Open Source software

If you want to be able to have access to the code your software is using, you may be excited about open source software. With this type of software, any user can alter or copy code. This allows the software to be self-regulated by the community. Commercial software does not allow just anyone to see its source code. Both types of software have their positives and negatives. Open source software has become very popular and you can find it in many different categories. Here I would like to discuss three different examples of open source software.  

Mozilla Firefox is a very popular web browser. Many people probably do not even realize that it is open source. What is great about having a web browser that is open source is that if anything goes wrong the community can fix it easily. In an article by Apple Insider, research was conducted on the speed and processing power used while running Firefox, Google Chrome, and Safari. The outcome was that Safari uses a lot more processing power than the other two, although it does run faster, at least on a Mac. In all the test runs, Firefox used the least processing power. The speeds of Firefox and Chrome are more or less comparable. Safari runs faster overall but again, uses significantly more processing power. In terms of an open source web browser, Firefox has its positives and negatives. When choosing a web browser, it seems like different ones feel better to different people so in the end it comes down to personal preference.

A very popular open source software is Apache OpenOffice. OpenOffice is the most prominent open source counterpart to Microsoft Office. OpenOffice and Microsoft Office offer extremely similar applications. The biggest difference between the two is the price. Microsoft Office will cost over $100 or maybe much more depending on the version and OpenOffice is free. OpenOffice essentially has all the same features in not more than Microsoft. A drawback would be that OpenOffice is only available in English as opposed to Microsoft which s available in a wide range of languages. Both will get the job done but the biggest difference and why most people prefer Microsoft is the usability. Office has a much cleaner more desirable interface. Overall, it really depends on your priorities in this case.

Linux is an operating system that uses the open source format. Linux is a well-liked operating system by people that want full access and customization. As opposed to Windows, Linux allows any used to view the source code. Usually a drawback to open source software is that there is no customer support however Linux actually has a lot of user forums where you can find help from the community. However, you are still going to find much better support on Windows. Updates are a lot more simple on Linux than on Windows where updates can be very time consuming. As far as security, Linux is thought to be hard for hackers to break through. Windows is the main target of viruses. Linux’s main drawback is that it can be difficult to install. Linux is a bit more complicated to use in general so for an average user, Windows will likely give the better user experience.

               Overall, open source software can be a great alternative to commercial software. Personal preference is going to be very important in choosing whether you prefer the open source version on the software. You need to decide what your personal priorities are. Open source software may be preferred to those experienced in coding. They also may be preferred for people who are just computer savvy and would prefer to save some money. Commercial software may be preferred for those who want ease of use and customer support. Open source software might be worth giving a shot either way just to see if you like it.  

References:

13 Linux: Advantages and Disadvantages of Open-Source Technology Jennifer Marsh. (2013, August 29). Retrieved from https://blog.storagecraft.com/linux-advantages-disadvantages-open-source-technology/

AppleInsider. (2017, November 16). Video: Speed and resource testing Safari, Firefox, and Chrome on the Mac. Retrieved from https://appleinsider.com/articles/17/11/15/video-speed-and-resource-testing-safari-firefox-and-chrome-on-the-mac

Apache OpenOffice vs Microsoft Office Professional 2016 2020 Comparison: FinancesOnline. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://comparisons.financesonline.com/apache-openoffice-vs-microsoft-office-professional-2016