[ Thanks to Kelly
McNeill for this link. ]
“Microsoft’s recent announcement that it would allow some
corporate customers to view the source code to its Windows
operating system was met with derision by the open-source
community. Access to the code was severely limited, and nobody was
allowed to modify it, so what was the point?”
“In fact, this could mark the beginning of Microsoft’s move
towards a new model, between proprietary code and full open source:
something I will call “read-only source.”
“Read-only source is what it sounds like. Anyone can view the
source code, but nobody can modify it, and no copyright or
intellectual property rights are granted….”
“But there is no reason that it could not open up the program to
everyone.”