Some comments about Open Source and blogs I hate..

First of all, blogs like IT Outsourcing Comments are types of blog I hate. Where is the value in just posting up extracts from other pages and links back to those pages?

When people read journo type blogs, or blogs about a specific subject, they expect a certain value in reading the opinion of that person. Some blog which is just a link farm is not that good. In this case it's not so bad because the blogger links to some obscure blogs and mags, but some blogs post up links to CNet and Wired etc. Who doesn't know CNet or Wired? "There's an interesting article on Wired about digital media?? Shit, why didn't I think to look at Wired!"

Anyway on to Open Source stuff..

I read the article on the above blog about "The Advance of Open Source".

I've nothing against open source software but would like to comment on some of the points made in the article.

This whole "advance of open source" idea. It might be ok for cheer leaders to go "Yay! <insert company here> is using Linux!" but what does that mean? I remeber hearing someone on the phone to a client "..it's open source software. That means it's free." Someone makes an application that's usable (i.e. it's not total shit) and is free, where's the victory? It's a no-brainer: You have two products of similar quality, one is free, one costs €100 per seat. Which do you go for?
Companies deciding to use free software over expensive software isn't that much of a moral victory.

When companies start releasing their core intellectual property as open source, then I'll believe they are on board with it. But in this day and age, when we see companies worrying about competitors in China reverse-engineering their products, I can't see companies rushing to release their source code to one and all..

The blogger also says about Firefox

Hence, Open Source is no longer just for geeks but it is slowly but steadily becoming a mainstream thing.

I don't know about that. What is open source besides free software? The whole ideology behind open source software is about the benefits of releasing the code.. but consumers don't care about the code. I've downloaded Firefox.. I'm not even sure if the code came with it. I just use it to surf the web. I couldn't care less whether it's open source or closed source, and I think most non-geek Firefox users would say the same.

Open Source is cool, it's a nice idea. But I don't think that people using free software which happens to be open source is much of an advance for the open source movement.