Open-source software seen gaining in Europe

IDG News Service - Open-source software is gaining ground in Europe and the developing world, with users attracted by lower costs and accessibility, according to a recent study and industry observers.

A study of 12 European countries conducted by the University of Maastricht in the Netherlands found that nearly 49% of local government authorities are using free/libre/open-source software (FLOSS) and that most of those using it would like to increase its use. The phone and Web-based survey, conducted from late 2004 into early this year, netted 955 respondents in Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Spain, Sweden and the U.K.

About 70% of FLOSS users wanted to increase its use, said Rishab Aiyer Ghosh, program leader for the study of free and open-source software at the Maastricht Economic Research Institute on Innovation and Technology (Merit). Ghosh gave a presentation on the study at the O'Reilly Open Source Convention in Amsterdam Tuesday.

But the survey also found that some 29% of respondents who said they didn't use FLOSS did in fact use open-source software such as the GNU/Linux operating system, MySQL database or Apache Web server.

It also found that the average number of computers serviced by an IT administrator was 66, 13 more than administrators who weren't using open-source software, Ghosh said. The statistic implies that fewer administrators are needed for open-source software, he said.

Those surveyed feared that adopting open-source software would increase training costs or reduce support options. In addition, they didn't want to be the first to adopt something new, Ghosh said. The fears show how vendor lock-in works, he said.

"It's easy to stick with Microsoft, even if you know it's a stupid thing to do, because you can't be blamed for it, whereas if you migrate to something new, and everyone else isn't doing that, and something goes wrong, it's your fault," Ghosh said.


On the business and regulation side, some policy-making agencies within the European Union are funding open-source-related activities, said Paul Everitt, founder and project leader of the Zope Europe Association, a support group for developers and users of the Zope open-source application server.

People who got sick of working at larger organizations are also starting small businesses and contributing to the open-source community, he said. "These are the free marketeers who are doing interesting things in Europe," said Everitt, who gave a presentation on Wednesday at the open-source conference.

In the developing world, more money is becoming available through the United Nations and private groups that are funding technology purchases,

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