by I have been stewing about my maiden post on this blog for some time, so here goes.
I presented or talked about Evergreen and open source seven times at ALA Annual 2008. (Seven times, I tell you, seven times!) It was a great experience, and part of the joy came from the many moments when the heads began bobbing. (No, not nodding off to sleep… well, maybe for one tired conference-goer… but actively bobbing in affirmation.)
I would say “No hidden code” and heads would bob.
I would say “Free to use, free to download, free to examine, free in every way” and heads would bob.
I would say “Interoperability” (which open code facilitates, even if it is not a characteristic of all open source) and heads would bob. (Including the heads of many potential vendor partners.)
I would say “Reindexing, transaction load, deduping, powerful, avenue for growth” and heads would bob.
I would say “This brings us full circle to where we were in the beginning of library automation, when we steered our own ship,” and heads would bob.
Evergreen community members can’t always see the bobbing heads. But they are there all the same.
Happy 4th! (And belated Canada Day, not to mention the 400th birthday of Quebec!)
Evergreen follows in the spirit of the thoughts of the founding fathers of the USA back in 1776: It, along with OS and software on which it is built, frees us from being held hostage by the companies who want to tie us into one path and then charge (tax?) for the priviledge of being on that path. Open Source can (as has been proven ) provide a good business model as well as keep the “unalienable Rights” of “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness” intact at least related to software and free choice.
Heh. I saw mostly head bobs too on my (one (probably inferior)) presentation, but I found out later some of those head bobs happened because I’m was confusing some recent MLS graduates. Then I felt bad.
John, you were probably imparting some knowledge, even along with the confusion. So, you know, a little this, a little that. 🙂
RobertC, that’s a wonderful sentiment. I do feel that open source feels like an open window onto the information universe. As Robert Frost wrote, “Something there is that doesn’t love a wall.”