Philip John

Open source rules, and it’ll kill Apple

“Both [Microsoft’s] C# and [Apple’s] Objective-C are unsurprisingly almost invisible [on GitHub], because they’re both ecosystems that either don’t encourage or actively discourage open-source code.”

From ReadWrite

Most people who know me know that I’m not exactly an Apple fan.

I am a big open source fan though, and the two are connected. As a believer in free software principles I despise the restrictive, closed systems of Apple (not to mention it’s overpriced, locked down hardware).

I’m constantly surprised that so many of the free software advocates I know or come across are Apple fans.

But Apple will, in my opinion, fall based on this. People don’t like to be restricted, they like their freedom to use their tech in the way they wish. Actively discouraging open source is putting Apple at odds with the vast and growing number of developers committing to free software principles.

Update: This view on the dramatic fall of Unix and rise of Linux illustrates my point entirely. You can’t beat a good open source community.

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Comments

3 responses to “Open source rules, and it’ll kill Apple”

  1. stymaster Avatar
    stymaster

    I’m no Apple fan either, but there’s no way they’ll fall over this. Sorry to say most people don’t actually care about the walled garden: most will be too busy showing off their new iDevice and browsing the App Store, sadly.

    It’s worth noting FruitCo have contributed to open source too (notably CUPS).

    Reply
  2. philipjohn Avatar
    philipjohn

    They don’t *directly* care, no. But most users of WordPress don’t directly care (or likely know) that it’s open source, but there’s a reason it’s powering 19% of the web: it’s open source nature allows it to adapt to people’s needs as they use it. Closed-source software can only adapt based on the desires of those who control it.

    Reply
  3. stymaster Avatar
    stymaster

    Hmm. Reckon WordPress succeeds because it works so well and is easy to use. It was a consideration for me that it was Open Source, but many don’t care. The other argument is that the market will dictate how proprietary software will change- paying users will influence. I’d love to agree 100% with you, but I’m doubtful that is the real case.

    Reply

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