Re: [TCLUG:17767] Open Source Article

[<parker@momma.mi-recordz.com>]

> If Adobe open sourced Photoshop, would you pay Adobe $500/user for support?
> Honestly?  Or would you just buy it off of CheapBytes for $2, and chuckle
> at Adobe because you get something for nothing, and Adobe only loses out?

Excellent point! Let's flip flop and use an OS GNU GPL Library
licensed application server as the example. Would you be inclined to
purchase support for an application server that interfaces Apache, SQL (of
your choice via db abstraction layer), PHP and provides file based serving
in addition to the database. If I was a small, medium or large business,
yes!

Let's say during the development of the application server you established
relationships with other talented OS developers by providing services to
eachother; code for hosting and DNS routing etc. Now you've got a network
of people who could share responsibility for development and support for
jobs.

If you had to pay $500 for every piece of software that makes this
application server environment possible and you're like me, broke, you
wouldn't even have an opportunity to wait for some luck. You'd be forced
to puch a time clock just to pay your everyday bills.

I agree with your argument concerning Adobe. They have a good product
that was introduced at an optimum time for closed source applications. To
keep things in perspective, every business seeks out a strategy for
success. If your OS software is valuable a user community will develope
around it. My opinion is that, this is the optimum time for OS. 

Sorry, I didn't follow the entire thread so I might be somewhat out of
context. The right amount of caffiene madates a rant. :)

Ron

> 
> Nick Reinking
> 
> >Is SGI really that desperate? Is IBM desperate? Didn't I hear somewhere
> >that "AIX is a stepping stone to Linux"? Corel desperate? Yes
> >(Microsoft's fault mostly). Apple desperate? Usually. :) VA desperate? Not
> >nearly -- not with their market cap. ;)
> ></nitpicks>
> 
>