As members of the Open Source Consortium we endorse the use of open source software and encourage our clients to take advantage of the benefits it can bring.

Some goods reasons to support Open Source (OS):

Reuse good software. Open source software development means that programmers don’t have to start from scratch -- they can use existing solutions and build upon those to get to greater heights.

Quality tends to be improved. When the code for software can’t be seen how can you be sure it is as good as it says on the box? Simple, you can’t. With OS you can see everything even mistakes, and as a result these get fixed quickly. Unlike closed source software when it is in the commercial interest of the owners to delay mentioning problems.

Vendor independency. Being tied to a single source is a risk that does not apply to OS software solutions. OS software is designed to share data unlike proprietary packages, which benefit in locking you in to “their” way of doing things.

Close scrutiny speeds up development. Poorly designed software is spotted quickly by the OS world and fixed just as quickly. Closed source software would have to release patches produced by their “team” of developers and this inevitably takes time and money to do.

Cost. OS is cheaper to set-up and run because you often don’t pay a per-seat licence. The installation can be done from a host of companies who compete for your business. Developing a new part of the software can also be cheaper than getting the closed software provider to customise their product.

Naturally self-regulating. The OS world is open to scrutiny so both praise and criticism can be levied at the good and bad a like. This creates a community where the poor programmers have nowhere to hide and those that produce good code get praised for it.