Open source software is being used by small and large companies, governments and other organizations in many business-critical systems. Nowadays there are approximately 1 million open source projects on the software market being developed and maintained by unpaid individuals as well as professional software companies and industry players. Research about technical aspects of open source software, business models, management and governance practices as well as community dynamics and contributor's motivations is abundant. In this three day course master students of information systems get an introduction into current research about open source, read and present academic papers on open source, and write an own research proposal, conference submission or working paper about a specific topic of their interest. This may cover issues about open source in automotive industry, reuse of open source components, business models with open source, inner source development within pharma and many more.

1. Research on open source software,
management and communities:
Introduction to research on open source
software, selection of papers by students
Lecture 1, 23 September 2015
Dr. Matthias Stürmer & Prof. Dr. Thomas Myrach
University of Bern, Institute of Information Systems
Research Center for Digital Sustainability

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Agenda
1. Overview of this course
2. Introduction to open source
3. Research in information systems
4. Research about open source software
5. Selection of papers

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Goals of this course
In this three day course master students of information systems:
1. get an introduction into current research about open source,
2. read and present academic papers on open source, and
3. write an own research proposal, conference submission or
working paper about a specific topic of their interest.
Learning objectives:
> Participants get an overview of present research on open source
software.
> Participants understand the sources of data within open source
projects and learn how to analyse them scientifically.
> Participants learn how to use appropriate theory and methodology
to develop an individual research paper.

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Schedule
1. Introduction to research on open source software,
selection of papers by students
Wednesday, 23 September 2015, 14h - 17h
2. Paper presentations by students and
discussion of new research questions and topics
Tuesday, 3 November 2015, 9h - 17h
(time depending on # of students)
3. Presentation of research proposals and
working papers by students
Tuesday, 15 December 2015, 9h - 17h
(time depending on # of students)

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Assessment and Credits
Assessment:
1. Presentation of research paper
2. Written research proposal or working paper
3. Participation in discussions during the course
Credits:
3 ECTS

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Agenda
1. Overview of this course
2. Introduction to open source
3. Research in information systems
4. Research about open source software
5. Selection of papers

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What do you know about open source?
Source: http://openwaterfoundation.org/resources/open-source-software

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Which open source projects do you know?
Source: http://cloudramblings.me/2015/02/06/why-open-source-has-changed-from-the-cheapest-software-to-the-best-software/

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Which open source projects do you know?
Source: http://cloudramblings.me/2015/02/06/why-open-source-has-changed-from-the-cheapest-software-to-the-best-software/

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Introduction to open source
> History
> Free Software vs. Open Source
> Overview of open source licenses
> Common missunderstandings
> Community structures
> Forking of communities
> Motivation of individuals
> Business models
> Why and where using OSS
> Open Hub
> OSS Directory

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Around 1.5 million open source projects
Source: https://www.blackducksoftware.com/resources/webinar/2015-future-open-source-survey-results

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History: The Pioneer Period
1985 Richard Stallman establishes the Free
Software Foundation (FSF) and coins the
term “free software”
1989 The FSF publishes version 1 and, in
1991, version 2 of the GNU General
Public License (GPL)
1991 Linus Torvalds launches the development
of the Linux core under the GPL version 2
1993 Linux distributor Debian is founded
Source: Ernst & Young “Open source software in business-critical environments” 2011

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History: The Business Period
1998 Eric Raymond, Bruce Perens and Tim O’Reilly
establish the Open Source Initiative (OSI) and coin
the term “open source”
1999 Netscape is the first major company to release the source
code for its Netscape Navigator, which had previously been
proprietary, under an open source license
1999 Linux service provider Red Hat goes public on the NASDAQ
2000 IBM announces that it is to invest
one billion USD in the development of Linux
2001 IBM publishes the software development platform Eclipse, with
an estimated value of USD 40m, under an open source license
Source: Ernst & Young “Open source software in business-critical environments” 2011

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History: The Mainstream Period
2004 Canonical launches Ubuntu
2007 The Free Software Foundation publishes
version 3 of the GNU General Public License (GPL)
2007 Sun Microsystems publishes the Java Development Kit as GPL
2008 Google launches the Linux-based Android operating system
2008 The French Gendarmerie migrates 70,000 desktops from
Microsoft to the Linux distribution Ubuntu
2009 Linux is installed on >300,000 workspaces at Brazilian schools
2011 Insurer LVM migrates 10,000 workplaces to Ubuntu
2015 City of Munich finishes migration to 15,000 workplaces
Source (mostly): Ernst & Young “Open source software in business-critical environments” 2011

