Open Source in Education

Concept of Open Source

Definition

Open Source is a term that refers to software that fulfill four conditions:

• The freedom to run the program, for any purpose.
• The freedom to study how the program works, and adapt it to your needs. Access to the source code is a precondition for this.
• The freedom to redistribute copies so you can help your neighbor.
• The freedom to improve the program, and release your improvements to the public, so that the whole community benefits. Access to the source code is a precondition for this.

Source: Free Software Foundation, http://www.fsf.org/licensing/essays/free-sw.html.

The definition has since been expanded to cover various applications in different fields. It usually refers to the notion in which people openly share content without restrictions in order to improve it and increase its usefulness.

License

Open Source material is usually protected by a special license which guarantees its availability and survival. It describes the conditions under which a material can be modified so that the project not is dependent on the original author.

There are many different open source licenses. Some common ones for software are:

• GNU General Public License (GPL)
• GNU Lesser General Public License (LGPL)
• MIT License
• BSD family of licenses

Some common licenses for non-software content are:

• Creative Commons family of licenses (CC)
• GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL)