clsc555 webliography

CLSC 555 INFORMATION SYSTEMS WEBLIOGRAPHY: OPEN SOURCE SOFTWARE
by
Sarah E. Wright

| General Information | Initiatives | Examples |

General Information
- The Open Source Definition
  by Bruce Perens, Treasurer Open Source Initiative
  This paper explains the ideas behind the open source movement. Open Source is defined, and licenses are discussed, and Mr. Perens concludes with the Future of Open Source Software. This paper provides an understanding of the different licenses and their uses, but it uses a lot of technical language.
- The Origins and Future of Open Source Software
  by Netaction
  This paper on Open Source Software is provided by NetAction, a California-based nonprofit dedicated to promoting use of the Internet for educating the public about technology policy issues. This paper presents the history of Open Source Software and how it was used to develop and enhance the internet. This paper provides a detailed history of the development of the history of open source software. Its flaw is that each section of the paper is located on a separate webpage linked to the main page. It would be easier to navigate as one linked document.
- An Overview of Open Source Software Licenses
  by the Software Licensing Committee of the American Bar association's Intellectual Property Section
  This website gives information on licensing associated with Open Source Software. It reviews the history of Open Source projects and lists benefits and legal risks of this type of software. This site is a great source of information on the legal aspects of licensing but because it is a report of the American Bar association, it is not lengthy.
- Why Open Source Software?
  by David A. Wheeler
  This paper provides insight to the benefits of Open Source Software, including associated costs, performance and security. Mr. Wheeler provides readers with quantitative information including market share graphs, PC Magazine performance tests and empirical use studies. This page provides a great deal of information in one source, unfortunately, the format for this page puts too much information in one page. It might be better if he had one page with all the linked studies and information available in an indexed format.
- What is Open Source Software?
  by Darwin Magazine
  This 2001 article answers the question "Just what is open source software?" It defines the differences between proprietary and open source software. Article links to related articles in Darwin publication and New York Times. This article is written in terms that are easy to understand and introduces the idea of open source to unfamiliar users. The negative aspect is the date of publication, as there have been so many advances in this area since 2001.
Open Source Software Initiatives
- Open Source Initiative
  by Open Source Initiative
  Open Source Initiative (OSI) is a non-profit corporation dedicated to managing and promoting Open Source Software. This website hosts the community of programmers working on Open Source projects and includes information on licenses and news on the forefront of the initiative. This website gives annotated definitions of Open Source, and informs users of advancements. The major flaw in this page seems to be its plain design. Information is presented in basic text.
- GNU Free Software Foundation
  by Free Software Foundation
  This site is the GNU Project web server. The GNU Project was launched in 1984 to develop a complete UNIX style operating system which is free software. This webpage is available in several languages. It encourages users to both use the software and volunteer for programming tasks. This website provides a history of the project, and the site map is easy to navigate. The negative associated with this page is that it may be written above the knowledge level of those unfamiliar with programming who might be looking for basic information on Open Source Software.
- Fresh meat
  Source information unknown
  Fresh meat maintains the Web's largest index of Unix and cross-platform software and themes. Thousands of applications are cataloged in the fresh meat database, and links to new applications are added daily. Each entry provides a description of the software and links to download. Fresh meat is continuously updated to include the latest developments in open source software but this database is limited to Linux/Unix software.
- Apache Software Foundation
  by Apache Software Foundation
  Website for the Apache community of open source software projects including Excalibur, Gump, and Perl. The Apache Software Foundation (ASF) is a non-profit organization formed to provide a foundation for open, collaborative software development projects. The apache page employs frames that list all projects with links to information about each project. This site is more thorough in its description of software and uses. The other frame on the main page lists links to the foundations history, licenses and public records. Ease of navigation is the plus side for this website, the negative aspect of this page is that information is not provided in printer friendly formats.
- Tigris Open Source Software Engineering
  by Tigris
  Tigris is an open source community focused on developing the tools for collaborative software development. This page employs a tab system with a tab from programmer log-in, one for projects, and another for the community home. The community page explains the community scope, lists Tigris news and invites contributions to the community. This website has the one feature that is both positive and negative, depending on perspective; it is designed specifically for programmers who might contribute to Tigris projects, it is not intended for the novice seeking information regarding open source software.
- Open Source Web Design
  by OSWD Design Community
  Open Source Web Design is a community of designers sharing web design templates and web design information. This site maintains a database of usable designs with browsable thumbnails and a latest design feature. This website is not only a good example of freely available codes, but it is great for someone working on their first webpage, as all codes are downloadable. The ironic downside is that this community devoted to the design of webpages has a very basic design on its homepage.
Open Source Software Examples
- Redhat
  by Redhat
  This site is the home of Redhat, an Open Source leader providing Linux software. This webpage provides company information and news while advertising products and user training. This website is useful in that it provides a tour of the Redhat network, but the whole site reads as an advertisement, rather than a real source of information on available technology.
- Mozilla
  by Mozilla Foundation
  Home of Mozilla firefox and Thunderbird. Mozilla is the leading provider of Open Source Internet applications including a web browser, e-mail client, address book, web page composer and Internet chat software. The software is available on Windows, Max OS X and Linux and made available as a download or for purchase on CD. This website provides an example of available software, and as an example of open source software, I find no faults with the Mozilla homepage.
- Mambo
  by Mambo
  Mambo is a full-featured content management system. Software is downloadable from this website and runs on Linux, Free BSD, Mac OS X and Windows NT/2000/XP. This site features a demo and screen shots of the Mambo program and articles on its use and benefits. This website does not seem to feature any user support.
- MySQL
  by MySQL
  MySQL is an open source database system. This site details Products, user support, training and certification. Interestingly, all MySQL products are available under open source licenses, but are also sold under commercial licenses so they can be adopted in situations where an open source solution is not appropriate. This website illustrates the possibilities of commercial use of open source programs. The website is well formatted and easy to explore. The only thing missing from this website is software tutorials, demos, or screen shots.