Why Open Source primarily benefits Windows

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James Bannan25 September 2007, 7:49 AM

How's this for irony? The principal beneficiaries of open source are Windows users. Here are the top 20 free apps.


If you believe the Linux zealots, open source will, eventually, triumph over proprietary/commercial software (read Microsoft).

Of course, the reality is that the principal beneficiaries of open source are, in fact, Windows users.

Why? Because Windows is the dominant desktop operating system, and if you’ve put in your time and effort to create an open source product that you’re particularly proud of, what’s the best way to get it out there? Make sure it works on Windows, and watch the acclaim come rolling in.

Of course, any Linux advocate will tell you how all the best open source apps either come bundled with most popular Linux distros or are fully supported on them, and that may certainly be the case, but unfortunately for Linux, it doesn’t matter very much. Linux on the desktop still has too many quirks and incompatibilities for Joe Average to blow away Windows just yet.

The sweet middle-ground for most people is that you can now build a Windows-based system with completely free software running on Windows.

Effectively, Windows is now the only software most people have to pay for.

The top 20 free apps for Windows

Here’s my personal “best of” list – stuff that you simply can’t go past, and some of which I use myself all day every day. Note, these apps are free -- not all of them are open source.
  • OpenOffice – not quite as advanced as Microsoft Office and doesn’t have SharePoint integration, but if that doesn’t matter then look no further (check out Novell’s version too)
  • Mozilla Firefox – just as secure as IE7 but insanely customisable. The best browsing experience available
  • Mozilla Thunderbird – outstanding customisable email (make sure you install Lightning as well)
  • Evolution – yes, it’s been ported to Windows, and is an excellent corporate groupware product
  • Mozilla SunBird – if you prefer a separate application for calendaring, this is the one for you
  • Pidgin - chat on every network through one lightweight open-source program, with none of the banner ads and hoop-jumping the official clients put you through.
  • Media Player Classic – lightweight media player with lots of useful addins (like DVD playback)
  • The GIMP – still one of the best image editing packages out there
  • K-Lite Mega Codec Pack – play any media file available (includes Media Player Classic)
  • VLC Media Player – cross-platform media player and streaming server
  • MediaCoder – can convert pretty much anything to anything and back again
  • Winamp – still the best music player, in my opinion
  • RSSOwl – if you prefer a separate app to manage newsfeed/RSS/XML/Atom subscriptions, this is the one
  • Juice – any podcast, any format
  • AVG Anti-Virus – still kicking goals. Lightweight, stable and offers great realtime protection
  • AVG Anti-Spyware – manual updates required for the free version, but still very good
  • Ad-Aware Free – despite the push towards licensing, the free version is still great
  • Spybot – still free, still powerful
  • Azureus – a powerful and very advanced Java-based torrent client
  • PrimoPDF – convert pretty much anything to PDF

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djg:

I do not believe that the listed applications are all open source. Sure, they are free, but try getting the source code to AVG products. Please do not confuse Open Source with Free - they are quite different.

29 February 2008, 8:32 PM (9 months ago)report abuse Send to a friend reply

rms:

djg, the article says "not all of them are open source".. read the article before posting a comment!

29 February 2008, 8:48 PM (9 months ago)report abuse Send to a friend reply

lbot:

why dont you read the article, it clearly says that some are open source and others are free. the article does not confuse this at all

29 February 2008, 8:48 PM (9 months ago)report abuse Send to a friend reply

open_source_rules:

Congratulations James for alerting people to this fact.

I shudder when I think about the amount of money everyday PC users spend on software which is in most cases is no better than the open source alternative. I have never needed to buy software because of the quality and quantity of open source applications available for the PC.

Don't get me wrong Linux is a wonderful platform, and has its uses but James is correct in stating that Windows is the dominant platform. At the moment Mums and Dads aren't heading down to their local store to buy a new computer with the latest release of debian/ubuntu pre-installed, but in time this could change.

I believe that more people should embrace the wonderful open source applications available for windows and hopefully, one day, those linux zealots will develop an operating system that rivals Microsoft Windows for Everyday Usability.



29 February 2008, 8:32 PM (9 months ago)report abuse Send to a friend reply

Brendan:

"AVG Anti-Virus – still kicking goals. Lightweight, stable and offers great realtime protection
AVG Anti-Spyware – manual updates required for the free version, but still very good
Ad-Aware Free – despite the push towards licensing, the free version is still great
Spybot – still free, still powerful"

No Unix OS requires such counter-atrocities. Everything there is basically crossplatform, unless useless as above, and the exception of Winamp, but XMMS replicates it if you _really_ want it, but mpd is definately where it's at.

29 February 2008, 8:32 PM (9 months ago)report abuse Send to a friend reply

Sly Coder:

Open Source primarily benefits Windows?

Not a chance.

And here's why.

James, you will, I'm sure, know that most people stick with a particular operating system because it has the functions they need and it runs the applications they want.

Any new operating system had better look familiar enough to them and had better run those applications, or it has little chance of replacing their existing platform.

Over the past 18 years, most users have adopted applications which don't run natively under Linux: MS Office, IE, apps built with Visual Basic, .NET or Access, Publisher, Photoshoop etc.

In coming to rely on this proprietary software, users are prevented from seriously considering Linux as a desktop solution, unless they utlise technology like Wine, CrossOver, VMWare etc, ie, less optimal than native apps.

What's important about the open source software you mention, is that these applications also run natively on Linux.

And once users start adopting this software, and that software provides the key functions they need from a PC, then it becomes very feasible for them to migrate to Linux - far more feasible than it was before.

By advocating the use of this open source software for Windows users, you're lubricating the escape hatch which allows them to leave the world of application-platform lock in - to leave the world of Microsoft Windows.

What else? Oh, yes. Many less technical users have been traditionally hesitant about adopting community-developed software. By providing this list of quality products, you're helping reduce the cognitive dissonance barrier they may have about such software.

This in turn makes it easier for them to consider an open source operating system, like Linux, in future.

Thank you for your efforts! ;-)



29 February 2008, 8:32 PM (9 months ago)report abuse Send to a friend