Freeware and Open Source Software: Why Bother? James E. Corbly ARLD Day 2015 Minnesota Landscape Arboretum Chaska, Minnesota Topics to be Explored • What are the different types of software? • How are open source software and freeware licensed? • Where can I get freeware and open source software? • What are some freeware and open source equivalents to commercial software? Why be Concerned with Freeware and Open Source Software? • Freeware and open source software is cost- effective. • Freeware and open source software increase the value of computer hardware. • Freeware and open source software help librarians become better librarians. Freeware and Open Source Software are Problem-Solving Tools! workschedules.com/Store/ Product/ Picture_Time_Clock.aspx Types of Software • Commercial. • Shareware. • Adware. • Freeware. • Open Source (public-domain). Types of Software • Freeware. – Copyrighted software given away by the author. – Author retains copyright, so users cannot alter the software. – Author allows individuals to use the software but not sell it. – Some usage limitations may apply - for nonprofit usage. Types of Software • Open source software (public-domain software). – Source code can be modified - not copyrighted. – Can be used without restriction. – Usually created as a collaborative effort. – Improved code is shared within the community of users. – Exactly the opposite of commercial software. Characteristics of Freeware and Open Source Software • International productions. • Sometimes no technical support or documentation but active user groups (communities). • Many commercial firms offer free versions of their software – Paragon, AVG, others. • Frequent unannounced updates. Other Notes • Most people use freeware and open source software everyday - browsers, Web network software, templates, etc. • Many freeware and open source software packages are standards in their field - CCleaner, Audacity, Apache HTTP Server. • Largest supplier of freeware - Microsoft. Open Source Licenses • General Public License (GPL). • Berkeley Software Distribution Licenses (BSDL). General Public License • Most widely used open source license – 68% of open source software. • First version written by Richard Stallman (Univ. of Pittsburgh) in 1989. • Modified to keep pace with changing times. • Third version - 2007. General Public License • GPL is concerned with three activities: – Freely copying software. – Freely distributing software. – Freely modifying the code of the software. • Copyleft – method of making a program free and requires all modified versions to be free. Berkeley Software Distribution License • Family of licenses, each of which can be modified to meet a specific need. • Originated at the University of California – 1980. • Restrictions: – Software distributed “as is.” – No warranties on the software or its suitability for any purpose. Other Open Source Licenses • Mozilla Public License. • NASA Open Source Agreement. • Apache Software License. • Common Public License. • Not less than 72 open source licenses. Freeware Licensing • Not as uniform as open source licensing. • No equivalent to General Public License. • Rights and responsibilities of the copyright holder and the software user vary from program to program. Freeware Licensing • Common clauses. – Copyright is retained by the author of the software. – Software user may install and use the software for any legal purpose. – The software may be installed and used only on a specified number of computers. Freeware Licensing • Common clauses. – Software may be freely copied and distributed as long as the original copyright notice remains intact. – No fees may be charged for copies of the freeware other than distribution costs. – Software provided “as is” - the copyright holder is not liable for any damages resulting from product usage. Freeware Licensing • Common clauses. – Limits of use. • Personal or noncommercial use only. • Limits on software use with other programs. • Restrictions on use over a network. • Licenses vary in length – a few paragraphs to several pages. Good Practice • Copy the text of a license to a blank document in your word processor. • Keep the document with the text of the license in the master file of the software. Where can people find freeware and open source software? download.cnet.com/ majorgeeks.com filehorse.com