open source and hacking

I found a definition for open source movement on the website www.infotoday.com and included it below

what is open source?

All software is written with source code. With open source software, the code is protected by a special license that ensures everyone has access to that code. That means no one company can fully own it. Freedom means choice. Choice means power.


Open source is inevitable. It returns control to the customer. The code is open and you can see it, change it, learn from it. Bugs are more quickly found and fixed. And when customers don't like how one vendor is serving them, they can choose another without overhauling their infrastructure. That means: No more arbitrary pricing. No more technology lock-in. No more monopolies...http://www.redhat.com/about/mission/opensource.html

more choice more power to the customer


open source creates better software. It multiplies one company's development capacity many times over. Everyone collaborates, the best software wins. Not just within one company, but among an Internet-connected, worldwide community. It's no coincidence that the rise of open source closely followed the rise of the Internet. The perfect breeding ground for collaboration, the Internet moves ideas and code around the world in an instant.
As a result, the open source model often builds higher quality, more secure, more easily integrated software. And it does it at a vastly accelerated pace and often at a lower cost



The open source movement.

When I researched open source movement I found out a lot that I didn’t know about software and software companies.I have thought about different reasons as to why open source is good and why its bad I have put them in dot points.

Reason why its good…….

* More widely spread software and information
* More opportunity from younger programmers to get recognition

Reason why its bad…………

* There is no quality control
* Companies lose money
* Consumer manuals will become obsolete
* Programs can become to difficult and to complex to work
*People can add whatever they want
* Spam and popup would become a problem if software was from the internet

I found out that windows is a locked program because if it wasnt locked people could alter programs and make different applications and make competition for bill gates, then the prices will come down....


some class notes:

Hacking doesnt cost that much. hackers show companies their protective software doesnt work very well.

hackers are sometimes called robin hoods...

----It's been estimated that three-fourths of today's successful system hacks are perpetrated not via network security flaws, but by entering directly through the "front door" - exploiting vulnerabilities in customer facing web applications
--------Great hackers also generally insist on using open source software. Not just because it's better, but because it gives them more control. Good hackers insist on control. This is part of what makes them good hackers: when something's broken, they need to fix it. You want them to feel this way about the software they're writing for you. You shouldn't be surprised when they feel the same way about the operating system.http://www.paulgraham.com/gh.html

people making downloaded and free software: www.sorceforce.net
ultimatly the next generation will develop better software in the future. www.wikopedia.org
windows is an example of locked software.