17 October 2006
Open Source Software is not innovative?
In a letter to the European Commission the group Initiative for Software Choice (ISC) spoke against a the EC's study into the role of open source software in the European economy.
In the letter the ISC states that the OSS model is successful and doesn't need any support to help them become successful and that the report doesn't mention non-OSS as a positive to the market, but rather as something that provides 'headaches' to OSS. The letter further states that other software models have produced some great software and the report is not balanced in this regard.
Yes, there are great software products in OSS and propriety models, but the propriety software does have a tendency to try to prevent OSS from existing in a common market. Propriety software prevents users in some cases from using anything else and some protocols and licensed in such a way to prevent OSS from being able to connect with propriety software.
The letter threatens that actions taken to promote OSS will destroy the propriety market and that innovation is lead by propriety software rather than OSS. The propriety standard creates innovation as it gives developers incentive to create innovative software.
This can be completely refuted when we look at the beginning of the computer software industry and the current OSS trends. The innovations that allowed the computer to become so useful were originally similar to OSS. Also the OSS market has some software which is leading the market on innovation, for example the desktop environment Xgl which is more innovative the Vista's desktop especially that it was developed before Vista's desktop became known.
The ISC's known pro-Microsoft stance and agenda and Microsoft funding leaves one wondering if this isn't Microsoft trying to protect it's own software against the OSS movement which seems to be the biggest competition currently for Microsoft. The recent revelation of MS funding SCO, which has sued Linux over patent issues and is in the process of losing the case also leaves one wondering about any company or organization funded or supported by Microsoft.
In the letter the ISC states that the OSS model is successful and doesn't need any support to help them become successful and that the report doesn't mention non-OSS as a positive to the market, but rather as something that provides 'headaches' to OSS. The letter further states that other software models have produced some great software and the report is not balanced in this regard.
Yes, there are great software products in OSS and propriety models, but the propriety software does have a tendency to try to prevent OSS from existing in a common market. Propriety software prevents users in some cases from using anything else and some protocols and licensed in such a way to prevent OSS from being able to connect with propriety software.
The letter threatens that actions taken to promote OSS will destroy the propriety market and that innovation is lead by propriety software rather than OSS. The propriety standard creates innovation as it gives developers incentive to create innovative software.
This can be completely refuted when we look at the beginning of the computer software industry and the current OSS trends. The innovations that allowed the computer to become so useful were originally similar to OSS. Also the OSS market has some software which is leading the market on innovation, for example the desktop environment Xgl which is more innovative the Vista's desktop especially that it was developed before Vista's desktop became known.
The ISC's known pro-Microsoft stance and agenda and Microsoft funding leaves one wondering if this isn't Microsoft trying to protect it's own software against the OSS movement which seems to be the biggest competition currently for Microsoft. The recent revelation of MS funding SCO, which has sued Linux over patent issues and is in the process of losing the case also leaves one wondering about any company or organization funded or supported by Microsoft.
