Open Source in Higher Education
Steve C. Yuen, Ph.D.
Professor
The University of Southern Mississippi
Steve.Yuen@usm.edu
and
Patrivan K. Yuen
Technical Services/Systems Librarian
William Carey University
pyuen@wmcarey.edu
2008 Creating Futures Through Technology Conference, Biloxi, February 8, 2008

Content
What is Open Source?
Open Source Movement
Open Source Software
Using Open Source Software in Higher
Education
Implications of Open Source
Resources

What is Open-Source?
Software programs that are distributed with
the source code.
Code is available for all to see.
Code may be modified by anyone.
Modifications must be shared.
Licensed under an approved Open Source
license.
Well-known open-source projects include
the Linux OS, the Apache Web server, and
the Firefox browser.
www.opensource.org

Open Source Definition
1. Free Redistribution
2. Source Code
3. Derived Works
4. Integrity of The Author's Source Code
5. No Discrimination Against Persons or Groups
6. No Discrimination Against Fields of Endeavor
7. Distribution of License
8. License Must Not Be Specific to a Product
9. The License Must Not Restrict Other Software
10. The License must be technology-neutral

Open Source Movement
MIT OpenCourseWare (OCW)
Yale Open Courses
OER Commons, Curriki – Open Educational
Resources
OpenCourseWare Consortium
Wikipedia – Online Encyclopedias
Project Gutenberg – Online Collections
Linux, Ubuntu, Edubuntu – Operating Systems
Firefox, Opera – Web Browsers
OpenOffice, GIMP – Open Source Software

What Are NOT Open Source?
Public domain
– A software author who chooses to release his or
her software into the public domain surrenders
the copyright. Other people can then use the
author’s work as they see fit.
Freeware
– Open Source software is also different from
“freeware” software. In freeware, the developer
offers a standard license, but does not give
access to source code or the right to make
derivative works.

Open Source Licenses
It is not freeware and it is not public
domain
Three Main License Branches
– GNU General Public License (GPL)
Requires derivate works to fall under the GPL.
– Berkeley Software Distribution (BSD)
Does not require derivate works to fall under
the BSD license
– Licenses created by commercial
companies that decided to release part of
their application as Open Source.

Why Teachers Like Open Source?
Cost
Escape from license management
and audits
Peer support and collaboration
Security
Flexibility
Reliability
Challenge and ownership of
problems
Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory. NETC Circuit: Open Source Software Means
More Choices.

Portable Applications on USB
Flash Drives
Convenience, safe, easy to use, and self-
contained applications.
Carry programs and personal preferences
anywhere, anytime, on almost any computer.
Have your email and instant messaging
accounts, bookmarks, log-on passwords, and
document templates available on any computer.
Carry enough applications to serve as a
personal office on the road.
Access programs on any computer with no trace
behind.
Run entirely from the USB drive without
installation.

Samples of
Open Source Software

Linux
One of the most prominent examples of open
source development.
The Linux systems were completed by
combining the kernel with system utilities and
libraries from the GNU project, which led to the
coining of the term GNU/Linux.
Predominantly known for its use in servers.
Linux is packaged for different uses in Linux
distributions, which contain the kernel along with
a variety of other software packages tailored to
requirements.
www.linux.org

Apache
Web server
Apache has been the most popular
HTTP server on the Web since April
1996.
Apache served 58% of all websites as
of March 2007.
www.apache.org

Moodle
A course management system.
Designed to help educators create online
courses with opportunities for rich interaction.
Multi-language support (over 60 languages are
supported for the interface).
Run on Unix, Linux, Windows, Mac OS X,
NetWare and any other systems that support
PHP.
www.moodle.org

Sakai
A course management system.
Include features such as document distribution,
gradebook, discussion, live chat, assignment
uploads, and online testing.
Also include a wiki, mailing list distribution and
archiving, and a RSS reader.
Can be used as a collaborative tool for
research and group projects.
www.sakaiproject.org

Joomla
A course management system written
with PHP and using the MySQL
database.
Include features such as page caching,
RSS feeds, printable versions of pages,
news flashes, blogs, polls, website
searching, and language
internationalization.
www.joomla.org

Claroline
A course management system.
Create and administer courses and
collaboration spaces through the web.
Used in almost 80 countries and is
available in more than 30 languages.
Compatible with GNU/Linux, Mac OS
and Microsoft Windows. It is based on
free technologies like PHP and MySQL.
www.claroline.net

phpBB
A popular Internet forum package written
in the PHP programming language.
Provide templates for easy customization.
Multilingual support – 64 languages
www.phpbb.com

Elgg
An open source social networking platform
developed for LAMP (Linux, Apache, MySQL,
PHP).
Offer blog, networking, community, file storage,
RSS aggregation, personal profiles, and file
sharing features.
Everything can be shared among users with
access controls and everything can be cataloged
by tags as well.
Can be setup to integrate with MediaWiki,
Moodle, Drupal, and WebCT.
www.elgg.org

Curriki
Global Education & Learning Community.
Open source curriculum (OSC)
development that provide universal access
to free curricula and instructional materials
for K-12.
Empower educators to become an active
community in the creation of world-class
curricula.
www.curriki.org

Internet Applications
Firefox
– Web browser
Thunderbird
– Email client
NVU
– Web authoring tool
FileZilla
– FTP and secure FTP
Gaim
– Instant messaging client
Download at [portableapps.com/apps]

Firefox
Full-featured Web browser.
Available for Windows, Mac., and Linux/UNIX.
Include popup-blocking, tabbed-browsing,
integrated search, improved privacy features,
automatic updating.
Portable version allows you to leave no personal
information behind on the machine you run it on,
so you can take your bookmarks, extensions and
saved passwords with you wherever you go.

