Summary Request for Information as at 6th September 2004: 

The paper will  be written specifically for MPs and Lords in the House of Commons and  House of Lords in Parliament in the UK to explain what Open Source is and  its benefits and drawbacks.

Submissions on this subject are requested from interested parties and POST will be interested in taking views on the subject. The finished report will be a four page précis and analysis of submissions from Government including comments and interviews from Governmental bodies and departments, Non-Governmental organisations, Industry, Academia and  other interested parties. 

This paper sets out to explain the background to Open Source Software (OSS) - what it is, what it is not, how it developed, and how it differs from proprietary software. The paper gives an overview of the debate on OSS, summarises some recent developments in both the policy arena and the marketplace, and takes a look at the different business models.   Contributors include BSI, Fujitsu, IBM, Microsoft, OeE, OpenForum Europe, The Corporate IT Forum (tif).

There is a wide spectrum of very strongly held views in this arena and whilst this paper attempts to characterise some of the main actors in the debate and summarise their arguments and views, it has been necessary to generalise and simplify these positions to a great extent. The detail required to give a comprehensive account is beyond the scope of our activity.  There are many excellent sources of further information, which set this material into context and these references are given in the paper.

Other Relevant documents and links on Open Source Software

Free Software Federation (FSF) http://www.fsf.org

eGovernment Unit (eGU) (was Office of the e-Envoy): http://www.govtalk.gov.uk

Office of Government Commerce (OGC): http://www.ogc.gov.uk

Free Software definition (FSF): http://www.fsf.org/philosophy/free-sw.html

BECTA Information Sheet on Open Source Software: http://www.becta.org.uk/technology/infosheets/html/opensource.html

Glossaries and Indexes

Webopedia: http://www.webopedia.com

Licencing

Open Source Initiative - http://www.opensource.org/licenses/index.php

OGC - Open Source Software Trials in Government - Final Report: October 2004 http://www.ogc.gov.uk/oss/Report-v8c.rtf

QinetiQ Analysis of Open Source Solution Implementation Methodologies -  QOSSIModo Feb 2003 (RTF): http://www.ogc.gov.uk/oss/QUOSSIModo-Report.rtf 

OGC Covering Note to QinetiQ Report,  March 2003: http://www.ogc.gov.uk/oss/case-study-comment.rtf

Open Source Software Use in Government - OeE Consultation and policy documents

OeE Report / Consultation:  Open Source Software- Use within Government, Version 2, March 2004

UK Government Policy on Open Source Software:  Summary Points

OeE Status Report, Feb 2003: Implementation of UK Government's OSS Policy and other developments

OeE - Open Source Software Use within Government - Policy: Version 1, July 2002 http://www.ogc.gov.uk/oss/OSS-policy.pdf

Responses to OeE Consultation

Intellect Response to OeE Consultation Draft Version 2:  Open Source Software - Use within Government.  Draft Version 2 - Redraft responding to public consultation (March to June 2004) Intellect's Comments

Open Forum Europe: Response to UK Government Consultation Document "Open Source Software - Use within UK Government"

Open Source Software (OSS) as a Possible Default Exploitation Route for Government Funded Software - Comments from Intellect

Business Software Alliance- Principles for Software Innovation

Tim Jackson: Draft Policy on the Use of Open Source Software (OSS) in UK Government:  Tim Jackson's Response

Andrew Hardie:- Open Source for Open Government - A Strategic View, November 2002

Market Reports

Open Forum Europe:  Market Perception Analysis of Open Source Software - Follow up Study one Year On - Management Summary

QinetiQ - Analysis of the Impact of Open Source Software, October 2001

Pros and Cons

Anon: Pros and Cons of Linux adoption in the Public Sector

My IT Adviser, 22/03/03: Debunking the top ten Open Source Myths.

Microsoft Shared Source: Some Questions Every Business Should Ask about the GNU General Public License (GPL)

Robert Frances Group - Total Cost of Ownership for Linux in the Enterprise

Information Age Oct 2002; Wide Open Source - Does access to open source code help malicious hackers attack open source applications? (Article by Graeme Burton from Infoconomy)

Opinions and articles

New Scientist - The Great Giveaway:  http://www.newscientist.com/hottopics/copyleft/copyleftart.isp

Computer Weekly - Finding out the hidden costs of Open Source: http://www.cw360.com/articles/Article.asp?

VNUnet:  Windows better value than Linux, says IDC: http://www.vnunet.com/news/1137325

ZDNet news - UK Government backs Open Source: http://www.zdnet.co.uk/cgi-bin/uk/printer_friendly.cgi?id=2119628

Newsforge: Open Source - A case for e-Government: http://newsforge.com/article.pl?sid=02/10/20/1746231&mode=thread&tid=4

Indymedia - Copyleft: http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2004/07/295191.html

Bruce Perens article: Avoid repeating UNIX mistakes: http://news.zdnet.co.uk/software/0,39020381,2127045,00.htm

Eric Steven Raymond:  The Cathedral and the Bazaar; http://www.tuxedo.org/~esr/writings/cathedral-bazaar/cathedral-bazaar/index.html

FSF - Why Free Software is better than Open Source: http://www.fsf.org/philosophy/free-software-for-freedom.html

Guidance

Office of Government Commerce (OGC):  Guidance on implementing Open Source Software, September 2002, also known as: Office of Government Commerce (OGC): Open Source Software: Guidance on implementing Government Policy.  http://www.ogc.gov.uk/embedded_object.asp?docid=2498