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Free Software
Definition of Free Software by the Free Software Foundation:
> Freedom 0: The freedom to run the program for any purpose.
> Freedom 1: The freedom to study how the program works,
and change it to make it do what you wish.
> Freedom 2: The freedom to redistribute copies so you can
help your neighbor.
> Freedom 3: The freedom to improve the program, and
release your improvements (and modified versions in general)
to the public, so that the whole community benefits.
More information: http://www.fsf.org/about/

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Copyleft
> A wordplay by FSF: copyright vs. copyleft
> Part of: GNU GPL and AGPL
> Requires all modified and extended versions of
the program to be free “forever”
> Copyleft guarantees the freedom of software
> Viral effect: derived work must be distributed
under the same or a stronger license
> Challenge for many business environments
More information: https://www.gnu.org/copyleft/copyleft.en.html

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Open Source Software
An open source license complies with the following 10 criteria:
1. Free Redistribution
2. Source Code
3. Derived Works
4. Integrity of The Author's Source Code
5. No Discrimination Against Persons or Groups
6. No Discrimination Against Fields of Endeavor
7. Distribution of License
8. License Must Not Be Specific to a Product
9. License Must Not Restrict Other Software
10. License Must Be Technology-Neutral
More information: http://opensource.org/osd

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OSI approved licenses
Open Source Initiative (OSI) has currently approved 71 software
licenses as «open source licenses»
Some popular OSI approved licenses:
> GNU Affero General Public License (AGPL) 3.0
> GNU General Public License (GPL) v2 and v3
> GNU Library or "Lesser" General Public License (LGPL)
> Apache License 2.0
> MIT license
> BSD license
> Mozilla Public License 2.0
> Eclipse Public License
All OSI approved licenses: http://opensource.org/licenses/alphabetical

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Differences of
open source licenses
Source: Ernst & Young “Open source software in business-critical environments” 2011

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Common missunderstandings
Important to know:
> There is a clear definition what is open source software and what not.
> An open source project is not a project (in the usual IT context).
> Open source software is not free.
> Open source software is used very widely.
> Open source software is not only developed by volunteers.
> Migration to open source software does not save costs immediately.

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Onion model of open source communities
Users
Contributors
Developers
Core Devs

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Community building process
Source: Ernst & Young “Open source software in business-critical environments” 2011

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Forking of open source projects
> Splitting (=forking) of developer community in a new branch
> Cause: failure of community governance
> Sword of damocles of the open source development model
Forking examples:

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Forking example
Apache OpenOffice vs. LibreOffice

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Why do programmers code for free?
Solving a developer’s own problem:
“Every good work of software starts by
scratching a developer's personal itch.”
Other great quotes in this book:
“Release Early, Release Often”
“Given enough eyeballs, all bugs are shallow.”
(Linus Torvalds)
In total 19 lessons of Eric Raymond what he
learned in open source development
Source: Eric S. Raymond “The Cathedral and the Bazaar: Musings on Linux and Open
Source by an Accidental Revolutionary” 1999 O'Reilly Media

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Motivations of individuals
Why do individuals develop open source software? 10 different reasons:
Ideology
Altruism
Kinship
Fun
Reputation
Reciprocity
Learning
Own-use
Career
Pay
Intrinsic motivation
Extrinsic motivation
Source: Georg von Krogh, Stefan Haefliger, Sebastian Spaeth, and Martin W. Wallin
"Carrots and Rainbows: Motivation and Social Practice in Open Source Software
Development" MIS Quarterly 2012, Vol 36 Issue 2, pp. 649-676

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The Business Of Open Source
> Open Source Is Not A Business Model (it’s a license!)
> Barriers open source vendors needed to overcome
— Unclear dependencies on other software components and difficult
installation mechanisms
— Lack of commercial-grade support and services around integration and
adaptation of the software
— Unclear roadmap and often a very ‘dynamic’ project
— Lack of necessary skill-set within the enterprise
— Need for training, documentation and education
> Generating revenue streams:
— Packaging and distribution
— Offering alternative paid licence to open source product (dual license)
— Providing services and support around an open source product
Source: http://oss-watch.ac.uk/resources/businessofopensource

