It is my understanding that the term free software existed before the term open source came around. Open source software is free to download, and can run on multiple platforms such as Windows and others. Also, the source code is available and open, so open source applications can be customized by the user.
There appears to be a great debate between the Open Source Initiative and the Free Software Foundation over the correct terminology. According to the definition of free software, the Open Source Initiative group has started using the term “open source” to mean something close to “free software.” The Free Software Foundation argues for the term “free software” because, once you have heard that it refers to freedom rather than price, it calls to mind freedom. Their philosophy is that the word “open” does not refer to freedom.Proprietary apps are usually purchased, and the source code is usually closed to prevent the user from changing the software . The most commonly used proprietary software in our middle school is Microsoft Office, and at our high school it is MS Office and Adobe Creative Suite 3.
Through my research, I learned that many Open Source applications are generally licensed under GNU General Public License, GPLv2 and GPLv3. To be honest, I was not aware of any of this licensing information.
Several classmates have already mentioned Open Office and Moodle as open source applications that are great and useful in education. One that I would like to try is Blender. It is a 3d graphics application that can be used for video editing. I have heard that it can be a bit difficult to use, but have no experience with it. It is something that I would love to try!
Additional sources included in my research:
That is the same info that I found about freeware...apparently that was the beginning of open sourece applications...pretty cool.
ReplyDeleteKim,
ReplyDeleteThanks for the new software info. I don't need to do video editing very often, but a free software for editing could be very useful. I think with these types of applications you have to work with it a bit before it becomes a useful tool.
Thanks,
Wendy
Hmm... Blender sounds interesting, I may have to give that a try. I used to make videos of my kids and in video games, but stopped when I got busier. I'd be interested to try making them using a different software, the one I have bogs my computer down really bad. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteGreat post and examples! I've downloaded Blender but that's about it :P Just keep in mind that not all open source are free. Some are paid but you still have access to the codes. So an opensource app can be a freeware or it can be a paid. Also, some can only be installed on one operating system and not the other. It just depends.
ReplyDeleteWow, that Blender looks pretty cool! Even though I am young, I do not feel like I am always up to speed on all sorts of technology. Blender looks like it is user friendly, so hopefully I would be able to figure it out :)
ReplyDeleteIt is so confusing to keep track of all the terms and exactly what they mean. I have downloaded a lot of small applications that do very specific things, like put a calendar on my toolbar for easy access to not only the calendar, but my address book (I am a Mac user, so PC people may not know what I am talking about). I really like these small apps sometimes and I don't mind paying a small fee like $10 or $20 to support the designer.
ReplyDeleteRecently, Apple updated their operating system to include and App Store, similar to the one on iTunes for iPod and iPad except it is for the their main operating system. I like the new format, it is a lot easier to use then their download site they used to have on their web page.
So many resources, but so little time. :(
Thanks for sharing Blender with us. I have a list of software that I'm going to explore, so I've added Blender. I want to look into it, but won't have time right now to figure it out. Too many other things to figure out!
ReplyDelete