dedicated print media. (E.g. - FOSS User Magazine in Sri Lanka) And build instructive
videos for public to learn and be confident by themselves about OSS.
III. Undergraduates and Students are made aware of OSS. It would be an investment for
the future. When students graduate and move in to companies, they will insist on
open source products. And give free support services to users of OSS such as
troubleshooting, re-install.
IV. Use Blogging, Social Networks to promote about starting, tips and advantages about
OSS. Benchmark OSS products with similar PS products and publish them.
V. Introduce OSS solutions instead of PS to IT development projects of government
(E.g. Nenasala Project in Sri Lanka). This will reduce cost of those projects and OSS
will be popularized.
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3. CONCLUSION
OSS differs from PS in terms of users’ rights and opportunities. PS have gathered some
mileage due to historical reasons and perception of being ‘ready-to-implement’. But it was
seen that OSS is more dependable, fits exactly with user’s requirements, less risky, high user
independence and perhaps less costly. Therefore, public should be made aware of OSS’s
comparative advantages. The components of a plan to popularize OSS under the above
theme were outlined in this report.
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