Technology review: open source software as a viable alternative for community colleges

Community College Enterprise, The, Fall 2004 by FitzGerald, Shawn

Technology review: open source software as a viable alternative for community colleges

Open source software (OSS) has been gradually gaining attention outside the high tech cabal. Much of the open source movement's success is due to Linux and other open source operating systems. In their infancy, these operating systems were too complex for the average user to install, run and support. As OSS matures, the level of technical skill required to use and support it decreases. Universities have been fertile environments for open source projects. There is a high concentration of technical skill in both the student and staff populations, and a supportive atmosphere of curiosity and exploration.

The key difference between open source and closed source software is the source code. If we buy Microsoft Office, we get a disk containing the binary programs. If we purchase RedHat Linux, we get several disks containing binary programs, as well as disks containing the source code for that software. We are then free to modify that code any way we wish, customizing it to our own particular needs.

Due to the licensing requirements of some open source packages, most of the OSS is free of charge. Companies like RedHat allow consumers to download much of their software, and make money (or try to) on documentation and technical support-good news for cash-strapped community colleges.

Traditional software companies like Adobe and Microsoft keep the revenue stream flowing by frequently releasing new versions of their products while removing support for older products. Consumers, be they non-profit or otherwise, can find themselves locked into periodically writing large checks to multiple software companies, frequently purchasing features with little practical use.

Instead, a college can invest some of the resources spent upgrading and supporting Microsoft Office into using and developing an open source solution, such as Sun Microsystem's OpenOffice. The development community offers the college a useful piece of software, and the college in turn gives back to the development community by using the software and perhaps contributing additional code, functionality and bug fixes.

Colleges and universities require different software than corporations and these requirements make open source solutions particularly attractive to academia. The Kuali Project is a group effort, spearheaded by the University of Hawaii and Indiana University, to make free financial software for the community (www.kualiproject.org). Adopting the name "community source," the project has a committee-style organizational structure that college administrators may find desirable.

The Sakai Project is another community source effort to build a free courseware application platform, similar to WebCT (www.sakaiproject.org). The first version is in its second review, with an official release expected soon.

In the early stages of these and similar projects, participation reaps the greatest rewards. Community colleges may not have the resources of Indiana University, but by installing and running open source-or community source-software, they can provide input and feedback to the development community. The opportunity to contribute, coupled with tangible cash savings, makes this an ideal time for community colleges to start implementing open source systems.

Shawn FitzGerald

Mr. FitzGerald has been using open source software and systems for seven years and is currently the IT Engineer at WXXA-TV in Albany, New York.