FREE AND OPEN source is not UNIX or Linux?

Question

Free and open source must be in your mind.

Answer 1

Free and / or open source is not Unix or Linux.



Unix and Linux are operating systems.



Free and open source means that the code for a program or library is provided without charge and the source is made available.



Most Linux variants are free and open source, some Unix variants are too.



Free and / or open source is a property of a software package, so you can't compare it to an operating system.

Answer 2

Is this a question or a statement ? :)



M$oft proponents say that Unix/Linux is not open because there are so many variants. There is some truth to that. Programs written on IBM AIX may not run on Sun Solaris without a recompile and possibly some rewrite if the programmer(s) strayed from standards.



The same proponents will say that since M$oft products run on a myriad of vendor machines, then their product is open. But, since all of the those systems run Intel or AMD cpus chips, then is it really open?



It's all in the eyes of the beholder I suppose. In my opinion, opensource has more to do with licensing and the availability of support.



Did this answer your question? These are my opinions.



For a good example of true opensource, check out http://www.sourceforge.net. There you will find 1000s of projects, all opensource.

Answer 3

Open Source just means that the SOURCE CODE for the program/os is supplied along with the package that you are running.



It means you have all you need to make modifications to the program since the entire source is included. It does not necessarily mean that the program is free! Think of it as freedom to change it, not "free as in free beer!" Many open source programs do have a cost associated with them many do not. It all depends on the programmers intentions and the license they release along with the source code.



Microsoft IS NOT OPEN you have never seen the source code for windows that is kept within MS.

Answer 4

Linux is Free and Open Source....

I don't understand what your question mean...