Frequently Asked Questions
What are concrete examples of pieces of open source software?
If you have ever used any of the Firefox, Google Chrome or Apple Safari web browsers then you have used open source software. Firefox and Chrome are open source and a main software component of Safari is open source.
Web browsers are just one example of open source software; every piece of proprietary software usually has more than one alternative open source software implementation. This applies to all software categories including for example email clients, office suites, instant messengers, desktop publishing, accounting software or graphic design software.
Is open source software not just a niche market?
No, in fact more than 60% of all Internet servers that run websites, email systems or domain name services are powered by the open source software Linux operating system. Incidentally, Linux also powers more than 90% of mainframes and supercomputers used for example for weather forecasting or oil and gas exploration. Google Android is an open source operating system that powers about 50% of all smartphones and about 40% of all tablet computers worldwide.
What high-profile companies and institutions use open source software?
Quite a few large corporations and institutions have adopted open source software to support their entire businesses. Just to name a few the London Stock Exchange, the US Department or Defense, the New-York Stock Exchange, Amazon, Google, IBM, Panasonic and Peugeot all rely on the open source Linux operating system to support their IT infrastructure or workstations.
What are the main reasons for the continuous adoption of the open source Linux operating system in business?
Reasons differ per business but key decision factors include:
- Free software licensing
- Cost effective customisation
- Increased security and malware protection
- Large collection of free application software easily accessible through a single repository
- Stable and robust operating system that does not slow down over time
- Free and unlimited support through forums
- Older hardware can be kept longer
Is it possible to buy workstations (e.g. desktops or laptops) with Linux pre-installed?
Open source software provides quality and choice to its users and comes in many flavors however most PC vendors choose to stick to the one-fit-all ease of proprietary operating system that comes mostly in a couple of variations. However it is possible to buy workstations with no operating system and install Linux; the installation process is usually fast and simple and does not require installation of extra application or malware protection software; a complete Linux installation on a workstation usually takes less time and is simpler than the configuration, license key management, application software installation and bloatware removal steps that come with most proprietary operating system pre-installed workstations.
When switching to Linux are users not faced with an extra learning curve?
The learning curve for switching to Linux is comparable to that of switching from one version of a proprietary operating system to another. In practice we have found that once switched many users do not even realise that they are using Linux. Once switched to Linux, there is the added benefit that the graphical user interface for open source software tends to be constant across versions and upgrading the operating system or core application software usually do not involve an extra learning curve.