Open source is source code that is made freely available for possible modification and redistribution. Products include permission to use the source code,[1] design documents,[2] or content of the product. The open source model is a decentralized software development model that encourages open collaboration.[3][4] A main principle of open source software development is peer production, with products such as source code, blueprints, and documentation freely available to the public. The open source movement in software began as a response to the limitations of proprietary code. The model is used for projects such as in open source appropriate technology,[5] and open source drug discovery.[6][7]
Open source promotes universal access via an open-source or free license to a product's design or blueprint, and universal redistribution of that design or blueprint.[8][9] Before the phrase open source became widely adopted, developers and producers used a variety of other terms, such as free software, shareware, and public domain software. Open source gained hold with the rise of the Internet.[10] The open-source software movement arose to clarify copyright, licensing, domain, and consumer issues.
Generally, open source refers to a computer program in which the source code is available to the general public for use or modification from its original design. Code is released under the terms of a software license. Depending on the license terms, others may then download, modify, and publish their version (fork) back to the community. Many large formal institutions have sprung up to support the development of the open-source movement, including the Apache Software Foundation, which supports community projects such as the open-source framework Apache Hadoop and the open-source HTTP server Apache HTTP.
- ^ "The Open Source Definition". Open Source Org. 7 July 2006. Archived from the original on 11 June 2007. Retrieved 22 January 2020.
Open source doesn't just mean access to the source code.
- ^ "What is Open Source Software". Diffingo Solutions Inc. Archived from the original on 28 October 2008. Retrieved 9 March 2023.
Open source software differs from other software because it has a less restrictive license agreement: Instead of using a restrictive license that prevents you from modifying the program or sharing it with friends for example, sharing and modifying open source software is encouraged. Anyone who wishes to do so may distribute, modify or even create derivative works based on that source code!
- ^ Levine, Sheen S.; Prietula, M. J. (2013). "Open Collaboration for Innovation: Principles and Performance". Organization Science. 25 (5): 1414–1433. arXiv:1406.7541. doi:10.1287/orsc.2013.0872. ISSN 1047-7039. S2CID 6583883. SSRN 1096442.
- ^ Raymond, Eric S. (2001). The cathedral and the bazaar: musings on Linux and Open Source by an accidental revolutionary. OReilly. ISBN 978-0-596-00108-7.[page needed]
- ^ Pearce, Joshua M (2012). "The Case for Open Source Appropriate Technology". Environment, Development and Sustainability. 14 (3): 425–431. Bibcode:2012EDSus..14..425P. doi:10.1007/s10668-012-9337-9. ISSN 1387-585X.
- ^ Menon, Sreelatha (1 March 2009). ""Science 2.0 is here as CSIR resorts to open source drug research for TB"". Business Standard India – via Business Standard.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
OpenWetWarewas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Lakhani, K.R.; von Hippel, E. (June 2003). "How Open Source Software Works: Free User to User Assistance". Research Policy. 32 (6): 923–943. doi:10.1016/S0048-7333(02)00095-1. hdl:1721.1/70028. ISSN 0048-7333. SSRN 290305.
- ^ Gerbe, Aurona; Molefo, Onkgopotse; Van der Merwe, Alta (2010). "Documenting open-source migration processes for re-use". In Kotze, P.; Gerber, A.; van der Merwe, A.; et al. (eds.). Proceedings of the SAICSIT 2010 Conference — Fountains of Computing Research. ACM Press. pp. 75–85. CiteSeerX 10.1.1.1033.7791. doi:10.1145/1899503.1899512. ISBN 978-1-60558-950-3. S2CID 11970697.
- ^ Weber 2004[page needed]