J
Jed Clampett
This is part of an article from Computerworld talking about Open Source. A
few Linux die-hards think that OpenSource is the answer to everything and to
ditch Microsoft. Considering most of the business world uses Microsoft
products and only a few use Open Source, this might be a window as to why
Open Source hasn't caught on that well.
I am so tired of seeing a few touting the benefits of Ubuntu and Linux over
Windows. Windows has it's place for most and Linux has it's place for
others, but to suggest that one ditch Vista or XP in favor of Linux/Ubuntu,
they are short sighted.
If you want to use Linux/Ubuntu, go ahead, but don't cram it down out
throats each and every day.
---------------------------------
ComputerWorld - Snippit.
One of the reasons why free and open-source software development has been
successful over disparate locations is that the work has been done by the
users, and these developer-users determine the functionality, Herbsleb said.
"Because work is done by the users, they're more likely to get the
functionality right, so a major class of errors is eliminated," he noted,
adding that developers of commercial software are rarely users of the
software, and the functionality is determined by project managers.
"Project managers tend to understand purchasing designs -- why companies buy
software -- so they'll build a project that plays into those hands,"
Herbsleb explained. This means that commercial software can be created
without fully meeting user requirements. Because free and open-source
software developers are its users, they create the functions they
specifically need.
But one of the drawbacks to the open-source software development model is
that mainstream users often get left behind because the really technical
people create the software design functionality for themselves, not for the
average user. The geek creed -- "If you can't install it, you don't deserve
to use it" -- is still alive in many open-source projects, said Nancy
Frishberg who works on user-centered software design in the software
division at Sun Microsystems Inc.
As a result, "it is sometimes said [that lack of] usability is the Achilles'
heel of open source," said Steve Easterbrook, associate professor in the
department of computer science and associate director of the Knowledge and
Media Institute at the University of Toronto.
Sun's Frishberg added that the open-source mantra that "everyone can
contribute" is actually misleading because adding to an open-source project
is basically limited to code, bugs and patches.
few Linux die-hards think that OpenSource is the answer to everything and to
ditch Microsoft. Considering most of the business world uses Microsoft
products and only a few use Open Source, this might be a window as to why
Open Source hasn't caught on that well.
I am so tired of seeing a few touting the benefits of Ubuntu and Linux over
Windows. Windows has it's place for most and Linux has it's place for
others, but to suggest that one ditch Vista or XP in favor of Linux/Ubuntu,
they are short sighted.
If you want to use Linux/Ubuntu, go ahead, but don't cram it down out
throats each and every day.
---------------------------------
ComputerWorld - Snippit.
One of the reasons why free and open-source software development has been
successful over disparate locations is that the work has been done by the
users, and these developer-users determine the functionality, Herbsleb said.
"Because work is done by the users, they're more likely to get the
functionality right, so a major class of errors is eliminated," he noted,
adding that developers of commercial software are rarely users of the
software, and the functionality is determined by project managers.
"Project managers tend to understand purchasing designs -- why companies buy
software -- so they'll build a project that plays into those hands,"
Herbsleb explained. This means that commercial software can be created
without fully meeting user requirements. Because free and open-source
software developers are its users, they create the functions they
specifically need.
But one of the drawbacks to the open-source software development model is
that mainstream users often get left behind because the really technical
people create the software design functionality for themselves, not for the
average user. The geek creed -- "If you can't install it, you don't deserve
to use it" -- is still alive in many open-source projects, said Nancy
Frishberg who works on user-centered software design in the software
division at Sun Microsystems Inc.
As a result, "it is sometimes said [that lack of] usability is the Achilles'
heel of open source," said Steve Easterbrook, associate professor in the
department of computer science and associate director of the Knowledge and
Media Institute at the University of Toronto.
Sun's Frishberg added that the open-source mantra that "everyone can
contribute" is actually misleading because adding to an open-source project
is basically limited to code, bugs and patches.