Free/Open Source Software in Governance:

Advocating for Open Standards,Open Software, and Open Content

Alvin B. Marcelo, MD

ASEAN+3

Outline

• What is free/open source software?– Open software– Open standards– Open content

• What are the benefits of FOSS in governance• Case studies• Resources

What is FOSS?

• Stands for Free/Open Source Software• Means different things to different people

– a philosophy– a guide– a methodology (a way of doing things)

FOSS Philosophy

• If there is open access to software, it evolves and becomes better.

FOSS Methodology

• Allowing programmers to share their work without restrictions, results in:– Reduced duplication of effort– Building upon the work of others– Better quality control – Reduced maintenance costs

Examples of FOSS

• GNU/Linux - operating system• OpenOffice - a collection of word processor,

spreadsheet, presentation, database applications

• MySQL - a database management system• PHP - a programming language that can be

used to create other computer programs

FOSS 4 Principles*

• 1. The freedom to run a program, for any purpose;

http://www.fsf.org

FOSS 4 Principles

• 2. The freedom to study how a program works and adapt it to a person’s needs. Access to the source code is a precondition for this;

FOSS 4 Principles

• 3. The freedom to redistribute copies so that you can help your neighbour; and

FOSS 4 Principles

• 4. The freedom to improve a program and release your improvements to the public, so that the whole community benefits. Access to the source code is a precondition for this

FOSS in Governance

• May range from simply the use of software to standards and to content– Open Standards– Open Software – Open Content

Open Standards

• An accessible set of specifications that are freely implementable by stakeholders

Open Content

• any kind of creative work including articles, pictures, audio, and video that is published in a format that explicitly allows the copying of the information

Benefits

• Economic• Flexibility• Legality

Economics

• FOSS have no licensing fees• Tools are freely available by download

Flexibility and Control

• You may modify software to fit your needs– instead of changing your workflow to fit the

software– without infringing on anyone’s copyright

Legality

• Complies with international laws– modifying FOSS is legal– distributing FOSS is legal

Case Studies

Community Health Information Tracking System

• An open source software for local health centers in the Philippines

Munich

• ¡°The local government in the German city has transferred 100 staff members in the Lord Mayor's department to a Debianconfiguration, and it intends to migrate 80 percent of the city's PCs by mid-2009.¡±

http://www.zdnetasia.com/news/software/0,39044164,61955167,00.htm

Brazil

• Shifts to the Linux operating system and OpenOffice

• "The number one reason for this change is economic," says Sergio Amadeu, who runs

Information Technology.

http://lists.apdip.net/pipermail/foss-pdi/2005-June/000220.html

Malaysia

• The Malaysian Government Interoperability Framework (MyGIF)[13] defines the minimum set of IT standards and technical specifications for use in government ministries, agencies and departments.

http://www.mampu.gov.my/mampu/bm/program/ICT/ISPlan/ispdoc/Interoperability_Framework.pdf

Chile

• Chilean government requires the use of XML (extensible markup language) in the formatting of documents by 2009.

http://www.dcc.uchile.cl/~cfuenzal/recursos/chileXML.pdf

Summary

• Interest in FOSS is increasing in many countries.

• In addition to open software, FOSS also includes discussions on open standards and open content.

• FOSS is an economic (affordable), flexible, and legal option for governance.