[ Thanks to Mayank
for this link. ]
“The Open Source model of software development has churned
out some truly remarkable pieces of software. There is no dearth of
examples of excellent pieces of Open Source software, right from
Apache, which is one of the most widely used web servers, to
Sendmail, which is responsible for transporting billions of email
messages around the world, every day. These are some of the
most common and widely used Open Source software that have found
their way into the hearts of many System Administrators world-wide.
In a world dominated by Closed Source, let’s take a look at the
significance of Open Source software and the role it plays.”
“The proponents of Open Source are extremely committed people,
for the simple reason that if you know about Open Source, the way
it works and if you have ever benefited from it in one way or
another, you will find yourself obligated to do something in return
to foster the growth of Open Source and the community as a whole.
Let’s take the example of the various LUG’s (Linux Users Group)
that operate via e-mail in the form of Mailing Lists world-wide.
The concept of the LUG is to bring about awareness on various
issues and provide a forum for discussion on various topics
regarding Open Source with Linux being the central theme. Apart
from discussing issues related to Open Source, quite often LUG
members also help out people who are stuck with a tricky problem on
their Linux boxes. The mailing list has people who are experienced
in several fields and that makes the concept of the LUG all the
more interesting. It pools together the resources of the community
to help any Linux user requiring assistance.”