Here is an interesting article I saw about the pros and cons of businesses adopting OSS. There is some incorrect information, but I think this is what most businesses really think/know about OSS. These are the kinds of issues we should talk about at ITEC. Dusty -------------------------------------------------- The pros and cons of open source software and Linux Aug 1, 2001 By M. Hubley The most persuasive advantages of open source software (OSS) and Linux are low entry cost and excellent reliability. However, limitations include poor compatibility with Microsoft products and a lack of drivers, modems, and business applications. OSS and Linux are becoming compelling alternatives to commercial software. Linux, in particular, has become a strong infrastructure for running virtually all types of Internet-related servers. There are downsides as well. We present the pros and cons that enterprises should consider before implementing OSS and Linux. Pros Low entry cost OSS is generally available free of charge. The software is downloaded from the Web, and the licensing agreement enables enterprises to make changes to the source code and allows for virtually unlimited installation, use, and distribution. Linux can also be downloaded from the Web at no cost or purchased inexpensively. Having paid for a single copy on CD, the software can be distributed throughout the enterprise at no additional charge. In contrast, Windows and UNIX hardware/operating system costs can be prohibitively expensive—hundreds of thousands of dollars for large installations. In Gartner’s Linux survey of Symposium 2000 attendees, entry price was the top factor when choosing Linux over another operating system (41 percent of respondents). Reliability OSS generally offers good reliability and stability. This is due to a worldwide group of contributors who help to debug the software. Any bugs found will tend to affect the product on a more superficial level and require less recoding. Linux is reaching levels of reliability and stability once found only in high-end computing environments. Red Hat Linux and Turbolinux are available as entry-level clustering servers, and there are clustering solutions available as layered software. Turbolinux and SuSE Linux recently introduced ports to the S/390 mainframe architecture. Even so, most enterprises are not yet prepared to use Linux for all their mission-critical and high-end servers. Reliability will be tested as users run increasingly complex applications. Fast, flexible development OSS is built by a large open source community that shares and solves problems among peers. The built-in flexibility generally results in superior products (which offsets deficiencies in documentation, administration tools, and graphical user interfaces). Similarly, Linux developers constantly keep on top of the latest technical advances. This has resulted in Linux being one of the first operating systems to run on the Itanium processor and in the availability of mainframe, as well as embedded, versions. Variety of infrastructure applications and utilities A wide variety of OSS infrastructure applications are available, which is the primary focus of OSS development. The major markets for Linux are Web servers, network “edge”-based appliances, intranets/extranets, and e-mail, file/print, and application servers. In particular, Linux has been used to turn older systems with minimum resources into inexpensive Web servers. As such, Linux has become a popular development and production platform for many Internet service providers and Web-hosting service providers. Cons Lack of business and management applications There are few OSS business applications. Most of those that do exist are not compatible with popular Microsoft software. StarOffice is one of the few OSS packages that imports/exports Microsoft Office formats, but users say the import/export feature is not perfect and that the software is not as feature-rich as Microsoft’s. Linux is usually distributed with utilities and applications but not with the variety of business applications available for Windows and UNIX. For example, no equivalent of the Act! contact manager (originally developed by Symantec, now owned by Interact Commerce) exists for Linux. There are also no Linux enterprise resource planning applications. Popular commercial software from Oracle, SAP, IBM, and Computer Associates has been ported to Linux but will not become available as OSS because the vendors have no profit motive to do so. Business applications currently available with Linux include: Caldera OpenLinux: StarOffice, CameleoLIGHT, CompuPic, Moneydance. Red Hat Linux: MetaEdit+, IBM WebSphere Homepage Builder for Linux, PointerLite, ThinkFree Office, StarOffice, Anyware Desktop (formerly Applixware Office), Red Hat Credit Card Verification System (CCVS) financial software, Akopia Interchange, Clickshare Client, Unicenter TNG Framework. SuSE Linux: StarOffice. TurboLinux: StarOffice, Anyware Desktop, ThinkFree Office. In Gartner’s Linux survey of Symposium 2000 attendees, 22 percent of respondents who tried but rejected Linux said the lack of applications was the main reason. To help resolve this problem, the Open Source Development Laboratory was set up in January 2001, with the support of 19 sponsor companies and $24 million in funding, to provide a forum to build and test Linux business software. Limitations on video cards, drivers, and modems OSS licensing limits the number of video cards available for OSS. Licensing limitations also apply to hardware device drivers. Linux also imposes limitations on the use of peripherals. Most peripheral vendors do not provide drivers for Linux, so the list of compatible hardware is limited to that which the Linux development community has access to. It can take weeks or months before drivers are available for a new peripheral. Many vendors keep the hardware interface to their devices proprietary; without access to the interfaces, Linux developers cannot write drivers for those devices. Even if developers have access to the driver interface, there can be other obstacles. For example, digital videodisc (DVD) drive support is being hampered by trade secrets in decrypting DVD information. (This situation should change as companies such as Dell Computer, Compaq Computer, and IBM, which are committed to selling Linux machines, will require their peripheral suppliers to support drivers for those machines.) A further limitation is that software-based modems (i.e., Winmodems) remain incompatible with Linux, although any external modem and many internal ones will work with it. Winmodem software is designed to run exclusively under Windows; for competitive reasons, Winmodem manufacturers have not provided open source developers with enough technical information to create third-party Winmodem drivers. Difficulties for Microsoft shops Lack of OSS compatibility with Microsoft applications and inferior graphical user interfaces and documentation are deterrents for enterprises that are only familiar with Microsoft products. Linux is not as easy to use as Windows and requires staff with totally different skills. Windows users must consider the costs of cross-training NT administrators or obtaining Linux support staff who have the necessary skills and who can deal effectively with the open source community. Vendor viability OSS is not developed by vendors—its owners are groups of unrelated individuals who communicate with one another electronically when they decide to work on a project. There is no road map to show users where their OSS is going to be in 18 to 24 months. Community viability is the issue here, rather than vendor viability, and this depends on the community. Linux also depends on its community of volunteers for development, but the commercial Linux distributors offer a more traditional vendor infrastructure. These vendors are likely to go through the typical emerging market shakeout. Gartner expects that four or five of the major Linux distributors will survive. The rest will fail, merge, or be acquired by larger vendors. The current economic downturn could influence the start of such a shakeout. Bottom line OSS and Linux offer inexpensive, flexible alternatives to traditional commercially developed software. They are particularly attractive when commercial software is too expensive or not available for a specific problem. However, they are certainly not for everyone. Enterprises have successfully used Linux for Web and Internet server hosting but have run into roadblocks when they need specific business applications, modems, and drivers. OSS and Linux should be considered by aggressive, leading-edge enterprises that have people with Linux skills, knowledge of the availability of quality OSS, and the capability to keep projects within defined bounds. Gartner originally published this report on June 15, 2001.