There isn’t a tremendous amount of open source software written for the Mac that I’m immediately aware of, but I do love the concept of it. For the uninitiated, open source refers to users having free and ready access to the source code of software, and the right to alter it to whatever purpose they choose provided that they continue to provide the same access to their modified version. The movement was spawned in reaction to budding copyright and control issues that early technology aficionados saw hampering the development of software. The open source movement led to a burgeoning underground community that has produced some amazing software (my personal favorite being VLC, a simple but powerful media player that can handle just about any format you throw at it). The crown jewel of open source has arguably been Linux in all its vast flavors. Once the tool of uber geeks, Linux has matured to the point that it’s possible for novice users to rely on it as their primary operating system. From Ubuntu to Red Hat, there’s a version of Linux out there that has been tailored to fit what you need of an operating system.
Now the concept of open source has been taken to its logical conclusion in a recent post by the knowledgeable anthonyvenable110. The practice of providing access to the inner workings of software has been transferred to something near and dear to my heart- soda. Yes, I’m a self admitted carbonation junkie, and OpenCola has opened new doors to my addiction. Unlike Coca Cola‘s secret formula, OpenCola provides instructions and ingredients so that end users may freely change it to tailor their tastes and needs (provided they observe the guidelines of the GNU Public License and allow others to do the same) , fully embracing the spirit of the open source movement. Now if I could only get Guinness to open source their brewery…
