Chapter 10: Ethical Interest in Free and Open Source Software FRANCES S. GRODZINSKY and MARTY J. WOLF

Chapter 10: Ethical Interest in Free and Open Source Software FRANCES S. GRODZINSKY and MARTY J. WOLF

Name of the Book: The Handbook of Information and Computer Ethics

by Kenneth E. Himma and Herman T. Tavani

Library Reference: N/A

Amazon Link:

http://www.amazon.com/Handbook-Information-Computer-Ethics/dp/0471799599/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1233232091&sr=1-1

Quote:

. “The open-source culture has an elaborate but largely un admitted set of ownership customs. These customs regulate those who can modify software, the circumstances under which it can be modified, and (especially) who has the right to redistribute modified versions back to the community”

Learning Expectations:

1. To further understand and analyze more issues about open source software.
2. To know what are the ethical interest in free and OSS
3. To know why OSS flourishes.
4. To know what are the motivations of OSS developers.
5. To know what are the ethical responsibilities of software developers.

Review:

Free software stems from the close ties that early software developers had with academia. As the software industry began to mature, the bond with academia and its ideals of sharing research results weakened. “Extracting money from users of a program by restricting their use of it is destructive because the restrictions reduce the amount and the ways that the program can be used. This reduces the amount

Of wealth that humanity derives from the program” In a later essay he makes the assumption that “a user of software is no less important than an author or even the author’s employer” When people use open source software for pragmatic reasons, there is no reason to believe that they truly understand the ethical importance of free software. Stallman believes that people who use free software and understand the social implications attached to its use and development are much more likely to include the social implications in their deliberations surrounding a switch to proprietary software.

According to Raymond, programmers who participate in this bazaar style of development know the value of reusable code; can start over and throw away the first solution; can keep an open mind and find interesting projects that they want to code; treat users as co developers and listen to them; keep the beta test base large so that problems will find a solution; use smart data structures; and can ask a different question, or try a different approach when a wall is hit. “Perhaps in the end the open-source culture will triumph not because cooperation is morally right or software .hoarding. is morally wrong (assuming you believe the latter, which neither Linus nor I do), but simply because the commercial world cannot win an evolutionary arms race with open-source communities that can put orders of magnitude more skilled time into a problem”

“The reputation incentives continue to operate whether or not a craftsman is aware of them; thus, ultimately, whether or not a hacker understands his own behavior as part of the reputation game, his behavior will be shaped by that game” “In the hacker community, one’s work is one’s statement. There’s a very strict meritocracy (the best craftsmanship wins) and there’s a strong ethos that quality should (indeed must) be left to speak for itself. The best brag is code that .just works,. and that any competent programmer can see is good stuff” Within the OSS community itself, there are also certain elements that are not forthcoming with their code, and, in fact, at times will mislead other OSS programmers. These are crackers who do not seem to respect the values and customs of the legitimate OSS community, nor feel morally obligated to participate in the gift culture that OSS embraces. “The open-source culture has an elaborate but largely an admitted set of ownership customs. These customs regulate those who can modify software, the circumstances under which it can be modified, and (especially) who has the right to redistribute modified versions back to the community”

Thus, an open source developer has increased autonomy compared to a corporate developer. Whereas the corporate developer might find a supportive social structure to take a project in new direction, the social structure in the Open Source community works to suppress this type of entrepreneurial endeavor. Both open source and proprietary developers share the professional ethical responsibility to develop solid, well-tested code. However, the influences on open source software developers to maintain this ethic differ substantially. The social pressure in the open source community to avoid code forking provides incentives for project leaders to ensure that the code is the best it can be. On the contrary, when an open source developer believes there is too much risk associated with a particular piece of code, he/she can rewrite it and release it

Learning’s/Insights:

• The fact that this bazaar style seemed to work, and work well, came as a distinct shock. As I learned my way around, I worked hard not just at individual projects, but also at trying to understand why the Linux world not only didn’t fly apart in confusion but seemed to go from strength to strength at a speed barely imaginable to cathedral-builders.
• The developers of an open source project must take special care to avoid the symptoms of groupthink
• The distinction between Free Software and Open Source Software has had a positive effect on the software development community and on the larger online community as well. Regardless of the motivation of individual developers, it is difficult to find fault with their willingness to give their creative contributions to the world to study and adapt as the world sees fit

Integrative Questions:

1. What do OSS developers expect in return?
2. What motivates developers to contribute to an open source project?
3. Is it altruism, that is, do they consider it a “pro bono” project that contributes to the public good?
4. Is it a reaction against corporate greed?
5. Does it make them feel part of a select community with special talents?