Open Source Software

Two weeks ago I heard about Open Source Software (OSS) for the very first time.  And it blew my mind.  I still don’t fully understand the business model, but I appreciate the fact that OSS exists.  I like the idea that there are people out there that are willing to devote their time to something useful to the common man.  But I’m still perplexed that I haven’t heard of more companies  that either use open source software.  While a study performed in 2008 reported that open source software is currently used as a replacement to $60 billion of traditional software that’s still only a small fraction of the sales generated from traditional software (http://standishgroup.com/newsroom/open_source.php).  I suppose that makes sense if you think about it though.  People get used to certain items and they get comfortable with them if that’s what they’ve been introduced to.  I’m sure there are lots of people who have a real interest in computing technology and stay current with all the trends, but I think that most people just use what’s familiar for them unless they are taught to use something new.  Plus, I would be surprised if there aren’t measures taken by software companies to perpetuate fear about OSS so that people continue to pay for their products.  Popular acceptance of OSS would be extremely bad for their profit margins.

My question is how could OSS best be introduced to the common person and make it mainstream?  These days many people have computers.  Worldwide, there are currently more than 1 billion personal computers in use.  (http://www.gartner.com/it/page.jsp?id=703807)  I think it’s a fair assumption that most people run software at home that they use at work.  And many people over age 40 learned software after school because computers were not ad readily available to them.  So the easiest way to introduce open source software to those people is for companies to decide to start using it at work.  Training for and implementation could be done for open source software just like any new technology introduction into the workplace. 

However, it will be difficult to introduce OSS to companies and convince them to change their operations.  It’s natural for people to become accustomed to what they are used to using and resist chance.  Also, it’s natural to be skeptical about OSS once you learn what it is. It seems to good to be true.   So to really integrate OSS into our society, we would now need to introduce it in grade schools and high schools. What better place to teach people about OSS that to start it where people are forced to go to learn anyway?  where they first encounter computers and learn how to use them.  It will take some time, but it will save money for almost everyone.  The incentive is there for schools.  They already have computer classes; why not teach them using free software?  And it seems intuitive that it would lower taxes because schools would save more money.  Eventually it would save even more money for individuals because the children would begin to teach their parents about OSS and they would replace their traditional software with OSS in their homes.  All of this while continually forcing software companies to stay ahead of the curve to stay in business.  The only people I see it hurting are executives at software companies, and from most of what I’ve seen, they wouldn’t be hurting so bad if they made a few less million per year. 

 So that’s my idea.  Of course, someone will need to introduce OSS to schools with so many people unfamiliar with the concept….  Seems like a pretty good business opportunity.   Unethical to make a profit off of teaching people about a free product you say?  Fine, make it a non-profit organization.  They still pay salaries.  And it seems like there would be plenty of OSS developers (who are already philanthropic) and college graduates who probably need work considering current unemployment figures.  And with such a savings potential, what institution that truly dedicated itself to teaching would pass on the opportunity?