Driving technology costs down with OpenSource Software

Open source software is becoming increasingly attractive to businesses that can't afford the cost for proprietary products.

What if you had the right to get a free upgrade whenever your software needed it? What if, when you switched from a Mac to a PC, you could switch software versions for free? What if, when the software doesn't work or isn't powerful enough, you can have it improved or even fix it yourself? What if the software was still maintained even if the company that produced it went out of business? What if you can use your software on your office workstation, and your home desktop computer, and your portable laptop, instead of just one computer? You'd probably still be using the software you paid for years ago. These are some of the rights that Open Source gives you.

The Open Source Definition is a bill of rights for the computer user. It defines certain rights that a software license must grant you to be certified as Open Source. Those who don't make their programs Open Source are finding it difficult to compete with those who do, as users gain a new appreciation of rights they always should have had. Programs like the Linux operating system have become extremely popular, displacing other software with more restrictive licenses. Companies that use Open Source software have the advantage of its very rapid development, often by several collaborating companies.

Cost-conscious companies will increasingly consider the open source route. Companies that have adopted Open Source technologies find that they have a lower initial capital investment and lower total cost of ownership. Among the factors that contribute to this cost savings are elimination of software license fees and lower hardware costs. Open Source sofware will run fine on low end machines Windows NT/2000 won't even install on.

Companies also find that they have greater reliability and uptime after deploying OpenSource solutions.

While more recent Windows operating systems have shown improvements in crash resistance, running for a few weeks without a crash, Linux can run for years. Most Linux servers are brought down every year or so for a kernel update. Windows operating systems need to be rebooted after even minor changes, and as part of most software installs. They should be rebooted every couple of weeks to recover lost resources. Ultimately, this leads to lower productivity and higher costs. Linux needs to be rebooted only for a major kernel update (every year or two).

Linux is a "lights out" operating system. A Linux server can be managed from half way around the world over the Internet. A Linux server doesn't really even need a keyboard or monitor. We administer a number of Linux servers for our clients perfoming most of the work from our office.

Open Technology Systems is a Minnesota company that focuses on system solutions that utilize the open source technology platform. This allows companies to be compliant in software usage with zero licensing costs. OTS helps you build, implement, and maintain low cost technology solutions. We become the affordable information technology department you've always wanted.