Description of what are the benefits and what are the challenges for adopting Open SOurce SOftware Policy for organizations, be it large or small.

1. OPEN SOURCE SOFTWARE
ADOPTING OPEN SOURCE SOFTWARE
POLICY FOR ORGANIZATIONS
Advantages and Challenges!
Sovello Hildebrand Mgani
IT Consultant - FUGIT Consult
Tanzania
sovellohpmgani@gmail.com

2. Introductions
 Open Source Software:
 Distributed with its source code in a human
readable format.
 Developed in an open and collaborative way by
groups of developers
 Free and Open Source Software
 FREE:
 You can change the source code, redistribute and do
anything with it.
 You don't pay for the software but you pay for the
services to implement the software.
Therefore FREE IS NOT FREE

3. Advantages
 Lower total cost of ownership
 Licences: New and renewal
 Maintenance: develop your local support group
 Reduced dependence over the vendors
 Not a single source of solution in case of problem. You can
become one of the solution providers.
 Forking:
 Many clones can be developed from one core engine
 Transparency:
 Open standards, easier integration with other existing systems
 Anyone can make money using the existing software
 Providing consultancy to new users of a particular software

4. Advantages (...)
 Free to customize
 Promote your brand: Customize the software and use
your brand in the customized products
 Make it not 'like theirs': foster security.
 Large support base:
 Not a single source of a solution in case of a problem.
Anyone can help including communities, forums, etc.

Freely available, free to share
 and of course free to discard

5. Challenges
 Getting the right software from among the many
options.
 Not having the right expertise:
 The danger of being wrongly advised
 The 'core-developers' abandoning the
development
 Changing licences to commercial:
 e.g. Quanta Plus
 Fear of the Unknown:
 Microsoft products are at the ear of any computer user.

6. Case Studies: Who uses OSS?
 SOCREMO
 Microfinance Bank in Mozambique
 WAHO: Western African Health Organization
 Adopting an Open Source HRIS together with Open
Sourse OS for all members of the ECOWAS.
 Ministry of Regional Authorities and Local
Government-Tanzania
 Adopting an Open Source HRIS
 The Giants:
 Facebook, Google, Yahoo, Youtube, Wikipedia
 Who are you then not to use OSS?
 More can be found here: http://www.mysql.com/customers/

7. Examples:

FreeAccounting (www.frontaccounting.com )
 An Open Source Accounting Software with almost all
accounting features and it is web based.

GNUCash:
 A desktop accounting software
 Linux:
 A free Operating System e.g. Ubuntu, Linux Mint, etc
 OpenOffice, LibreOffice, Mozilla Firefox,

8. Thank you for following up.
Open Source Software:
Give it a TRY, You won't go back to live THE OLD WAY AGAIN!