Not particularly new, but some interesting perspectives. FN
Cathedral and the Bazaar, The Book available at http://catb.org/~esr/writings/cathedral-bazaar/
Review: http://www.theassayer.org/cgi-bin/asbook.cgi?book=71
A pragmatists perspective of an Ideology. by cyent on 2000-12-29 03:14:01, review #68 content better than 99% writing better than 80%
The Cathedral and the Bazaar is justly famous for explaining mechanisms behind the success of Open Source software.
Its primary viewpoint is in laying bare the "inner clockwork" that makes the Open Source development model so successful.
Its primary weakness is that of any analytic and objective analysis.
There is an implicit assumption that only the objectively observable clockwork drives the process and thus discounts the role of spirit and ideology.
Thus if you believe humanity can be explained by reductively in terms of cells, molecules and atoms, you will find this work satisfying.
I have lived in some of the vast spiritual and ideological upheavals that have trampled over most of the world in the 20th century, leaving pragmatic and materialistic USA in relative peace...
Thus I find Raymond's assessment of the role of the ideology behind Free Software a little shallow.
Yet in this very shallowness lies its huge popular success.
How can the pragmatic and materialistic USA, the main producer and consumer of software, be made comfortable with a methodology flowing out of an essentially radical ideology?
By rubbing off the sharp edges, renaming "Free Software" to a less emotionally loaded "Open Source".
By explicating the methodologies and mechanisms behind the success in the hope that one can take the mechanisms on board without swallowing the ideologies.
By merging it with American right wing individualistic traditions.
This Raymond does remarkably well. Whether you have more radical thoughts or are staunchly capitalistic, Raymond has done his job very well. Read it. Read it now. You need to read his triptych to understand what is going on.
The Cathedral and the Bazaar
Explains the mechanisms that make Open Source such a good software development model.
Homesteading the Noosphere
Is his analysis of the property and ownership customs of the open-source culture.
The Magic Cauldron
Is an excellent review of economic sense of Open Source.
Conclusion of the Reviewer
In conclusion it is well worth the read. Yes, you can, as many Open Source proponents do, take on the mechanisms but not the ideology.
However, be aware that beyond the mechanisms, discounted, discarded and undescribed by Raymond, lie also a vast sea of extremely potent ideologies.
You can argue long whether the ideologies are communistic (as many have accused), libertarian, or simply religious (eg. Larry Wall's Artistic License). Whatever your opinion is, the zeal of Free Software supporters does not permit a simply pragmatic explanation such as Raymond's.
Look to the (global, not USA) history of the 20th century and wonder...
What in the long run will have the most impact. The mechanisms, or the ideologies?
As far as I'm concern the copyleft on this if even more left than two options imposed on me. See http://www.geocities.com/cy_ent/bugroff.html for details of the "No problem Bugroff" license.
The above review is copyrighted by its author, and is copylefted under the following license: GFDL 1.1
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