Firefox

Thunderbird
Easy to use email client.
Available for Windows, Mac., and
Linux/UNIX.
Include quick message search,
customizable views, support for
IMAP/POP and RSS support.

Thunderbird

NVU
Available for Windows, Mac., & Linux/UNIX.
A complete Web Authoring System that
combines file management and WYSIWYG
Web page editing.
Integrated file management via FTP.
Can jump between WYSIWYG Editing Mode
and HTML using tabs.
Tabbed editing to make working on multiple
pages.
Support for forms, tables, and templates.
Download at [www.nvu.com]

NVU

FileZilla
A fast and reliable FTP client.
Available for Windows and Linux/UNIX.
Support resume on both downloads and
uploads, timeout detection, firewall
support, SOCKS4/5 and HTTP1.1
support, SSL and SFTP.
Drag and drop interface.

FileZilla

Gaim
A multi-protocol instant messaging client
that works with AOL Instant Messenger,
ICQ, MSN Messenger, and Yahoo.
For Windows only.
Log into multiple networks with the same
program.
All your IM settings and buddy lists are self-
contained, so it leaves no personal
information behind on the machine.

Gaim

PuTTY
A telnet and SSH
client for Windows,
along with an
xterm terminal
emulator.
Securely connect
to your systems
while on the go.
For Windows only

Open Office
Multilingual office suite.
Available for Windows, Mac. and Linux/UNIX.
A full-featured office suite that's compatible
with Microsoft Office, Word Perfect, Lotus
and other office applications.
Include a word processor, spreadsheet,
presentation, drawing package & database.
Download at [www.openoffice.org]

OpenOffice - Writer

OpenOffice - Calc

OpenOffice - Impress

OpenOffice - Draw

OpenOffice - Base

OpenOffice - Math

AbiWord
Portable word
processing program.
For Windows and Mac.
Read and write a
number of document
types including Microsoft
Word, Word Perfect,
OpenOffice.org, RTF,
HTML, and Palm.
Download at
[www.abisource.com]

Scribus
A professional page layout program
Linux/Unix, MacOS X, OS/2 and Windows
Feature \"press-ready\" output and support professional
publishing features such as CMYK color, separations, ICC
color management and PDF creation.
Download at [www.scribus.net]
[www.

Sunbird
A standalone calendaring and task management
application.
Available for Windows and Linux/UNIX.
Keep your calendar and tasks up-to-date.
Leave no personal information behind on the
machine you run it on.
Download at [johnhaller.com/jh/]

Sunbird

PDF Creator
Creates PDFs from any Windows program.
A printer driver that creates Adobe Acrobat files
from any applications.
Create more than just PDFs: PNG, JPG, TIFF,
BMP, PCX, PS, EPS.
Offer a multitude of options for controlling the
output, including the ability to password-protect
PDF files to limit users’ ability to print, copy, or
modify the documents.
Download at [www.pdfforge.org]

PDF Creator

Sumatra PDF
A PDF viewer for
Windows.
A minimalistic
design.
It's small and starts
up very fast.
Download at
[portableapps.com]

GIMP
GIMP (GNU Image Manipulation
Program) is an image editing software for
such tasks as photo retouching, image
composition and image authoring.
Available for Windows, Mac., and
Linux/UNIX.
Can be used as a paint program, an
expert quality photo retouching program,
an online batch processing system, a
mass production image renderer, and an
image format converter, etc.
Download at [portableapps.com]

GIMP

Blender
A 3D content creation suite, available for all
major operating systems under the GNU
General Public License.
Download at [www.blender.org]

Audacity
An easy-to-use audio editor and recorder.
Available for Windows, Mac., and
Linux/UNIX.
Record live audio.
Convert tapes and records into digital
recordings or CDs.
Edit Ogg Vorbis, MP3, and WAV sound
files.
Cut, copy, splice, and mix sounds
together.
Change the speed or pitch of a recording.
Download at [portableapps.com]

Audacity

VLC Player
A portable multimedia player
for various audio and video
formats (MPEG-1, MPEG-2,
MPEG-4, DivX, mp3, ogg, ...)
and DVDs, VCDs.
Can be used as a server to
stream in unicast or multicast
in IPv4 or IPv6 on a high-
bandwidth network.
Available for Windows, Mac.,
and Linux/UNIX.
Download at
[www.videolan.org/vlc]

