def:
(adj) open-source (of or relating to or being computer software for which the source code is freely available)
- Open source doesn't just mean access to the source code. The distribution terms of open-source software must comply with the following criteria:
- Free Redistribution
- The license shall not restrict any party from selling or giving away the software as a component of an aggregate software distribution containing programs from several different sources. The license shall not require a royalty or other fee for such sale.
- Source Code
- The program must include source code, and must allow distribution in source code as well as compiled form.
- Derived Works
- The license must allow modifications and derived works, and must allow them to be distributed under the same terms as the license of the original software.
- Integrity of The Author's Source Code
- The license may restrict source-code from being distributed in modified form only if the license allows the distribution of "patch files" with the source code for the purpose of modifying the program at build time. ( Encouraging lots of improvement is a good thing, but users have a right to know who is responsible for the software they are using. Authors and maintainers have reciprocal right to know what they're being asked to support and protect their reputations).
- No Discrimination Against Persons or Groups
- No Discrimination Against Fields of Endeavor
- The license must not restrict anyone from making use of the program in a specific field of endeavor. For example, it may not restrict the program from being used in a business, or from being used for genetic research.
- Distribution of License
- The rights attached to the program must apply to all to whom the program is redistributed without the need for execution of an additional license by those parties.
- License Must Not Be Specific to a Product
- The rights attached to the program must not depend on the program's being part of a particular software distribution.
- License Must Not Restrict Other Software
- The license must not place restrictions on other software that is distributed along with the licensed software. For example, the license must not insist that all other programs distributed on the same medium must be open-source software.
- License Must Be Technology-Neutral
- No provision of the license may be predicated on any individual technology or style of interface.
- So how do they make money?