Published April 2023
Dattell specializes in support for open source software: OpenSearch, Kafka, and Pulsar. The benefits of using open source software are vast. Learn about the top 10 reasons companies choose open source software.
#1 Lower Costs
Open source software is often available for free, allowing companies to save on software licensing fees. For example, a startup can use open source software like OpenSearch to build their database without having to pay for a proprietary content management system. (Click here to learn about managed OpenSearch.)
#2 Flexibility
Open source software can be customized and modified to meet the specific needs of a business. A healthcare company, for instance, can use an open source electronic medical records system like OpenEMR and modify it to meet their specific requirements.
#3 Community Support
Open source software often has a large community of developers who contribute to the software, providing support and helping to identify and fix bugs. The open source database management system MySQL has a large community of users who provide support and contribute to the software’s development.
#4 Security
Open source software can be more secure than proprietary software because the source code is available for review by anyone. This allows vulnerabilities to be identified and addressed quickly. The open source web application firewall ModSecurity is known for its robust security features and is widely used by companies to protect their web applications.
#5 Innovation
Open source software often leads to more innovation because anyone can contribute to the software’s development. For example, the open source event streaming software Apache Spark has revolutionized in-memory caching and query execution and has been widely adopted by companies like Netflix and Uber.
#6 Interoperability
Open source software is often designed to work with other open source software, making it easier for companies to integrate different technologies. Companies can use open source software like Apache Kafka for real-time data streaming and Apache Storm for real-time data processing, which can be integrated to create a powerful big data processing pipeline. (Click here to learn about managed Kafka.)
#7 Vendor Independence
Open source software allows companies to be less dependent on a specific vendor, giving them more control over their technology stack. A company can use the open source office suite LibreOffice instead of Microsoft Office, reducing their dependence on Microsoft.
#8 Longevity
#9 Transparency
Open source software provides transparency into the software’s development process, which can help companies make informed decisions about whether to adopt the software. The open source customer relationship management system SuiteCRM, for instance, provides a roadmap of its development plans and solicits feedback from its community of users.
#10 Access to Talent
Because open source software is widely used and often well-documented, companies can find developers with experience working with the software more easily. For example, a company looking for a developer with experience working with the open source content management system Drupal can find candidates with that experience publicly by looking at the github commit log.