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Re: Oracle: OSS Keeps Vendors on Toes

__/ [ Mark Kent ] on Friday 24 March 2006 18:14 \__

> begin  oe_protect.scr
> Roy Schestowitz <newsgroups@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> espoused:
>> __/ [ Linønut ] on Friday 24 March 2006 15:07 \__
>> 
>>> After takin' a swig o' grog, Roy Schestowitz belched out this bit o'
>>> wisdom:
>>> 
>>>> ,----[ Quote ]
>>>> | Listing open source "myths," Farrell disputed the notion that the
>>>> | main attraction of open source is it is free. Many companies would
>>>> | pay for their open source software if they had to, he said.
>>>> `----
>>> 
>>> Point of emphasis:  "pay" != "pay through the nose (or other orifices)"
>> 
>> One prevalent form of payment is a donation. The other is active
>> involvement in Open Source projects. Either way, the cycle is made
>> complete and the moneyflaw is zero. It's almost like suggesting that Linux
>> fixes the price at 0, which is often fine provided that you grab a spoon
>> and join in (or rather bake some cakes of your own, then share them).
>> 
> 
> The real business issue is around lock-in.  I don't particularly object to
> paying for code to be written, and I don't particularly object to paying
> for support.  I object wildly to lock-in; I can live with standards-based
> products if I really can replace them with an alternative module, but
> I think that in the long-run, everything will become open.
> 
> Then, the businesses which were really offering value for money will
> float to the top - those which were capitalising on lock-in will sink.
> A few might make a transition.
 
Excellent point, actually. I still program in MATLAB and when the University
no longer pays for my licences (thousands of pounds), my programs (code)
will be utterly useless. That's why I've been lusting for Octave for quite
some time. I guess interoperability with colleagues who work with MATLAB
exclusively is out of the question though.

Lockins affects not just the user from within, but also from outside (e.g.
being sent non-standardised messages from an Exchange server). It's a good
thing we still work in C++ quite heavily. No interoperability issues
*there*. OpenOffice helps as well, on occasions. I only work in LaTeX, but
it doesn't prevent uncalled-for junk from being sent my way.
Best wishes,

Roy

-- 
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