Open source and proprietary software

One way to classify software is through ownership and licensing. There are two types of ownership and licensing software:

• open source

  software

• proprietary

  software

While both types of software are usually widely available, they differ quite considerably in what can and cannot be done.

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Open source software can be free of copyright and is usually available to anyone. Proprietary software is copyrighted and only available under licence.

Open source software

Open source software can be free of copyright and is usually available to anyone.

Open source software has several advantages:

• It costs nothing and provides the

  source code

  so that anyone can modify the software for their own purposes.

• It can have many authors. This enables programmers to contribute to the development of a program over time, refining and improving it and adding extra features.

• A modified version, known as a

  derivative

  , must also be made freely available for anyone else to use or adapt.

Open source software has its disadvantages too:

• There is no guarantee that it works properly as there is no requirement for anyone to ensure it is

  bug

  free.

• Support might not be readily available, especially if the program is not in widespread use.

Examples of open source software include:

• Linux

  operating system

• Firefox

  web browser

• Python

  programming language

• Open Office productivity

  suite

• Thunderbird

  mail client

• Apache

  web server

• GIMP image editing software

• Moodle virtual learning environment

Proprietary software

Proprietary software is software that is copyrighted, which means it can only be obtained by paying for a licence.

Proprietary software has many advantages:

• The product should be free of bugs. If bugs still exist, updates known as

  patches

  are often provided free of charge, which fix these bugs.

• Help can be sought from the organisation who supplied the software if problems occur.

• Feature updates which extend the software’s facilities are often available, although usually at a cost.

• Proprietary software that is in widespread use often has support available from many sources.

Proprietary software also has a number of disadvantages:

• There is an initial or ongoing (subscription) cost.

• Software cannot be adapted to meet the needs of the user. Only the

  machine code

  version of the software is distributed, which cannot be edited.

• It can be limited to a single computer or

  network

  , so unless the licence allows it, a user may not redistribute the software.

Examples of proprietary software include:

• Windows and OS X operating systems

• Microsoft Office productivity suite

• Adobe Creative Suite productivity software

• Logic music creation software

• paid-for games for consoles