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Thursday, June 5

Open Source Microsoft? [WebTech]

Robert Scoble wonders if the expanding scope of source code access means Microsoft is 'going open source' in some way. Well, all I can say is substitute the phrase "open source" with its synonym "commons-based peer production" [Benkler] and see if you still think it.

No, what we are seeing is a harking back to the early days of the software industry, when large corporate customers who posed no competitive risk were given locked-down source access to help them deploy and support their systems more effectively. This practice was just ending when I entered the industry. It's source code to learn from, not to contribute to or build with, and that's why it's not "open source".

posted at 12:45 AM (UK) | |

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