Open Source Software (OSS) part1

So I’ve been doing some research on OSS. I’m trying to prepare a presentation on the topic. Originally, I was planning on doing “Open Source Development” (ridiculously ironic considering the amount of OSS development I do…) but before I get into that, I wanted to be clear on what “Open Source” actually was. I’ve had a big interest in OSS and followed it for quite a while, but I’ve never bothered to become familiar with terms and licenses and history. It’s really quite interesting, but pretty overwhelming. I think I may have to change it to “An Introduction to OSS.” Which is fine, I guess.

So far, I’ve got lots of notes on different licenses, examples of software and bits of history about the software. I hope to incorporate some information and history on the figureheads of the “movement,” as it’s really interesting. At least, I find it really interesting. I’d also like to go over culture (goes with licenses), OSS development models, and development tools.

I must say, the Wikipedia entry on ESR (author of “The Cathedral and the Bazaar“) is absolutely hilarious. I’m talking serious LOL-material, here. It’s almost not work-safe. Careful.

Anyways, I’m curious, if you are not terribly familiar with OSS (or even if you are), what are some topics you’d like to see in a presentation about OSS? Anything specific to development? Add your suggestions to the comments on this post.

I’ll end with this amusing quote from gnu.org:

“Piracy”

Publishers often refer to prohibited copying as “piracy.” In this way, they imply that illegal copying is ethically equivalent to attacking ships on the high seas, kidnapping and murdering the people on them.

If you don’t believe that illegal copying is just like kidnapping and murder, you might prefer not to use the word “piracy” to describe it. Neutral terms such as “prohibited copying” or “unauthorized copying” are available for use instead. Some of us might even prefer to use a positive term such as “sharing information with your neighbor.”