The Benefits of Open Source Software

Typically, the most reliable, secure and efficient software is usually under an open license and not owned by a company. Open source software was developed with the source code freely available to the public. It may be a unique way of developing software, but it is surprisingly common and effective. It can be downloaded by anyone, and the necessary changes can be made with the hope that any improvements made by individuals will be committed back to the main source tree, thereby benefitting everyone by the modifications.

The commercial replacement cost of free software is high and to deploy a commercial solution it would be necessary to trim back for a significant buy. Not all of the benefits of open source software deployment are in the form of cost savings. Most of the benefits are is in terms of capabilities gained. Some of the other benefits are

Security
Open source allows anyone to examine software for security flaws. The incessant and broad peer-review enabled by publicly available source code enhances security through the identification and elimination of flaws that can be missed. Gartner, recommends the open source Apache Web server as a more secure alternative to closed source Internet Information servers. The availability of source code also facilitates in-depth security reviews and audits by government customers.  

Fast deployment
With open source software consumers needn't wait years to deploy a solution. Open source software is predominantly apposite for inter-agency collaboration, rapid prototyping and experimentation and can be “test driven” prior to procurement. Both known and unanticipated users can be swiftly provisioned.

Reliability
As open source is peer reviewed software, it is more reliable. The infrastructure of the Internet is largely composed of open-source programs such as DNS, send mail, Apache and languages such as HTML and Perl. They have proven to be both reliable and robust under the most strenuous conditions, like the fast growth of the Internet.

Low-cost
Open source software is often developed through community forums and collaborative. Developers volunteer their time and expertise, and are coordinated by fewer paid programmers. The lower overhead costs translates into substantial savings, as does the fact that open source software typically does not have a per-seat licensing cost. According to Gartner, open source is even more attractive to businesses during tough economic times.

Lower virus vulnerability
Traditionally, an open source OS's have fared better than other operating systems. A virus infection on a network server can be devastating in terms of data loss, down time, and staff time required for reconstruction. Open source servers that are less vulnerable to virus infections provide cost savings in terms of diminished liability in these areas.

Open Source Software may not provide a solution for every computing requirement, but it is a well established part of the computing ecosystem that plays a critical role in Internet and business infrastructure that enables companies to access expert resources and components that accelerate software product development  and release processes.

Also Read on:  Ecommerce solutions, Mobile application development

Outsourced Product Development and the Enterprise

Today’s enterprise is seeking those solutions that can easily address the issues of their SaaS business models efficiently. From effective usage of Agile methods to shortening product development cycles, enterprises are on the constant lookout for solutions that can help them augment the quality of their products drastically while being economical as well. Therefore it’s no surprise that enterprises look for outsourced distributed software development providers to relieve their own personnel from the constant pressure to develop new products and software. The idea is simple: opting for a cost-effective service can ensure faster turnaround time for the enterprise and can also reduce risks. Choosing an outsourced product development service provider can decrease risks for the enterprise and yet offer enterprises better quality and performance for their software product.

Outsourced product development services and solutions can assist enterprises in developing innovative products and also in converting and perhaps even re-engineering their existing products in a much better and more inventive manner. With most solutions providers ensuring comprehensive quality checks right from testing tools and design to ensuring some of the testing product support services are customized for certain clients, enterprises can rest assured of getting the best. While the requirements of different enterprises may be as diverse as wanting a horizontal, vertical or even a system kind of software to be custom developed for an enterprise, these product development service providers promise to deliver what is required with their specialized set of skill, tools and technologies.

On the software product development solutions’ checklist of enterprises’ first and perhaps the most important element is manageability. Enterprises need such outsourced product development solutions that are essentially built on multi-tenant architecture that can ably support clients from a single instance and thereby reduce infrastructure costs, as well as hosting and management expenses. Performance comes in next on the list. Enterprises often feel that a solution that can offer ways and tools to ensure distributed data caching and the best ways of code optimization can be a definite asset. Such a solution can not only enhance the performance of the enterprise but also make response time that much swifter. Scalability of open source software deployment solutions are also on the checklist of most enterprises. Security will also remain a key element and enterprises need a solution that can offer the best security model that is both multi-tiered and multi-layered. Time taken to market is yet another element that often figures in the checklist of enterprises because this would mean shorter release cycles. Other essentials remain compatible across different browser platforms, all around availability for continuous service and best up time.

