Comments on: Software support must evolve with Open Source http://www.fak3r.com/2007/09/24/software-support-must-evolve-with-open-source/ dim high beams for oncoming traffic Tue, 02 Dec 2008 00:51:53 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.6.3 By: Steve http://www.fak3r.com/2007/09/24/software-support-must-evolve-with-open-source/#comment-25958 Steve Sat, 15 Dec 2007 21:09:34 +0000 http://fak3r.com/2007/09/24/software-support-must-evolve-with-open-source/#comment-25958 To me this a big waste of money and have somewhat made my case to them. I would normally agree if the company that was doing apache support was not sympathetic to the ideals of Open Source/Free Software. Otherwise I think your company would be helping the whole community by funneling money into software production. I have been thinking about the whole situation and we employees and consultants should stop framing discussions in lower cost and just allow businesses to spend their money but help them fund what we think are worthwhile projects. Ex. I get a company to convert to Open Office. I charge them $100 per seat cost of Open Office maybe telling them that they could get it free if they were to do it themselves, but after I get their check for the conversion it is up to me to send half to either the Open Office folks or funding a group that wants to further the ODF format. That seems to me to be the way to move Open Source forward. As an aside like them or not Google makes money on teh back of open source and seems to understand at some level about giving back. I am sure we can all squabble about the amount as a percentage of their worth, but hey what have we done personally :) To me this a big waste of money and have somewhat made my case to them.

I would normally agree if the company that was doing apache support was not sympathetic to the ideals of Open Source/Free Software. Otherwise I think your company would be helping the whole community by funneling money into software production.

I have been thinking about the whole situation and we employees and consultants should stop framing discussions in lower cost and just allow businesses to spend their money but help them fund what we think are worthwhile projects.

Ex. I get a company to convert to Open Office. I charge them $100 per seat cost of Open Office maybe telling them that they could get it free if they were to do it themselves, but after I get their check for the conversion it is up to me to send half to either the Open Office folks or funding a group that wants to further the ODF format.

That seems to me to be the way to move Open Source forward. As an aside like them or not Google makes money on teh back of open source and seems to understand at some level about giving back. I am sure we can all squabble about the amount as a percentage of their worth, but hey what have we done personally :)

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