Week 7: Clear

As I sit here brainstorming about how open source software has impacted my life, my mind constantly wanders back to gaming. For most non gamers, video games are something you buy at Best Buy or GameStop for $60, play for a month or so, and never play again. We'll get to that later. But for now, let's talk a little about what open source software is.

I think Lincoln would be a fan of OSS. Image created by
Scott Robinson: http://www.flickr.com/photos/clearlyambiguous/23394485/

Open source software, or OSS, is free to download from the internet. That in itself is surprising considering how much we all tend to pay for the latest Microsoft and Apple products. But, more importantly, the source code is free to alter and distribute as long as it remains open and free. While most companies protect their source code against all attempts of ascertaining its secrets, OSS freely divulges its inner workings. Why a program behaves the way it does is open knowledge (as long as you are tech savvy enough to understand programming languages). This type of software opens up a world of possibilities to programmers and computer users alike. 

The benefits of open source software include:

• Lower costs- There is no licensing fee for OSS.
• Flexibility- You can alter the code to make it more tailored to your business needs.
• Community- There is a large community of programmers to help improve the code and help with potential problems. 
• Quality- Open source software equals and often exceeds proprietary software in terms of mistakes per thousand lines of code. This article goes into a little more detail on the quality of open source software: http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/article/250543/actually_open_source_code_is_better_report.html

In terms of gaming, open source software has only recently become a factor in blockbuster releases. While the source code for the entire game is not open to modification, a few game studios are offering players the ability to create their own downloadable content. Two games that come to mind are The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion and Portal 2. These games both won various game of the year awards when they came out and they both released code for programmers to alter in order to modify the game. Programmers were allowed to create new maps, puzzles, and content to modify the visuals, gameplay, and even physics of the game for added enjoyment. Because Bethesda and Valve (the two companies that produce The Elder Scrolls and Portal) are so successful in their decisions as game developers, I believe more and more games will follow suite and allow the modification and distribution of altered content through open source software. This creates much more content to make gamers happier with the hefty $60 price tag on newly released games.