Linux and Open Source Software for Public Libraries

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Introduction: Chris Sharp, PINES Program Manager, Georgia Public Library Service - PINES Team supports & coordinates development for Evergreen, the open source library automation system that was developed by GPLS Andrew Smith, Twin Lakes Library System - has implemented Linux platforms and Ubuntu public PCs in his library system Every library I have visited has a “computer graveyard” room with equipment 4 – 5 years (or more) out of date. - out of warranty - but still an asset - not all of it can be reused, but if the library already owns it, all it takes is knowledge/expertise because the software required is free Free/Open Source Software – is best understood with a history lesson

Several things happened in the late 60s/early 70s that still impact us today: - development of the UNIX operating system by Bell Labs - (concurrently) development of the C Programming Language - UNIX is developed in C - highly portable, very fast, relatively simple syntax - C++, C# (Microsoft) are direct descendants - Perl & Python – implemented in C SOURCE CODE – human-readable instructions that are compiled or interpreted by a computer for executing the program - computers – 1s and 0s - humans – programming languages - Ethernet – developed at Xerox PARC (Palo Alto Research Center) - backbone of Local Area Networks - ARPANET – forerunner of the Internet PDP-7 – first computer to run UNIX

1970s – Early 80s Software becomes more portable - computer hardware becomes more standardized - media such as tapes and floppy disks transport programs from one computer to another Culture of sharing developed Simultaneously, software companies, including Microsoft and Apple, began to emerge - licensing of software to restrict its use - source code became trade secrets - business models built on intellectual property rights

Richard Stallman - of the “old guard” - tried to continue the culture of sharing programs - print driver story Copyleft - GNU General Public License (GPL) – makes sharing a mandatory condition for redistributing or altering the program - prevents the source code from becoming proprietary GNU – GNU's Not UNIX - developed as a UNIX clone using source code licensed under the GPL - developed all but the kernel Kernel – the core of an operating system – manages startup & shutdown, program access, device drivers, etc. World Wide Web – late 1980s Linux Torvalds – 1991 - Finnish college student - began developing a kernel that fit with the GNU operating system - called “Linux” - developed via the World Wide Web

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Linux and Open Source Software for Public Libraries - Presentation Transcript

Linux and Open Source Software for Public Libraries Georgia COMO 2009 October 8, 2009 Chris Sharp, Georgia Public Library Service Andrew Smith, Twin Lakes Library System
Late1960s - Early 1970s
- PDP-7 Computer c. 1969
1970s - Early 1980s
- 8 inch Floppy Disk
Mid 1980s - Early 1990s
Late 1990s - Early 2000s
"Free" vs. "Open Source"
Examples of Open Source Software