Open source FAQ | Digital Curation Centre

Open source FAQ | Digital Curation Centre:

What does open source mean?

So it really is free?

What does proprietary software mean?

You keep mentioning source code; what's that?

Hmm... can you explain that more fully?

So if source code is so valuable why not just convert proprietary binary files back?

But what's in it for the open source people?

What about open standards?

I'm a data creator; how will open source and open standards affect me?

I'm a data curator; how will open source affect me?

I'm a data re-user; how will open source affect me?

Does open source come with any licensing at all?

So can I be sure that this open source software will always be maintained and have full functionality?

Does the open source approach have any drawbacks?

What is the future of open source?

Where can I get more information on open source?