Blog Post #4 - Richard Bisso

Richard Bisso

English 346

Professor Simon

Blog Post #4

Is Open Source Software the Future?

As of recently there’s has been a growing debate, both online and in the tech communities as to where the future of software is heading. Many claim that open source is the answer, and having read over various companies policies, I can definitely understand why.

Since the release date of Windows 10, those who are privacy conscious should steer clear of such software. Between the automatic updates without users consent, to collecting every keystroke you make, its no wonder there as been huge backlash with regards to privacy advocates and tech users worldwide. With close sourced software such as windows, this begs an important question. Just what exactly is going on behind closed doors with regards to the software your running? Do users actually fully understand the terms their agreeing to, or rather the way their information is being collected and aggregated by various third party agencies?

Unlike that of Microsoft, software such as Linux has taken the open source. What this means is that the source code for software is freely accessible for those at will, most often attainable without any fees. In relation to that of closed software, open source allows for the developers to fix any type of security problems that might arise, and also modify the original software in place (think of jail breaking an iPhone or rooting an android phone). However, even though developers can choose to modify the code at will, there are chances in which the software might become abandoned, and not receive regular updates like that of commercial, closed software (Windows, OSX El Capitan).

So which of the two is better in the long run? Depends. For those that are willing to trust a company not to spy on its consumers and sell its data in the age of information, then close sourced software is the choice. Annual updates (ex. iOS), plus with commercial viability, there is a greater chance at covering up the security flaw. The downside is that the consumer has to trust the company from their own standpoint, as well as pay licensing fees more often than not (see Adobe). If your looking for software that is accessible and able to be modify to fit your use, then open source is the way to go. No longer are you reliant on the company to trust that they’ll make the best decision with your data. As we’ve seen over the past few years, this is clearly not the case (including Apple as well). Open source software allows for the empowerment of the consumer, no longer shackled to vendors and trusting their software, but rather taking the initiative and knowing what exactly the software is doing. However, the downsides to this is that the developers who work on open source are most likely doing it as a side project, free of charge—this can sometimes result into unfinished software, or one that is abandoned all together.

At the end of the day, its clear that both open and closed sourced software have their ups and downs. In my opinion, open source is the way to go; no longer do people have to rely and be dependent upon the tech companies trust, but rather able to build up their own software, competing and sometimes outpacing that of current software standards (see LibreOffice vs. Microsoft Office). Although starting out slow, open source is beginning to gain substantial focus with regards to user privacy, ushering in a new form of negotiating, allowing the consumers to fully comprehend what it is their downloading. That is a priceless asset, and one in which the future of software is heading towards.