filehippo.com freewarefiles.com listoffreeware.com sourceforge.net microsoft.com/en-us/download/ default.aspx alternativeto.net Free Alternatives to Commercial Software • Office suites: – LibreOffice - https://www.libreoffice.org/ – Apache OpenOffice - https://www.openoffice.org/ – Lotus Symphony - http://www-03.ibm.com/ software/products/en/lotusymp – Ssuite - http://www.ssuitesoft.com/ – Kingsoft Office - http://www.kingsoftstore.com/ kingsoft-office-freeware.html Free Alternatives to Commercial Software • Library management systems: – Koha - http://www.koha.org/ – Evergreen - http://evergreen-ils.org/ – SLIM21 - http://slimpp.com/slim21site/ about_ slim21.htm – OpenBiblio - http://obiblio.sourceforge.net/ – WEBLIS - http://portal.unesco.org/ci/en/ev.php- URL_ID=16840&URL_DO=DO_TOPIC &URL_SECTION=201.html Free Alternatives to Commercial Software • Library of Congress freeware: – Arabic Translitrator - http://sourceforge.net/projects/ translitrator/files/ – FRBR Display Tool - http://www.loc.gov/ marc/marc-functional-analysis/tool.html – Marc RTP - http://rossjohnson.homemail.com.au/ MARCRTP/ – Other free software programs - http://www.loc.gov/ marc/marctools.html Free Alternatives to Commercial Software • Anti-Malware: – Ad-Aware Free AntiVirus + - http://www.lavasoft. com/ products/ad_aware_free.php – Malwarebytes Anti-Malware Free - https://www. malwarebytes.org/downloads/ – Norman Malware Cleaner - http://norman-malware- cleaner.findmysoft.com/# – SpyDLLRemover - http://securityxploded.com/ spydllremover.php Free Alternatives to Commercial Software • Anti-Virus: – Avast - https://www.avast.com/en-us/download- thank-you.php?product=FAV-AVAST&locale= en-us – AVG - http://free.avg.com/us-en/homepage – Avira - http://www.avira.com/en/avira-free-antivirus – Microsoft Security Essentials - http://windows. microsoft.com/en-US/windows/security- essentials-download Free Alternatives to Commercial Software • Calendars/Information Managers: – Efficient Calendar Free - http://www. efficientcalendar.com/freeedition.htm – EssentialPIM Free - http://essentialpim.com/pc- version – Evolution - https://wiki.gnome.org/Apps/Evolution/ – TreePad Lite - http://www.treepad.com/ download/tplitewin.html – Rainlendar Lite - http://rainlendar.net/cms/ index.php?option=com_rny_download Free Alternatives to Commercial Software • File Shredders: – CyberShredder - http://cylog.org/utilities/ cybershredder.jsp – File Shredder - http://fileshredder.org/ – Files Terminator Free - http://elefantsoftware-en. weebly.com/files-terminator.html – Free File Shredder - http://www.kakasoft.com/file- shredder/ Free Alternatives to Commercial Software • Firewalls: – Comodo Firewall - https://www.comodo.com/ – Privatefirewall - http://www.privacyware.com/ personal_firewall.html – TinyWall - http://tinywall.pados.hu/ – ZoneAlarm Free Firewall - http://www.zonealarm. com/security/en-us/zonealarm-pc-security-free- firewall.htm Free Alternatives to Commercial Software • Firewalls: – Look for a firewall which keeps you safe from inbound and outbound attacks. – Install a firewall that updates security lists of viruses, spyware, and other dangers (manually or automatically). – Obtain a firewall which makes you invisible on the Internet. Free Alternatives to Commercial Software • PDF Software: – PDFedit - http://pdfedit.cz/en/index.html – PDFill PDF Tools - https://www.pdfill.com/ pdf_tools_free.html – PDF to Flip Book - http://www.flipbuilder.com/free- pdf-to-flip-book/ – PDF reDirect - http://exp-systems.com/ – UniPDF - http://unipdf.com/ Free Alternatives to Commercial Software • System utilities: – Auslogics Disk Defrag - http://www.auslogics.com/ en/software/disk-defrag/ – CCleaner - http://www.piriform.com/ccleaner – Gadwin PrintScreen- http://www.gadwin.com/ printscreen/ – Glary Utilities - http://www.glarysoft.com/glary- utilities/ – Pandora Recovery - http://pandorarecovery.com/ http://www.majorgeeks.com/ news/story/majorgeeks_top_ freeware_picks.html And Remember . Before Installing ANY Software from ANY Source - • Check the software with a good anti-virus program, and • Check the software with a good anti-malware program. http://ejournals.bc.edu/ojs/ index.php/ital/article/view/5105 Contact Information: James E. Corbly 1010 8th. St. NW Austin, MN 55912-2035 Phone: 507.434.0499 Skype: james.e.corbly E-mail: [email protected].