Open source software is changing the world of Information
Technology. But making it work for your company is far more
complicated than simply installing a copy of Linux. If you are
serious about using open source to cut costs, accelerate
development, and reduce vendor lock-in, you must institutionalize
skills and create new ways of working. You must understand how
open source is different from commercial software and what
responsibilities and risks it brings. Open Source for the
Enterprise is a sober guide to putting open source to work in the
modern IT department.
Open source software is software whose code is freely available
to anyone who wants to change and redistribute it. New commercial
support services, smaller licensing fees, increased
collaboration, and a friendlier platform to sell products and
services are just a few of the reasons open source is so
attractive to IT departments. Some of the open source projects
that are in current, widespread use in businesses large and small
include Linux, FreeBSD, Apache, MySQL, PostgreSQL, JBOSS, and
Perl. These have been used to such great effect by Google,
Amazon, Yahoo!, and major commercial and financial firms, that a
wave of publicity has resulted in recent years, bordering on
hype. Large vendors such as IBM, Novell, and Hewlett Packard have
made open source a lynchpin of their offerings. Open source has
entered a new area where it is being used as a marketing device,
a collaborative software development methodology, and a business
model.
This book provides something far more valuable than either the
cheerleading or the fear-mongering one hears about open source.
The authors are Dan Woods, former CTO of TheStreet.com and a
consultant and author of several books about IT, and Gautam
Guliani, Director of Software Architecture at Kan Test Prep &
Admissions. Each has used open source software for some 15 years
at IT departments large and small. They have collected the wisdom
of a host of experts from IT departments, open source
communities, and software companies.
Open Source for the Enterprise provides a top to bottom view not
only of the technology, but of the skills required to manage it
and the organizational issues that must be addressed. Here are
the sorts of questions answered in the book:
* Why is there a "productization gap" in most open source
projects?
* How can the maturity of open source be evaluated?
* How can the ROI of open source be calculated?
* What skills are needed to use open source?
* What sorts of open source projects are appropriate for IT
departments at the beginner, intermediate, advanced, and expert
levels?
* What questions need to be answered by an open source strategy?
* What policies for governance can be instituted to control the
adoption of open source?
* What new commercial services can help manage the risks of open
source?
* Do differences in open source licenses matter?
* How will using open source transform an IT department?
Praise for Open Source for the Enterprise:"Open Source has become
a strategic business issue; decisions on how andwhere to choose
to use Open Source now have a major impact on theoverall
direction of IT abilities to support the business both
withcapabilities and by controlling costs. This is a new game and
onegenerally not covered in existing books on Open Source which
continue toassume that the readers are 'deep dive' technologists,
Open Source for the Enterprise provides everyone from business
managers to technologistswith the balanced view that has been
missing. Well worth the time toread, and also worth encouraging
others in your enterprise to read as well." ----Andy Mulholland -
Global CTO Capgemini
"Open Source for the Enterprise is required reading for anyone
workingwith or looking to adopt open source technologies in a
corporateenvironment. Its practical, no-BS approach will make
sure you're armedwith the information you need to deploy
applications successfully (aswell as helping you know when to say
"no"). If you're trying to sell opensource to management, this
book will give you the ammunition you need.If you're a manager
trying to drive down cost using open source, thisbook will tell
you what questions to ask your staff. In short, it's aclear,
concise explanation of how to successfully leverage open
sourcewithout making the big mistakes that can get you fired."
----Kevin Bedell - founding editor of LinuxWorld Magazine
- Open Source for the Enterprise.