Open Source

There has been a lot of talk recently about Open Source software, but what exactly is 'Open Source' and and what does it mean for library systems?

There is no one organisation that can claim to own or manage the 'Open Source' model, however the Open Source Initiative's definition is widely recognised as the most comprehensive. The main points of the definition are that for software to be Open Source it must:

• be free and free to redistribute
• be open so that anyone can inspect the code
• allow the distribution of modifications inline with any original author restrictions
• must not discriminate any person, group, system, technology, endeavor, etc

Some of the more prominent open source software in the public domain include: the Apache web server, the Firefox web browser, and the Linux operating systems. All of these software systems could arguably be described as the leading example within their field. This underlines how important Open Source software is and shows how stable, robust, and secure it can be in real world applications.

So what does this mean for library systems?

Well it's not a new debate; questions have been raised about using Open Source in libraries for over ten years. ExLibris have committed to what it calls its 'Open Platform', which is a move toward Open Source, but differs in some important areas. ExLibris will be releasing APIs (application programming interfaces) to their software to allow communication with other systems. However, they will not be releasing the code for their software, their software will not be free or modifiable, and their software will be supported by the company rather than the community (for a fee of course). Is this wrong? Not according to the Library Technology Guides who state that the opening of source code to such a complex system as an LMS wouldn't be beneficial to either the customer or the software supplier.

ExLibris aren't the only Library software supplier to have considered Open Source. Koha is a completely Open Source LMS that provides free community support or a 'paid for' support model. Could this sort of model ever replace the propriety model from companies like ExLibris and SirsiDynix? Possibly, but it would take an immense amount of collaboration from like minded individuals.