Jason G. Caudill Assistant Professor of Business Administration Carson-Newman College

Introduction  Businesses need technology resources to operate  Commercial software licenses can be expensive  Open source software alternatives can provide technology resources without licensing fees  The functionality of the software is key

What is Open Source?  Software that is freely distributed  Software the freely distributes not only the software, but also the source code  Source code: the programming language behind a computer program

Benefits of Open Source  Communities of developers can work simultaneously to:  Fix identified problems  Create program extensions  Create plug-ins to expand program capabilities  What do these benefits add up to?  Faster development times  Faster responses to problems  More responsive to user requests

Advantages to Small Business  License Costs:  No purchase fees  No fees to upgrade to the next version  Affordable to have infrequently used software  Expansion Costs:  Open source can be freely distributed to employees for home use  Additional workstations can be added without additional licensing costs

Open Source Usability Features  Many open source products read and save in the most popular commercial file formats  Many of the most popular open source products are available for Windows, Mac, and Linux operating systems

Small Business is Unique Capital/LiquidityStaffing  Small businesses need the best results from minimum investments to optimize efficiency  Open source programs give businesses productivity without capital expenditures  Small businesses often can’t afford IT support or training  Open source offers active user communities for support  Open source offers many online tutorials for training Open Source software gives small businesses technology resources and support without requiring new expenditures or additional staffing

Open Source Program Categories  Productivity  Office suites  Communication  Web browsers  clients  Voice communications  Media  Web editors  Image editors  Vector graphics programs  Desktop publishing

Open Source Office Suite .  The Novell release, with the available Open XML translator, is compatible with Office 2007 – available herehere  This is a great example of the benefits of communities of developers!  Includes: word processor, presentation creator, spreadsheet, database, and drawing program

Web Browser .  Powerful, full-featured, multi-platform web browser  Expandable – many plug-ins give Firefox great tools to make web browsing and research easier  Available from

Client .  Full-featured, multiplatform client  Supports POP and IMAP  Excellent SPAM filter  Will host multiple accounts  Available from

Voice Communication .  Call system management  Supports Voice Over IP (VOIP) telephony  Can provide voic , telephony web interface, or a conference bridge  Available at

Web Editor .  A What You See Is What You Get (WYSIWYG) web editor  Supports advanced features like templates, forms, Cascading Style Sheets (CSS), and has an integrated File Transfer Protocol (FTP) server  Tag and HTML editing is also available  Online at

Image Editing .  The GNU Image Manipulation Program (GIMP)  Basic and advanced image editing including cropping, brightness and contrast controls, multiple layers, filters, and editing masks  Online at

Vector Graphics .  Useful for creation of original images  Vector graphics are good for creating logos, illustrations, and other images  Vector graphics are scalable – they can be altered to different sizes without distortion  Online at

Desktop Publishing .  Provides options for creating professional print publications such as newsletters, flyers, and other documents  Online at

Conclusion  Selecting the proper selection of software can provide small businesses with necessary technical resources  Even the smallest companies have the ability to produce and use integrated technology solutions  For more open source options go to or

Contact  Contact Jason at or via his website at