Free Software, Open Source Software
Inode runs nearly 100% of its business on Free or Open Source software.
Definitions
Free Software exists to protect the Freedom of the users of software; to protect their Freedom to use, share and alter the code.
Open Source Software exists to promote the ability of developers to produce excellent, reuseable code; it protects the environment within which code is created.
These two types of software philosophies are extremely similar to each other, and much of the great software in the world can fairly describe itself as both Free and Open Source Software, sometimes using the acronym FLOSS or FOSS. However the distinction is real, and needs to be appreciated.
Most of the rest of the software in the world is proprietary — it is the “property” of the developer (either the individual people who wrote it, or the business entity that paid for it).
You can often get a legitimate copy of such proprietary software at zero cost, but once you have it you do not necessarily have any rights to examine it, to alter it, or to give copies to other people. For the more popular proprietary software, you will find yourself having to manage licensing, paying for the number of installations, number of users, number of CPUs in the computer or simply per month, just for the privilege of continuing to use the program.
Improving software
The “best of breed” applications for most of the Internet are Free or Open Source software. A huge range of people and organisations have tested, implemented and improved web servers, content management systems, domain name servers, firewalls, web application servers, instant messaging and email servers. When security issues are discovered, they are disclosed and discussed; workarounds are offered, and proper fixes are quickly developed and updates are made available. There is a real incentive to improve.
Contrast that with proprietary software for sale; unless a problem threatens future revenue, there is no incentive to provide a proper or timely fix. The vendor has only its own best interests at heart — any decision by the directors that does not “increase shareholder value” represents a failure of the company. In order to keep up sales, new features have to be implemented and advertised — regardless of whether these features are genuinely useful.
Support
If you have a problem with proprietary software, you have to contact the vendor to help you, as they are the only people with access to the source code. Well-known software can be supported by many different companies, but at the end of the day they all need to defer to the original vendor for the really difficult issues. You will have to pay for support, one way or another — either directly, or indirectly as the price of licenses increases. If the level of support you require is non-profitable for the vendor, what will happen?
Contrast that with Free and Open Source software; because anyone can have access to the source code and modify it as required, you can turn to literally anyone for support. Local businesses can support local businesses, charging competitively in an open market rather than exploiting a monopoly. Active communities of volunteers provide free support and advice for most products in various forums and mailing lists, and unless your problem is truly unique, these will often be able to help solve your problems within a couple of days.
Conclusion
For these reasons, and others not enumerated here, Inode chooses Free Software and Open Source Software to support its business, and recommends the same to its customers.