| Open source describes the principles and | | | | The term was given a big boost at an event |
| methodologies to promote open access to the | | | | organized in April 1998 by technology |
| production and design process for various | | | | publisher Tim O'Reilly. Originally titled the |
| goods, products, resources and technical | | | | "Freeware Summit" and later known as the |
| conclusions or advice. The term is most | | | | "Open Source Summit", the event brought |
| commonly applied to the source code of | | | | together the leaders of many of the most |
| software that is made available to the | | | | important free and open source projects, |
| general public with either relaxed or | | | | including Linus Torvalds, Larry Wall, Brian |
| non-existent intellectual property | | | | Behlendorf, Eric Allman, Guido van Rossum, |
| restrictions. This allows users to create | | | | Michael Tiemann, Paul Vixie, Jamie Zawinski |
| user-generated software content through | | | | of Netscape, and Eric Raymond. At that |
| either incremental individual effort, or | | | | meeting, the confusion caused by the name |
| collaboration. | | | | "free software" was brought up. Tiemann |
| | | | argued for "sourceware" as a new term, while |
| Some consider open source as one of various | | | | Raymond argued for "open source." The |
| possible design approaches, while others | | | | assembled developers took a vote, and the |
| consider it a critical strategic element of | | | | winner was announced at a press conference |
| their operations. Before open source became | | | | that evening. |
| widely adopted, developers and producers used | | | | |
| a variety of phrases to describe the concept; | | | | This milestone may be commonly seen as the |
| the term open source gained popularity with | | | | birth of the open source movement. However, |
| the rise of the Internet and its enabling of | | | | earlier researchers with access to the |
| diverse production models, communication | | | | Advanced Research Projects Agency Network |
| paths, and interactive communities. | | | | (ARPANET) used a process called Request for |
| Subsequently, open source software became the | | | | Comments, which is similar to open standards, |
| most prominent face of open source practices. | | | | to develop telecommunication network |
| | | | protocols. Characterized by contemporary open |
| The open source model of operation can be | | | | source work, this collaborative process led |
| extended to open source culture in decision | | | | to the birth of the Internet in 1969. An |
| making which allows concurrent input of | | | | early use of open source was in the 1950s, |
| different agendas, approaches and priorities, | | | | when IBM distributed operating systems in |
| in contrast with more centralized models of | | | | source format and the SHARE user group was |
| development such as those typically used in | | | | formed to facilitate the exchange of source |
| commercial companies. "Open source" as | | | | code. |
| applied to culture defines a culture in which | | | | |
| collective decisions or fixations are shared | | | | The Open Source Initiative formed in February |
| during development and made generally | | | | 1998 by Eric S. Raymond and Bruce Perens. |
| available in the public domain- - - as seen | | | | With about 20 years of evidence from case |
| with Wikipedia. This collective approach | | | | histories of closed development versus open |
| moderates ethical concerns over a "conflict | | | | development already provided by the Internet, |
| of roles" or conflict of interest. | | | | the OSI continued to present the 'open |
| Participants in such a culture are able to | | | | source' case to commercial businesses. They |
| modify the collective outcomes and share them | | | | sought to bring a higher profile to the |
| with the community. | | | | practical benefits of freely available source |
| | | | code, and they wanted to bring major software |
| The "open source" labels came out of a | | | | businesses and other high-tech industries |
| strategy session held at Palo Alto, | | | | into open source. Bruce Perens adapted |
| California, in reaction to Netscape's January | | | | Debian's Free Software Guidelines to make the |
| 1998 announcement of a source code release | | | | Open Source Definition. |
| for Navigator. The group of individuals at | | | | |
| the session included Christine Peterson who | | | | Critics have said that the term "open source" |
| suggested "open source" and also included | | | | fosters an ambiguity of a different kind, in |
| Todd Anderson, Larry Augustin, Jon Hall, Sam | | | | that it confuses the mere availability of the |
| Ockman, and Eric S. Raymond. They used the | | | | source with the freedom to use, modify, and |
| opportunity before the release of Navigator's | | | | redistribute it. Developers have used the |
| source code to free themselves of the | | | | term Free/Open-Source Software (FOSS), or |
| ideological and confrontational connotations | | | | Free/Libre/Open-Source Software (FLOSS), |
| of the term free software. Netscape licensed | | | | consequently, to describe open-source |
| and released their code as open source under | | | | software that is freely available and free of |
| the name of Mozilla. | | | | charge. |
| | | | |