Enjoy the benefits of Open source without the pitfalls

While open source code is free, you still need to perform development activities such as integration, regression testing or development of feature enhancements. Open source projects often use Agile or Scrum approaches but the big upside is that you can concentrate on innovation and differentiation, with low investment in the core plumbing and building block software.

It’s most important to decide early on if, when and how you plan to give something back to the open source community. Consider whether you will contribute complete components or bug fixes and if you will provide maintenance and integration support; especially if you’re seeking to have your code integrated within future baseline releases.

Get it right, with copyleft

Get to grips with the licensing options as you may need more than one type. There are General Public Licences also known as copyleft licences – mainly for free code. Then there are Licence Contracts and Permissive Licence Notices; more useful for developing commercial products. Useful resources on licensing models are the Open Source Initiative and the Free Software Foundation – FSF.

While they are a friendly bunch, the open source software community won’t appreciate you submitting bad or buggy code. Your reputation will quickly suffer and your code may not be integrated into future baseline releases. Alpha and beta code is fine as long as you highlight known issues. Don’t expect free maintenance for your code either – you can’t rely on support SLAs or prioritise bug fixes so put your own maintenance plan in place. It’s a community after all so be nice to your neighbours.

With careful planning there are a wide range of valid business models that leverage open source code. These range from full software distributions with associated consultancy, support, maintenance and adaptation services; to integration of open source components into product base lines. Be careful not to asking the community to ‘pay ransoms’ – i.e. contributing core engines or components and then making users dependent upon you for overly expensive customisation and extension services.

As leveraging code and engaging with the open source community can affect all areas of your business, advanced planning is key to an effective and rewarding development model – and a happy community.

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