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Open source technology allows for easy access to software code, enabling communities to make changes and improvements. It became mainstream in the 1990s with the commercialization of the internet and has evolved into subsets such as blogging, bulletin boards, and grassroots journalism. Open source software is commonly used by start-up internet companies and provides a unique social networking experience.
Open source technology has been around almost as long as computers. Technology is considered “open source” when the software code used to make it work has been specifically designed for easy access. This transparency allows programming communities to examine the source code and make changes or improvements to improve the technology.
It wasn’t until the 1990s and with the commercialization of the internet that open source technology became mainstream. The technology was further propelled into the limelight as Internet access became more accessible for families and increasingly freely available in many schools and libraries. As awareness of consumer technology grows, open source code will likely continue to be a popular option for programmers.
Open source technology, in its truest form, is any publicly available code with little or no copyright restrictions on how it can be modified or used. With the rise of social networks, however, open source technology has evolved into several subsets. The blog, bulletin board, and journalism subsets of open source technology allow even novice computer users to become part of an ever-evolving Internet community.
Blog communities are perhaps the most recognizable form of open source adaptation. WordPress® is one of the most successful and widely used open source blogging platforms of all time. As an open source platform, WordPress® and its competitors allow users to manipulate freely available code to create aesthetically unique blog templates. Additionally, users who are unable to read the source code can still benefit from the technology as the open source medium allows for more user interaction and well-maintained forums.
Internet users also benefit from open source message boards. The basic coding of the bulletin board is widely shared among programmers. This allows novice web designers to copy and paste code without any prior knowledge of HTML.
Similar to the emergence of blogging culture and community forums, grassroots journalism regularly uses open source technology. This type of open source application makes journalistic websites available for everyday users to upload text, images or videos. So-called “citizen journalism” is a thriving business, with some major news affiliates paying active Internet users to provide blog commentary or advice columns.
All types of open source software are commonly used by start-up Internet companies. While granting access holistically can limit the resale value of your code, it provides a virtually free method to modify it and squash bugs. Successful open source code is used and modified by affected Internet users until most of its problems are fixed. As such, open source code can be moved very quickly from test software, also called “beta”, to publishable software.
Most larger companies simply do internal beta testing and the technology is strictly copyrighted. In the case of some niche web giants like WordPress® or LiveJournal®, however, open source technology provides a more unique social networking experience. As social networking sites become more popular, open source will also likely enjoy greater use and notoriety.