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Services by open source vendors
1. Direct access to the expertise of the core developers of the open source software
2. Defined response times for support enquiries
3. Support via a number of channels (internet, VPN, email, chat, telephone,
remote desktop, on-site)
4. Provision of professional documentation, training and certification courses
5. Prompt, proactive and user-friendly delivery of security patches
6. Minimum periods of maintenance and support for particular software versions
7. Guaranteed, regular software releases and updates
8. Guaranteed compatibility with other software solutions
9. Certification for particular hardware and proprietary software systems
10. Integration of patches and extensions into the main version (official branch)
11. Hedging against legal claims based on intellectual property rights (copyright, patents)
12. Liability for disruption and malfunction
13. Provision of additional proprietary extensions and support tools
Source: Ernst & Young “Open source software in business-critical environments” 2011

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Business models with open source
1. Custom development - Customers pay for the software to be customized to meet
their specific requirements.
2. Services/support - Ad hoc support calls, service, training and consulting contracts.
3. Support subscriptions - An annual, repeatable support and service agreement.
4. Value-added subscriptions - An annual, repeatable support and service agreement
with additional features/functionality delivered as a service.
5. Software as a service (SaaS) - Paid access to and use of the software via hosted or
cloud services.
6. Complementary products and services - Open source software is not used to
directly generate revenue; instead, complementary products provide revenue.
7. Closed source licenses - For a version of the full project, a larger software package,
hardware appliance based on the project, or extensions to the open source core.
8. Advertising - Software is free to use and is funded by associated advertising.
Source: Question 16 from the 2014 Future of Open Source Survey
https://www.blackducksoftware.com/future-of-open-source

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Where is open source being used
Source: Open Source Studie Schweiz 2015, Matthias Stürmer and Marcus Dapp, swissICT and /ch/open

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Where open source not (yet) is being used
Source: Open Source Studie Schweiz 2015, Matthias Stürmer and Marcus Dapp, swissICT and /ch/open

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Why open source is being used
Source: Open Source Studie Schweiz 2015, Matthias Stürmer and Marcus Dapp, swissICT and /ch/open

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Why open source is not being used
Source: Open Source Studie Schweiz 2015, Matthias Stürmer and Marcus Dapp, swissICT and /ch/open

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Open Hub www.openhub.net

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Open Hub www.openhub.net

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Open Hub www.openhub.net

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OSS Directory www.ossdirectory.ch

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OSS Directory www.ossdirectory.ch

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OSS Directory www.ossdirectory.ch

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OSS Directory www.ossdirectory.ch

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OSS Directory www.ossdirectory.ch

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OSS Directory www.ossdirectory.ch

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Agenda
1. Overview of this course
2. Introduction to open source
3. Research in information systems
4. Research about open source software
5. Selection of papers

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Slides Prof. Dr. Thomas Myrach

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Agenda
1. Overview of this course
2. Introduction to open source
3. Research in information systems
4. Research about open source software
5. Selection of papers

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Research about open source software
1. Quantitative analysis
— Measurement of source code contributions (OpenHub, Git, SVN)
— Measurement of problem solving (issues and bug trackers)
— Measurement of communication (mailing list, message initiator, reply)
— Measurement of software dependencies (Debian)
— Measurement of release cycles (community activity)
2. Qualitative analysis
— Interviews with developers, managers etc.
— Transcription and coding of interviews
— Theory building with patterns within the interviews
3. Conceptual work
— Meta-analysis of previous studies regarding a certain topic
— Theory building with aggregation of previous results

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Quantitative analysis:
Apache OpenOffice vs. LibreOffice
Number of committers
(number in area) and
commits per committer
(color of area) for different
project combinations
Source: Jonas Gamalielsson and Björn Lundell “Sustainability of Open Source software communities beyond a fork:
How and why has the LibreOffice project evolved?” Journal of Systems and Software 2014

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Quantitative analysis:
Apache OpenOffice vs. LibreOffice
Number of monthly commits
for the OpenOffice.org
(black), LibreOffice (dark
grey) and Apache
OpenOffice (light grey)
projects.
Source: Jonas Gamalielsson and Björn Lundell “Sustainability of Open Source software communities beyond a fork:
How and why has the LibreOffice project evolved?” Journal of Systems and Software 2014

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Quantitative analysis:
Opening up community governance
Source: Sebastian Spaeth, Matthias Stuermer, and Georg Von Krogh “Enabling Knowledge Creation through
Outsiders: Towards a Push Model of Open Innovation” International Journal of Technology Management 2010
Active committers
per month

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Quantitative analysis:
Opening up community governance
Source: Sebastian Spaeth, Matthias Stuermer, and Georg Von Krogh “Enabling Knowledge Creation through
Outsiders: Towards a Push Model of Open Innovation” International Journal of Technology Management 2010