Know more - product lifecycle management

The Benefits of Open Source Software

Typically, the most reliable, secure and efficient software is usually under an open license and not owned by a company. Open source software was developed with the source code freely available to the public. It may be a unique way of developing software, but it is surprisingly common and effective. It can be downloaded by anyone, and the necessary changes can be made with the hope that any improvements made by individuals will be committed back to the main source tree, thereby benefitting everyone by the modifications.
The commercial replacement cost of free software is high and to deploy a commercial solution it would be necessary to trim back for a significant buy. Not all of the benefits of open source software deployment are in the form of cost savings. Most of the benefits are is in terms of capabilities gained. Some of the other benefits are

Security
Open source allows anyone to examine software for security flaws. The incessant and broad peer-review enabled by publicly available source code enhances security through the identification and elimination of flaws that can be missed. Gartner, recommends the open source Apache Web server as a more secure alternative to closed source Internet Information servers. The availability of source code also facilitates in-depth security reviews and audits by government customers.  

Fast deployment
With open source software consumers needn't wait years to deploy a solution. Open source software is predominantly apposite for inter-agency collaboration, rapid prototyping and experimentation and can be “test driven” prior to procurement. Both known and unanticipated users can be swiftly provisioned.

Reliability
As open source is peer reviewed software, it is more reliable. The infrastructure of the Internet is largely composed of open-source programs such as DNS, send mail, Apache and languages such as HTML and Perl. They have proven to be both reliable and robust under the most strenuous conditions, like the fast growth of the Internet.

Low-cost
Open source software is often developed through community forums and collaborative. Developers volunteer their time and expertise, and are coordinated by fewer paid programmers. The lower overhead costs translates into substantial savings, as does the fact that open source software typically does not have a per-seat licensing cost. According to Gartner, open source is even more attractive to businesses during tough economic times.

Lower virus vulnerability
Traditionally, an open source OS's have fared better than other operating systems. A virus infection on a network server can be devastating in terms of data loss, down time, and staff time required for reconstruction. Open source servers that are less vulnerable to virus infections provide cost savings in terms of diminished liability in these areas.

Open Source Software may not provide a solution for every computing requirement, but it is a well established part of the computing ecosystem that plays a critical role in Internet and business infrastructure that enables companies to access expert resources and components that accelerate software product development  and release processes.

Also Read on:  Ecommerce solutions, Mobile application development

Benefits of SaaS Application for any Company

Software as a service (SaaS) is a revolutionary approach for building web applications. As organizations today want to focus on their core business, they usually outsource other work to specialized organizations. Besides being a cost effective option, companies expect their business portals to be handled by a specialized third party IT firm who can take complete responsibility and ownership. SaaS redefines the software deployment model from packaged applications with upfront licensing fees and lengthy implementations to one subscription based internet delivered service relationship.

The benefits of SaaS for any company are numerous. Some of them are:

• Zero Infrastructure

Expensive infrastructure is not required as the application is hosted by the service provider. All large initial investments on hardware, licenses and databases, ongoing overhead of employing and training IT staff, software and hardware maintenance and upgrades are managed by the IT Team. Aging technology does not have to be upgraded as there is no local infrastructure, and there is also total protection from unforeseen expenses.

• Reduced TCO

Most licensed software models incur huge costs in deployments. The total cost to operate in SaaS is fixed and known in advance. SaaS vendors typically will bundle all of the necessary hardware, software and support advisory services, such as implementation, training, help desk, troubleshooting, upgrades, security, and business continuity, into a single fee.

• Pay for What You Use

IT organizations generally overestimate the actual software utilization by the end user community. With SaaS, corporate buyers only pay for the active users of the system and not the forecasted user community.

• Easy to Switch Vendors

The corporate buyer has significantly more power and control with SaaS as these applications are sold on a subscription basis for a monthly recurring fee. Clients that are not satisfied have the option of cancelling their subscriptions and transferring to different applications without purchasing and licensing costs.

• Easier Upgrades

As SaaS vendors manage the upgrade process, they are responsible for administering any new releases and future enhancements. Users of SaaS-based applications can always be certain that they are using the latest version of the software provided by the vendor.

• Improved Security

As  SaaS application provides uninterrupted and reliable services, vendors understand that data must be backed up religiously and that information security is of top-most priority. Skilled resources, network redundancies, stand-by power, up-to-date security and intrusion detection are mandatory infrastructure required to provide an enterprise class service.

SaaS has the potential to totally change the way in which companies run their IT infrastructures. Mobile application development also allows companies to streamline and simplify their IT infrastructures, improve application deployment in geographically dispersed locations and realize significant cost savings that are traditionally used by larger organizations.


Know more - open source software deployment, product lifecycle management