Open Source Debate

May 1st, 1998 by Phil Hughes in

As part of Eric's article, he introduced a new phrase for talking about software such as Netscape Navigator as well as other software where the source code is freely available. The phrase is Open Source.
Your rating: None

Last month we published an article by Eric Raymond on Netscape's decision to release the source code for their web browser. A lot has happened since Eric's article, and that lot is what I wish to talk about this month.

As part of Eric's article, he introduced a new phrase for talking about software such as Netscape Navigator as well as other software where the source code is freely available. The phrase is Open Source.

The idea for a new name and the choice of that name has been an ongoing debate and, at this writing, continues. The confusion is associated with the term Free Software. Free has many different meanings. In particular, free can refer to price or to freedom. While freedom is the issue that we are attempting to address, there has continued to be confusion.

Rather than attempting to define what we mean by free, the introduction of a new term seemed in order. With the new term comes the opportunity to define it.

Bruce Perens (of Software in the Public Interest) and I decided that a web site with a repository of information on Open Source was the best approach. That web site is at http://www.opensource.org/ and includes the definition of Open Source and extensive resources to get others on the Open Source bandwagon.

Netscape Update

By the time you read this magazine, the source code for Netscape Communicator 5.0 Standard Edition should be available. Netscape announced they would release this code on March 31, 1998.

Netscape released a preliminary version of their license agreement (Netscape Public License) for public comment. That comment period ran through March 11.

Netscape put the proposed license on the Web along with a FAQ and annotations. The ongoing saga of this license is available on the Web at http://www.mozilla.org/. I'm not a lawyer but what I see of the license makes sense. It isn't a GPL and it isn't a BSD license, but that is because neither makes sense for Netscape.

One thing in the license I found interesting is they have elected to keep the name Netscape for branded products and allow the use of Mozilla for derived works. This makes sense to me. When I was talking to Eric Raymond before he met with Netscape, I brought up the concern that a bad port or modification of a Netscape product could reflect poorly on all Netscape products. The decision to use a different name offers the needed freedom, yet allows the consumer to differentiate between a Netscape product and a derived product.

Other Players

Netscape is not the only commercial vendor in the Open Source camp; there are others.

One hardware vendor who got into this camp before it even existed is Cyclades. Cyclades was the first communications board manufacturer to embrace Linux. They have always made the source code available for their drivers and their sales growth in the Linux and BSD markets has supported their decision to release source code for their drivers.

Another long-term vendor in this community is Cygnus Solutions. They offer commercial support for open source software and continue to grow and evolve with the community.

Of course, all the Linux vendors are there by default as well as the Apache web server and the Perl programming language. Vendors who elect to get involved with these products become part of the Open source vendor base.

Resources

I have already mentioned the Open Source and Mozilla web sites. As always, we put late-breaking Linux news up on the Linux Resources web site, http://www.linuxresources.com/.

1998 Open Systems Products Directory

__________________________

Phil Hughes


Special Magazine Offer -- Free Gift with Subscription
Receive a free digital copy of Linux Journal's System Administration Special Edition as well as instant online access to current and past issues. CLICK HERE for offer

Linux Journal: delivering readers the advice and inspiration they need to get the most out of their Linux systems since 1994.

Comment viewing options

Select your preferred way to display the comments and click "Save settings" to activate your changes.
enigma cross of changes mp3's picture

linux

On October 2nd, 2007 enigma cross of changes mp3 (not verified) says:

ftp.kernel.org what the Sparc, it of tarball on standard kernel I grabbed gives? doesn't it, or some from and compile mirror . Best regards.

Post new comment

Please note that comments may not appear immediately, so there is no need to repost your comment.
The content of this field is kept private and will not be shown publicly.
  • Allowed HTML tags: <a> <em> <strong> <cite> <code> <pre> <ul> <ol> <li> <dl> <dt> <dd> <i> <b>
  • Lines and paragraphs break automatically.

More information about formatting options

Newsletter

Each week Linux Journal editors will tell you what's hot in the world of Linux. You will receive late breaking news, technical tips and tricks, and links to in-depth stories featured on www.linuxjournal.com.
Sign up for our Email Newsletter

Featured Videos

Setting up an https server in Apache is easy. This tutorial covers how to create and sign your ssl certificate as well as how to configure the web server.

From the Magazine

January 2009, #177

It's a battle as old as time: good vs. evil. Fortunately, Linux and FOSS are on our side as we wage the battle against those who try to steal our secrets and invade our systems.

Checking your system's security is best done sooner rather than later. Test the locks with our article on security verification; find out how to use PAM to help secure your systems; use MinorFS and AppArmor to implement discretionary access control; learn more about Samba security in part III of our series; use Darknet to help detect bots and secure your systems; use the Yubikey to increase your site's security; and don't forget to lock the doors, because a cold boot attack could render your security useless if somebody has physical access to your computer.

But, we're not just about sowing the seeds of fear. We also show you how to use memcached in Rails, how to manage multiple servers efficiently, how to deploy applications easily with Capistrano, how to manage your videos with MythVideo, how to mix it up a bit (your audio that is), and even play a few games.

Read this issue