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Commit 7be6e5c1 authored by Ashwin Vishnu's avatar Ashwin Vishnu
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FOSS paragraph

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url = {http://www.connellybarnes.com/documents/language_productivity.pdf},
urldate = {2018-02-08},
}
@article{fitzgerald_transformation_2006,
title = {The {Transformation} of {Open} {Source} {Software}},
volume = {30},
issn = {0276-7783},
doi = {10.2307/25148740},
abstract = {A frequent characterization of open source software is the somewhat outdated, mythical one of a collective of supremely talented software hackers freely volunteering their services to produce uniformly high-quality software. I contend that the open source software phenomenon has metamorphosed into a more mainstream and commercially viable form, which I label as OSS 2.0. I illustrate this transformation using a framework of process and product factors, and discuss how the bazaar metaphor, which up to now has been associated with the open source development process, has actually shifted to become a metaphor better suited to the OSS 2.0 product delivery and support process. Overall the OSS 2.0 phenomenon is significantly different from its free software antecedent. Its emergence accentuates the fundamental alteration of the basic ground rules in the software landscape, signifying the end of the proprietary-driven model that has prevailed for the past 20 years or so. Thus, a clear understanding of the characteristics of the emergent OSS 2.0 phenomenon is required to address key challenges for research and practice.},
number = {3},
urldate = {2018-02-22},
journal = {MIS Quarterly},
author = {Fitzgerald, Brian},
year = {2006},
pages = {587--598},
}
......@@ -245,13 +245,15 @@
\subsection*{Methods and tools for open-source software engineering}
The free and open-source software (FOSS) revolution has dramatically eased the
cost of using computers, and is evident from the widespread use of GNU/Linux
systems in desktops, computing clusters and web-servers in academia and beyond.
The beginnings of FOSS culture can be traced back to the release of free
type-setting standard \TeX\ in 1977, which was used in the effort to replace a
commercial word processing system \emph{Scribe} with \codeinline{texinfo} in
1986. This was an initiative under the GNU project, started in 1983, which is
today known for its compiler collection (GCC) and its tools which forms the
GNU/Linux operating systems.
\subparagraph{Free and open-source software (FOSS).} The term \emph{free} in
FOSS is a misnomer, as it actually stands for \emph{freedom} (to use, modify
and distribute). The FOSS movement has dramatically decreased the cost of using
computers, and is evident from the widespread use of GNU/Linux systems in
desktops, computing clusters and web-servers in academia and beyond. The
beginnings of FOSS culture can be traced back to the release of free
type-setting standard \TeX\ (a predecessor of \LaTeX) in 1977, which was used in
the effort to replace a commercial word processing system \emph{Scribe} with
\codeinline{texinfo} in 1986. This was an initiative under the GNU project,
started in 1983 and continued under the umbrella of the Free Software Foundation
(FSF) from 1985.
......@@ -257,5 +259,21 @@
%todo: Here, we have to add a paragraph on free and open-source (libre)
GNU is today known for its compiler collection (GCC) and a multitude of tools
which when combined with the Linux kernel forms the GNU/Linux operating systems
that we are familiar today.
FOSS movement has had huge successes in many frontiers --- Apache could be
termed as the ``first killer-app of Linux'' and now with an ever-increasing
suite of softwares including Firefox, LibreOffice, Gimp as solid alternatives to
proprietary offerings.
Linux has become the most widely used kernel, being deployed on
servers, personal computers, embedded devices, and also smart phones (with Android).
Over the years, FOSS development has transitioned from an organic community of
volunteers, towards an organized system with participation from industries,
non-profit organizations and government institutions. This could be regarded as
the second-age of FOSS movement~\cite{fitzgerald_transformation_2006}.
%todo: DONE
% Here, we have to add a paragraph on free and open-source (libre)
% software:
% The following facts can be mentioned:
......@@ -269,6 +287,7 @@
% Some huge open-source successes : Apache ("first killer app of Linux"),
% now Firefox, Open-office
% av: https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/7x639l/what_free_software_is_so_good_you_cant_believe/du6pw11/
% Linux kernel now widely used on servers, personal computers, embedded
% devices, smarth phone (with Android).
......@@ -292,6 +311,8 @@
% - git and mercurial 2005
% - software repositories ~ 10 years before
% so I would exchange the too subparagraph...
% av:That is probably because we did not mention patches and CVS, subversion
% etc.
\subparagraph{Distributed version control systems (DVCS) and web-based source
......@@ -295,10 +316,12 @@
\subparagraph{Distributed version control systems (DVCS) and web-based source
development platforms.} The collective collaboration on development has been
greatly eased with the emergence of DVCS (especially, Git and Mercurial) and
web-based source development platforms like Github, Bitbucket and more recently
Gitlab.
development platforms.} Collaboration was achieved in the early years of FOSS
development through emailing ``patches'', and centralized VCS near the turn of the
21\textsuperscript{st} century.
The collective collaboration on development is today streamlined with the
emergence of DVCS (especially, Git and Mercurial) and web-based source
development platforms like Github, Bitbucket and more recently Gitlab.
%
These tools are designed to work on any kind of text files, not just codes, so
they could even be utilized to write scientific documents with multiple authors.
......@@ -456,7 +479,7 @@
Thus, Python is one of the best ``glue'' languages for fast prototyping. Less
bugs are introduced by the developers simply because there are much less lines
of code.
of code \cite{nanz_comparative_2015}.
Another consequence of the apparent simplicity of Python is that the learning
curve has a nice shape. Learning Python is very easy at the beginning and the
......
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