Master on Free Software
Companies and Communities in FLOSS
Introduction and General Questions
Master on Free Software
Overview
● Introduction● General Questions● Do we need to know this?● How to find out● Our playground
Master on Free Software
Introduction
● What are we interested in?● OSS
● How is it developed?● Who is developing it?● How are companies participating in it? <=● How can it be improved?● How can its quality be evaluated?● What is its future?
Master on Free Software
Introduction
● OSS research● Multidisciplinary
● Software engineering● Economy● Sociology● Psychology● Law
Master on Free Software
General Questions
● How do companies influence in OSS communities?● What are the different models of relations between OSS communities and corporations?● What are the different ways companies start these relations with communities?
● Dedicating employees to an OSS project?● Employing people already working in OSS projects?
● Contributing code to OSS projects?
Master on Free Software
General Questions
● Offering bounties in OSS projects?● Starting their own OSS communities?
● What is the effect of the entry of companies in OSS communities?● How do OSS projects with companies involved and others without companies participation compare?
● In terms of code evolution?● In terms of final product quality?● In terms of visibility?
Master on Free Software
General Questions
● In terms of productisation?● In terms of intellectual property management?
● How do these relations finish?● What happens with the code then?● What happens with the employees then?● What happens with volunteers then?
Master on Free Software
Do we need to know this?
● Companies need it● To know how to get involved in OSS projects● To know how to have good relations with communities
●OSS communities need it● To avoid problems with companies● To understand how companies can help them
Master on Free Software
How to find out
● Qualitative studies● Interviews● Surveys● Descriptive studies
● Quantitative studies● Data mining● Tools (CVSAnaly, Pythernity, MailingListStats)● Interpretation and visualisation
Master on Free Software
Our playground
● Nokia 770● JBoss, Geronimo, JonAS● Firefox● Evolution● Core | Features | Productisation● Canonical, Ubuntu and Gnome● Gnome and KDE