In this week's assignment, you'll watch and read several opinions on the use of FOSS within the GIS community. I will then ask you to respond to these in a detailed discussion below.
Readings
- Watch the video below: A GIS Manager's Guide to Open Source. This is a talk given by Paul Ramsey, a major contributor to PostGIS. He submits an argument for the use of FOSS and summarizes some of the FOSS tools available to geospatial professionals. Plan for 45 minutes to watch the entire video.
- Read the following items to see how a proprietary software company positions itself in the area of open source. Pay attention to which aspects of FOSS and open standards are emphasized, and, just as importantly, make note of which FOSS projects are deliberately not mentioned. These articles are listed in order by publishing date: 1) Open Source Technology and Esri. 2) Andrew Turner's blog on Going Open Source With Esri. 3) Esri's Open Vision (just browse the content and links from this page).
Discussion
Make a post on the "Lesson 1 assignment forum" on Canvas that addresses both of the following questions:
- Which of Ramsey's observations about FOSS and proprietary software have you observed in your own home or workplace (does not have to be GIS related)? Or, if you don't think Ramsey's observations are legitimate, justify why.
- After studying this lesson, would you advocate the use of a pure FOSS approach for your GIS work, or are there certain elements of proprietary software that you would retain as part of a hybrid approach?
You can optionally make two posts addressing the questions separately. You will be graded on the depth of the arguments that you put forward in your responses and the evidence you produce to support these arguments, not on your opinions toward FOSS.
To receive full credit, please also write at least one response to another student's post building on whatever he or she said.
I encourage you to continue thinking about these questions throughout this course as you get more hands-on experience with FOSS.