Bonum Certa Men Certa

Winning Without Winning the 'Open Source' Battle

Targets keep changing

On target



Summary: When goalposts are being moved to redefine "open source", how will a triumph really come about? We look at news from Hungary

A few days ago we wrote about Dana Blankenhorn's concern that Free/open source software loses its meaning due to involvement from those who bend the definition/s. "Will open source be assimilated in 2010?"



That is the question Blankenhorn asks in his subsequent post where he also quotes a company that sells services around fear and helps Microsoft penetrate the "open source" arena/scope.

It also drew a thoughtful e-mail from Tim Yeaton, president of Black Duck Software. He interrupted his efforts to counter OpenLogic’s new open source scanner to say that open source is bound to be assimilated into the software mainstream.


This discussion seems very appropriate now that the Hungarian government opts for more "mixed source" companies like Novell. This time it's Ingres and CBR has the details:

Ingres and FreeSoft, have won the Hungarian government’s open source software contract that has a four-year, $22.3m budget. During the next four years, the companies will supply the Hungarian government with software worth 4 Ft billion Hungarian forints, which is approximately €15m or $22.3m.


There is already skepticism being expressed.

Experts Question Hungary's Role As European Open Source Leader



Open source database company Ingres has held Hungary up as an example to the UK and other European countries of how government should be championing the use of non-proprietary software in the public sector.

But some Hungarian experts have pointed out that while the central European country has made progress when it comes to allowing open source players to compete on the same terms as proprietary companies, there is still a long way to go before the Magyars could be held up as leaders on open source.


Nothing is said about the half-hearted commitment to Free software. A lot of those companies which describe themselves as "open source" are not entirely so. This is a subject worth revisiting and exploring more properly in the future.

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