Open Source Software in Ministry
What is Open Source Software?
Open Source Software is both a movement and a development paradigm. The concept permits the collaboration of many different programmers in potentially many different geographic locations to contribute to a software package. The programming code (or source code) is made available to the general public or purchaser to allow them to make their own modifications as they see fit. This allows complete or nearly complete software to be customized for specific needs.
This contrasts the Closed Source model where a single company hires programmers, generally in a centralized location, to develop proprietary code that is never released to the public and therefore cannot be modified or customized.
Examples of Open Sources Software versus Closed Source or Proprietary Software are;
| Open Source | Proprietary |
|---|---|
| Linux Operating System | Microsoft Windows Operating System |
| Open Office | Corel WordPerfect Suite |
| Firefox Browser | Internet Explorer |
What are the benefits of Open Source Software?
The most significant benefit of Open Source Software is the revenue model. Proprietary Software organizations rely on sales of the end product - the software - and generally offer free support. In general, Open Source organizations give the product away for free and rely on people wanting help to customize the software for specific applications to generate revenue. Others generate revenue by selling technical support for the products they create.
Creators of Open Source Software advocate inter-compatibility and interoperability between applications and operating systems. Basically that means they try to make the software they develop work on multiple operating systems and the files generated by their software works on multiple software packages. The end result tends to be a “standards based” file created with “generic” tools.
Another benefit, as previously stated, is the ability to modify and customize the software.
What’s the down-side?
The quality of the software can be below par or expectations.
The software package may be incomplete.
Some features available in proprietary software may not be available in equivalent Open Source Software.
Open Source Software can be so different from what you’ve become accustomed to that the learning curve may be steep.
Development cycles can be inconsistent or development may stop suddenly.
How does all this apply to ministry?
Ministries and missionaries may be ideal candidates for Open Source Software solutions. Initial pricing to acquire Open Source products tends to be nearly free or very cheap in comparison to proprietary offerings. The trade-off for price is the need to take the time to learn the product or spend time investigating any problems that may occur during it’s use. In the end, studies have shown, that Open Source Software has a greater return on investment. It simply makes financial-sense to use Open Source Software as a first option and resort to proprietary software second.