MediaCoder
An universal audio/video
batch transcoder.
Convert for audio/video
portable devices (digital
audio player, MP4 player,
mobile phone, PDA, PSP,
VCD/DVD player etc.)
Extract audio tracks from
video files.
Rip audio/video discs.
For Windows only
Download at
[mediacoder.sourceforge.net]

7-Zip
A file archiver
(compression) utility
for Windows.
Compress 7z, ZIP,
GZIP, BZIP2, TAR,
RAR files and more
on the go.
Download at
[portableapps.com]

KeePass Password Safe
A password manager
for Windows.
Put all your passwords
in one database, which
is locked with one
master key or a key-
disk.
The databases are
encrypted using the
secure encryption
algorithms.
Download at
[portableapps.com]

ClamWin
A Standalone Virus
Scanner for Windows.
High detection rates
for viruses and
spyware.
Update virus
databases.
Download at
[portableapps.com]

TrueCrypt
Disk encryption software
for Windows and Linux.
Encrypt an entire hard
disk partition or a storage
device such as USB flash
drive.
Encryption is automatic,
real-time (on-the-fly) and
transparent.
Download at
[www.truecrypt.org]

InfraRecorder
CD/DVD burning solution for
Windows.
Create custom data, audio
and mixed-mode projects and
record them to physical discs
as well as disc images.
Support recording to dual-
layer DVDs.
Record disc images (ISO and
BIN/CUE)
Download at
[infrarecorder.sourceforge.net]

A CD-ROM created by SoftwareFor.org
Help students get free software programs without paying
the high price of commercial software
Available for both Mac and Windows platforms.
Most of the software programs in the CD-ROM are open
source and few of them are obtained and distributed by
permission.
Software are arranged in 13 categories: Art & Graphics,
Astronomy & Space, Computer Science, Games, Internet,
Keyboarding, Mathematics, Multimedia, Office, Publishing,
Security, Studying, and Utility.
Download free at www.softwarefor.org

Open Disc
A collection of high quality open
source software for Windows
The Open Disc CD-ROM contains 39
software tools in 6 categories:
– Design
– Games
– Internet
– Multimedia
– Productivity
– Utilities
www.theopendisc.com

Open Source in Higher Education
Open the door to a worldwide community of expert
software.
Encourage the development of 21th century skills for
students.
Allow students legal hacking, manipulate, customize,
and improve open source applications
Allow teachers to work collaboratively within a global
community toward the end of improving a product for
the good of all.
Free schools of a dependency on expensive
commercial software.
Keep students from pirating software and violating
proprietary licensing agreements.
Allow students, teachers, administrators, and parents
to exchange electronic documents.
Minimize cost and allow funding to be diverted to
equipment and other programs.

Possible Roadblocks
Unfamiliarity, fear, or lack of experience.
Training or re-training costs.
Integration with existing technology can be difficult.
Certain applications or “killer apps” aren’t open
source.
Comfort of using name brands (i.e., Microsoft
domination).
Inertia or resistance to change.
Migration problems.
Misconception and misinformed about Open Source.
Lack of coherent technology plan or vision.
Software vendor attitudes.
Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory. NETC Circuit: Open
Source Software Means More Choices.

Suggestions
Don’t use Open Source unless
– Good needs assessment
– Thorough planning
– Stakeholder involvement
Administrators
Teachers, staff
Students, parents
Community, etc.
– Aware of the implications

Steps to a Smooth
Open Source Transition
1. Convene a committee representative of teachers,
administrators, and office staff and share the problem
with them.
2. Get buy-in on beginning with a familiar basic
application open source tool, such as OpenOffice,
which can be easily shared and includes a clipart
library.
3. Prioritize the different solutions. Have the members
keep a blog or journal of what they experiencing.
4. Survey all stakeholders. Focus on function and need
rather than product.
Guhlin, M. (2007). The case for open source. Technology &
Learning, 27(7), 16-21.

Steps to a Smooth
Open Source Transition
5. Maintain regular communication via newsletters and a
Web page. Disseminate committee findings and keep
stakeholders abreast over time of funds saved and
how they've been redirected to worthy projects that
directly impact students, teachers, and community.
6. Create quick reference cards for the open source
solutions you choose. Also train your help desk.
7. Set up training and offer to do on-site demonstrations
for teachers. Also setup a FAQ page online to help
train everyone.
8. Make CDs of the software available for people who do
not have a high-speed Internet connection at home,
including parents of district students.
Guhlin, M. (2007). The case for open source. Technology &
Learning, 27(7), 16-21.

Implications of
Open Source
The power of openness holds tremendous
potential, and not just in the software arena.
A wave of change is headed for schools. It
involves a different way of valuing individual
contributions by students, teachers, and
administrators.
Open source invites us all to share our
expertise.
Open the door to a worldwide community of
expert software
Guhlin, M. (2007). The case for open source. Technology &
Learning, 27(7), 16-21.

Resources
JohnHaller.com
k12os.org
PortableApps.com
schoolforge.net
seul.org
standalone.atspace.org
tinyapps.org
www.osafoundation.org
www.osef.org
www.schoolforge.net
www.netc.org/openoptions/

The End
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