MGCR 331 Chapter Notes - Chapter 10: Software As A Service, Scalability, Time-Sharing
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Published on 16 Apr 2013
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Chapter 10: Software in Flux: Partly Cloudy and Sometimes Free
Key Terms
- open source software: software that is free and where anyone can look at
and potentially modify the code.
- Cloud computing: replacing computing services with services provided over
the internet.
- Software as a services (Saas): a form of cloud computing where a firm
subscribes to a third-party software and receives a service that is delivered
online.
- Virtualization: a type of software that allows a single computer to function
as if it were several different computers, each running its own operating
system and software.
- Linux: an open source software operating system.
- OSS is free irt downloads, but also free as in anyone can look at the source
cofe, change it, and redistribute it.
- Reasons for choosing open source products over commercial alternatives:
o Cost --- save money using OSS
o Reliability – the more people who look at a program’s code, the
greater the likelihood that an error will be caught and corrected –
harnessing the power of many people
o Security --- with many eyes looking at the code, the security
vulnerabilities of open source products come to light more quickly
and can be addressed with greater speed and reliability
o Scalability – run on everything, from cheap commodity hardware to
high-end supercomputing w/out having to significantly rewrite code.
o Agility and time to market
- Just about every type of commercial product has an open source equivalent
- Open source is a 60 billion dollar industry, but has a disproportionate impact
on the trillion-dollar IT market.
- How do vendors make money on open source?
o Selling support and consulting services
o Service
- Linux is not found on a lot of desktop computers – not as easy to install as
Windows, very complex, and such a small number of users makes third party
firms disinclined to make apps for it.
- But in developing nations, the cost of Windows can be daunting –
o Microsoft has begun offering low cost versions in these nations b/c
they realize that if a generation grows up on open source they might
prefer it to Windows.
- Risks of open source
o Some products difficult to install and maintain – higher total cost of
ownership
o Legal exposure
o Licensing standards