Introduction
The use of internet in the world has enabled the sharing of vast range of information and services. The ability of internet users to access information in this colossal interconnection of computers is enabled by use of databases that avail and store the information that is available in the internet. The information in the database is powered by either the open source software or the proprietary software. The study therefore, aims at establishing whether the open source software will dominate the database field. There has been a changing trend in the business market as more and more businesses are demanding more of the open source database software in comparison to the proprietary applications.
Analysis of the Open Source Software
Open source software can be defined as computer software that is availed in source code form and whose rights are reserved for the software developers. The software is developed and then undergoes a rigorous testing stage after which it is improved by harmonizing the views of the public with those of the programmers. This instates that an open field of collaboration is maintained between the developers of the software and the public (Toderash, 2007).
The open source software is developed to reverse the use of traditional models of software in which the source code is assumed to be private and it belongs only to the developer. The open source software avails the source code with the rest of the distribution package and the buyer can redistribute the source code. This enables programmers in the world to view the creative work of an individual and also allows them to improve it so that it would serve their needs. However, this alteration is done under one condition provided that every alteration is made public. The continued improvement of the open source software has become popular virtually because it had been developed and tested by infinite number of programmers in the globe. Each alteration done on the software is aimed at improving its performance and it has become evident that more and more companies are employing the use of the open source software as it solves a number of their database problems more efficiently (Watts, 2011).
These innovations have propelled the open source software into the mainstream marketplace that is dominated by closed source software. The open source software has provided clients with substitute software that is extremely viable and incredibly superb. The popularity of the open source code software is extolled on a number of virtues it has over the closed source code software. First, it should be noted that the open source code software incorporates the end users of the programs in the actual development of the software which ascertains that the programs that are developed are effectively debugged. These ensure absolute identification, detection and elimination of the security flaws that are identified in the program’s coding. The coding process also ensures that the logical errors that may arise are detected and corrected making the open source code programs safer as compared to the closed source code software. In closed source code software, the source code is kept under lock and key in the name of protecting the software from hackers (Germain, 2011). Secondly, the open source code software has created a room for software auditing. Software auditing has been made possible as open source software avails the source code of the program. This has facilitated the claims that are made on the qualities that are possessed by the software in areas such as security, freedom from backdoor snooping and incorporation of the stipulated standards in formulating the program. This trait is an illusion in the proprietor software and any of the merits that are attested to these programs remains a claim whose trust is based on the parent company (Watts, 2011).
Another persuasive argument that has played a leading role in making the open source software popular is its cost effectiveness. Majority of the open source code software that is available in the market are free of royalties and subscription fee that is predominant with the closed source code software. The open source code software has zero purchase price and it requires no accounts for the copies that are held hence drastically reducing the administrative costs of running and maintaining the software for organizations. The stability of the open source code software has negated the need of constantly check for viruses and possible data losses by the system. This has translated in the total costs that are saved by the open source code software greater than that of the proprietary software (Prince, 2008).
Another benefit that can be attributed to the open source code software is the flexibility that has been exhibited in its development. Open source code software incorporates the needs of the business in which in its architectural levels have attempted to incorporate the needs of the business into the coding of the program by using some of the tested and prevailing standards in practice. This architectural concept has enabled the open source code software in database management to inter work smoothly with minimal conflict with the organization internal controls that are in place to manage the organization database system (Germain, 2011).
Conclusion
Open source software has a profound foundation in numerous organizations. Its popularity and growth to great prominence were meted by academic ideals that advocate for the free exchange of information through publication and disclosure in which the development of a scholar’s ideas can be modified to become a catapult force in the software industry. The open source code in its objective to further the quality of software is developed with the free will of the developers who aim at inducing the cooperation of scholars in ways that the closed source code never did. These achievements however, have not yet made it the dominant database software in the world. In a nutshell, the open source code software has achieved its goals given the limitations in the amount of resources that are available in the market of building a community whose constituents have contributed to this new generation of software developing that aims at dethroning the predominantly proprietary database software. The failure by open source codes software to be more dominant database software in the world has made big corporations in the world to purchase the closed source code software from bigwig companies. These companies are preferred as they provide their products with warranties and service of agreement.
References
Germain, J., M. (2011).Open Source Database Management Systems: What the Pros Use. Web.
Toderash, B. (2007). Eight sound reasons not to use MySQL. CIO Magazine. Web.
Prince, B. (2008). Open-source databases MySQL, PostgreSQL, adoption rising. Web.
Watts, L. (2011). Why open-source software will (or will not) soon dominate the field of database management tools. Web.