Check out this article at Wired Magazine, where they continue to discuss the business model of the Open Source movement. I continue to be very curious about the business model being described. It seems quite a bit more stable than the bubble that developed around the Web in 2000, yet it still seems a little questionable. Open Source Software companies that are giving away their products are being sold for millions of dollars, and this trend is only getting stronger, as the article notes that the sales during January of this year exceeded those of all of 2007. I certainly hope this bubble does not burst. I like free software! Especially when thinking of the benefits of free software that can be reaped by our economically dsyfunctional school systems, any products that can be delivered for free to those institutions is a total boon! I think about Art programs that could not possibly afford Photoshop, but could employ Gimp in those classes to enable students to use excellent software and develop useful skills for the 21st century. We will continue to monitor the situation and hope that the river runs its course.
Filed under: software
