OStatic

The Silver Lining in the Cloud is Open Source

A lot of people are gloom and doomy about the prospects for free and open source software in the cloud. Some even argue that software as a service or cloud computing should be avoided, but you can't fix the market, you can only adapt. It's good to see that some folks in the FLOSS community get this, like Dries Buytaert.

Buytaert, creator of Drupal and founder of Acquia is taking a different tact to supporting open source in the cloud: Building a business around it. While some Software as a Service (SaaS) platforms are built around lock-in, there's no reason why a company can't reject that model and carry the values of free and open source into the SaaS/cloud computing model. Buytaert argues that it's time for FLOSS advocates to redefine the SaaS model:

Combining Open Source tools and Cloud Computing makes for the perfect storm for success. It provides real value to end-users and it enables companies to monetize Open Source. It creates a win-win situation.

At the same time, I think we have an opportunity to go beyond that, and to redefine the Software as a Service model based on Open Source values, almost exactly like we started doing 10+ years ago with off-the-shelf software. Almost all Software as a Service providers employ a proprietary model -- they might allow you to export your data, but they usually don't allow you to export their underlying code. While a lot of these services might be built on Open Source components, they have a lot more in common with proprietary software vendors than Open Source projects or companies.

There is room for Open Source companies to disrupt this model, and it is probably not something that can be done without the help of Open Source companies.

Buytaert hits the nail on the head. It's no use complaining about SaaS and just saying "don't use that, it's bad." SaaS is an opportunity to expand free and open source software, and support its development, while providing services that users want and need.

• Drupal
• Acquia
• SaaS
• cloud
• Buytaert

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