I love the open source movement. It is more than just free stuff, it is also about seeing the workflow, the improvements with every release and even the let downs when a projects does something we don’t like; and the even greater feeling when it all works out anyway. I’ve been using FOSS (Free/Open Source Software) for over a decade now. The one thing I’ve learned is that, unlike proprietary software, it is a philosophy – and that is what keeps it exactly where it is – in a world more about philosophy than market acceptance.
I am, of course, talking about the movement as a whole, not various projects. Firefox, GIMP, OpenOffice.org/LibreOffice are just a few examples of some very well loved programs used by people outside the FOSS communities. You don’t have to be “in the know” to find them, nor are they ugly or impossible to learn. But they are also exceptions to the rule, not the rule itself.
New and long time users alike know the perception and programs I’m taking about and the temptation so sell them as programs ready to replace popular proprietary programs. LibreOffice = MS Office, GIMP = PhotoShop, Blender = Maya, to name a few. Only they are not the same programs nor should they be.
With GIMP, for example, there is a genuine niche that needs filled. PhotoShop is great, but who can afford it? The professionals that can’t use GIMP, that’s who.
There, I said it – professional photographers cannot use GIMP. This shouldn’t be news to anyone.
Don’t get me wrong – I love GIMP, but I work on the web, not as a professional print photographer. How long will GIMP keep fighting off moving to the next level? Case in point, why no high dynamic range imaging, CMYK color model, lab color space or HD photo? At this point they can’t pretend no one wants them. They should be native features. (Also, can’t they rename it something a little more family friendly?)
There are many things I love about GIMP that PhotoShop doesn’t do as well, but it was made for photographers so it needs to be marketed to all levels, including professionals.
In taking things to that next level, usability and the GUI (Graphical User Interface) should also be factors, as they are what people outside the FOSS community look at. People can argue over ease or difficulty of use for programs like GIMP, but there are two sides to this. One is that their users have tested the programs and are fine (for the most part) with them. But the other side is that they are not paying anyone to do any REAL testing to see what those OUTSIDE the communities think of the programs.
And I do get that when a program is offered free of charge, there is little money to do that kind of testing. (It should be noted here that GIMP has been working on usability and many issues I read about come from those that only know PhotoShop and expect GIMP to work the same way.)
New users need to be able to do basic things easily. Blender is a great example of this. I’ll be the first to admit that the new GUI for Blender is amazing. I was able to really get a grasp on using Blender with 2.5 and beyond after years of struggling to grasp the program. Why take so long to fix what could only be described as a broken GUI?
These ideas of better functionality and ease of use are really a part of the one thing the FOSS world lacks – marketing. With an “if we build it, they will come” mentality, the only ones coming are insiders and their friends. FOSS seems, to me at this point, almost like the hipster brand of the computer world. Only, GIMP doesn’t exist ironically – it has place, as do all FOSS programs. This is why they exist. They just need to fit into the real world work place, where they are needed, better than they do now.
I love Open Source programs for their freedom, their natural evolution and I am constantly amazed at what these programs can do, free of charge, compared to programs that cost hundreds, and in some cases thousands, of dollars. I do not think that the philosophy of having communities should ever change. That is where the power of the Open Source movement comes from.
That said, the communities should find new and better ways of bringing more people into their communities and recognize the needs of those using the programs that will never join their communities. FOSS programs should fill the needs of people outside the communities, they must exist to benefit ALL users. When people sit down to their computers, they shouldn’t need to know or care if the program they are using is FOSS or proprietary. They should just know it works.