Open source software is used by some of the world’s top organizations, like McDonalds, the US Department of Defense, and Google. You don’t have to look hard to find out why, as the benefits of open source software are endless. Open Source learning management systems cost less, they are highly flexible and they are more secure. Despite these positive features, there seems to be some common misconceptions surrounding open source technology. We would like to take this opportunity to debunk 3 common open source myths.
- Myth #1: Open Source is unreliable.
Open Source Software allows developers and system operations teams to tackle security threats and issues immediately, making it very secure. This is in contrast to proprietary software systems, who are at the liberty of their software vendor to address the issues in their priority sequence. Open source code allows developers to increase product quality fast, allowing users to benefit from a learning management system that grows as they do.
- Myth #2: Open Source software are not well supported.
Open source software typically comes with a large, inclusive community that benefits from a growing number of developers who are deeply invested in an optimally functioning system. This allows for a continuous sweep of the system by multiple experts, who together can make sure the system is running at the very best of its ability for function, capability and security. Two hands are better than one as they say. In that same respect, there are more people looking out for bugs and flaws. If you don’t catch a glitch in the system, you can rest assured knowing that someone else will. Additionally, open source software offers the freedom for organizations to hire a third party supporter if they wish. This means even more eyes on the system to catch glitches, and make sure everything is running smoothly.
- Myth #3: Open Source is not just meant for big companies
Amazon, Google, Facebook, Twitter, Wikipedia, New York Stock Exchange, BMW, and Dreamworks are just a few of the many large, well-known organizations who use open source systems. These are some of the world’s largest companies, and open source isn’t just a software they use, it is the foundation for a big part of their business.
To learn more about how and why open source technologies are used by some of the world’s leading organizations, watch our recorded webinar: The Growing Trend of Open Source in Learning.
