Business Success with Open Source

Reputation and Brand

The key to that lower TCO is that free and open source software is an ecosystem of sharing. People and companies come together to share their code and their expertise for the good of the entire community and beyond. Good FOSS citizens give back to the ecosystem at least as much as they take. Mechanisms such as reciprocal licenses help to ensure that this sharing occurs, discouraging a selfish “I got mine, everyone else can fend for themselves” attitude—and the poor community reputation that comes with it.

Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. Many of you (at least in the English-speaking world) will recognize this as the Golden Rule; it’s a key concept in many religions and philosophies. What you’ve likely found ...