A group of open-source software advocates set out a road map for the software industry through 2020 at the Open World Forum conference in Paris on Tuesday.
The authors of the report, "2020 FLOSS Roadmap", made a number of predictions about the role of free, libre and open-source software (FLOSS) in 2020, and 80 recommendations for the industry.
Their use of the French word "libre" (free as in 'unfettered') clears up the ambiguity inherent in the English word "free," which can also mean without cost.
They painted a rosy vision of 2020 in which FLOSS will have entered the mainstream of the software industry and contributed to reducing the digital divide between rich and poor. Social networks will rely on ubiquitous, open cloud-computing services and will allow people to interact not just with friends, but also with governments and businesses, they said.
CIOs wary of vendor lock-in will champion the use of FLOSS, and such software will be at the heart of green data centres and other business models with low ecological impacts, they said.
Reaching this computing nirvana, however, will require action - and not just by bearded geeks. Investors, legislators, educators, electors and even consumers also have a role to play, according to the report's authors.
The Good News? Open Source Will Save World By 2020, Say Experts
Re: The Good News? Open Source Will Save World By 2020, Say Experts
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