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Quantitative analysis:
Opening up community governance
Source: Sebastian Spaeth, Matthias Stuermer, and Georg Von Krogh “Enabling Knowledge Creation through
Outsiders: Towards a Push Model of Open Innovation” International Journal of Technology Management 2010

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Quantitative analysis:
Software reuse in open source projects
Mozilla FirefoxAs an Example of Package Dependencies in Debian: The Graph of Mozilla Firefox
UNIX command: apt-cache dotty firefox | dot -Tps > dependencygraph_firefox.ps
Source: Sebastian Spaeth, Matthias Stuermer, Stefan Haefliger, Georg von Krogh „Sampling in Open Source Software
Development: The case for using the Debian GNU/Linux Distribution“ HICSS Proceedings 2007

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Qualitative analysis:
Benefits of open source revealing
Source: Matthias Stuermer, Sebastian Spaeth and Georg Von Krogh
“Extending Private-Collective Innovation: A Case Study” R&D Management 2009

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Qualitative analysis:
Benefits of open source revealing
Source: Matthias Stuermer, Sebastian Spaeth and Georg Von Krogh
“Extending Private-Collective Innovation: A Case Study” R&D Management 2009

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Qualitative analysis:
Benefits of open source revealing
Source: Matthias Stuermer, Sebastian Spaeth and Georg Von Krogh
“Extending Private-Collective Innovation: A Case Study” R&D Management 2009

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Conceptual work:
Community building model
Source: Terhi Kilamo, Imed Hammouda, Tommi Mikkonen, and Timo Aaltonen “From proprietary to open
source—Growing an open source ecosystem” Journal of Systems and Software 2012

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Conceptual work:
Community building model
Source: Terhi Kilamo, Imed Hammouda, Tommi Mikkonen, and Timo Aaltonen “From proprietary to open
source—Growing an open source ecosystem” Journal of Systems and Software 2012

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Conceptual work:
Motivations of individuals
Source: Georg von Krogh, Stefan Haefliger, Sebastian Spaeth, and Martin W. Wallin
"Carrots and Rainbows: Motivation and Social Practice in Open Source Software
Development" MIS Quarterly 2012, Vol 36 Issue 2, pp. 649-676

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Conceptual work:
Motivations of individuals
Source: Georg von Krogh, Stefan Haefliger, Sebastian Spaeth, and Martin W. Wallin
"Carrots and Rainbows: Motivation and Social Practice in Open Source Software Development"
MIS Quarterly 2012, Vol 36 Issue 2, pp. 649-676

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Agenda
1. Overview of this course
2. Introduction to open source
3. Research in information systems
4. Research about open source software
5. Selection of papers

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Classical papers on open source software
> Some Simple Economics of Open Source
Josh Lerner and Jean Tirole, The Journal of Industrial Economics 2002
> Guarding the commons:
how community managed software projects protect their work
Siobhán O’Mahony, Research Policy 2003
> How open is open enough?
Melding proprietary and open source platform strategies
Joel West, Research Policy 2003
> Open Source Software and the “Private-Collective” Innovation
Model: Issues for Organization Science
Eric von Hippel and Georg von Krogh, Organization Science 2003

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New papers on open source software
> Carrots and Rainbows: Motivation and Social Practice in Open
Source Software Development
Georg von Krogh, Stefan Haefliger, Sebastian Spaeth, Martin Wallin –
MIS Quarterly 2012
> Sustainability of Open Source software communities beyond a
fork: How and why has the LibreOffice project evolved?
Jonas Gamalielsson, Björn Lundell – The Journal of Systems and
Software 2014
> Key Factors for Adopting Inner Source
Klaas-Jan Stol, Paris Avgeriou, Muhammad Ali Babar, Yan Lucas,
Brian Fitzgerald – ACM Transactions on Software Engineering and
Methodology 2014

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Presentation
> Using IWI PowerPoint template (Zotero repository)
> Structure of the presentation:
— Introduction
— Theory (literature)
— Method (data gathered)
— Results (facts)
— Conclusions (implications)
> 20min presentation, 25min discussion

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Research gaps in open source literature
> Empirical analysis about business models with open
source software (services, subscriptions etc.)
> Empirical analysis about sustainability of open source
communities (Linux kernel development etc.)
> Empirical analysis about role and influence of non-profit
associations and foundations (Eclipse, Apache etc.)
> Empirical analysis of software reuse by assessing reverse
dependencies within Debian/Ubuntu
> Empirical analysis of cost savings and other positive and
negative effects when migrating to open source