History of Open Source

• 1983 GNU Project -> with the goal to write a complete OS free from constraints on use
• 1986 Free Software Foundation was founded, and The Free Software Definition was published
• 1989 first GNU Public License was published
• 1991 Linux kernel relased by Linus Torvalds
• Late 1990s Apache HTTP Server: most-used web-server (up to today)
• 1997 Eric Raymond published The Cathedral and the Bazaar
• 1998 "Open Source" term was officially coined at the "Open Source Summit"

History of Open Source

"Free" as in "free speech", not as in "free beer"

Free Software vs Open Source

• One lets others know about what one's goals are
• DRM example

What is Open Source

What is Open Source?

Open source doesn't just mean access to the source code.

1. Free Redistribution
2. Source Code
3. Derived Works
4. Integrity of The Author's Source Code
5. No Discrimination Against Persons or Groups
6. No Discrimination Against Fields of Endeavor
7. Distribution of License
8. License Must Not Be Specific to a Product
9. License Must Not Restrict Other Software
10. License Must Be Technology-Neutral

Why I should Open Source (almost) everything

• Great Advertising
  • For you and your company
  • Good will
  • Better reputation

• Force Multiplier
  • External collaborators
  • More users, More use cases

• Attract Talent
  • Smart people hangout with smart people
  • Useful code attracts talent
  • The right eyeballs on your code can make a big difference

• The best technical interview possible
  • Candidate already contributing in your Open Source projects
  • Passionate about the Open Source code they writing

• Retain that talent
  • Great developers can pick their jobs
  • Projects they can show off to their friends and potential future employers

• Effortless modularization
  • ​Mindset
  • Less likely to bake in proprietary configuration details or tightly coupled interfaces
  • Cleaner, more maintainable code

• Reduce duplication of effort
  • ​More work towards things that matter

• It’s the right thing to do
  • It’s almost impossible to do anything without executing huge amounts of open source code
  • Morally obligated to give forward

What shouldn’t I Open Source

Don’t open source anything that represents core business value.

• Facebook
• Github
• Münett

The value of software has shifted

If the software doesn't represent a competitive advantage it outweigh everything

What license should I use

MIT

• Anyone can read this license and understand exactly what it means
• Enough protection is offered

WTFPL or Beer license

• Are too vague and unenforceable

GPL

• ​Too restrictive and dogmatic

I want everyone to benefit from my code. Everyone. That’s what Open should mean, and that’s what Free should mean.