Open Source Movement- Blog #6

What does Rheingold say about cooperation and collaboration? 

Rheingold’s says that collaboration is key to the individuals who want to succeed in today’s world because of the culture that is emerging and knowing how to collaborate is one of the skills/concepts that we have to adapt and accept. Cooperation he says is necessary because you have to be willing to learn the action provided by this technology. It decides whether or not you use it effectively and determines if people learn how to execute the right kind of collaboration.

How does it relate to the open-source movement as we discussed in class today?

It relates to the open source movement because that is also a new type of social media that is evolving with multiple networks, and person-to-person learning processes. This is a type of digital media that has lowered the barriers to joint actions in the way we as humans live our everyday lives.

What do you think about the open-source movement? 

I think that the open source movement is a type of methodology that will take time for it’s process to effectively take hold of the digital and social networks. It is a useful tool that has shown up within recent years and people are still trying to figure out how to use it and where to use it most effectively. It isn’t for just for the people developing but it gives the consumers a voice as to what they want which is a new concept that takes time for everyone to explore.

What are the odds of its success? 

I think the odds of success can go either way. Like I stated before it targets not just the developers but the consumers using it and provides them a voice which as we all know people like to be heard and are more inclined to react positively when able to do so. I believe it’s success will do well especially in a business aspect because of the ability for customization, the cost is  not monetary, it’s motivated by a desire to make things better, come out with better software due to the collaboration among employees, and it expands the market to a more global aspect keeping everyone on the same page. If it continues to address the business and social needs of the consumers and create a type o routine where it becomes necessary to use then it will most likely succeed.

Do you think people will move towards it or will proprietary software companies always have bank on software development and distribution? 

I think that people will always want proprietary software such as, Microsoft Office, because you can’t alter it and it is the same basic concept no matter where you go. If people start to use a more open source software and the benefits outrank proprietary software then the distribution of software and its development it up for grabs. Like Rheingold says “technology trends made a persuasive case that pervasive mobile communications, combined with always-on Internet connections, will produce new kinds of ad-hoc social groups.” Until the movement becomes a more dominate technological trend it will continue to have the potential to go either way.

Will you buy into it? 

I haven’t bought into it at the moment because like I have discussed before I haven’t really used the open source software in my everyday life to the point where I have developed a real need for it. If I was working in a business then maybe I would buy into it a little more, but for right now its nothing that will gain my attention.

Rheingold's TED Video