Understanding Open Source Software In 2024
Red Hat News, Tuesday, September 3rd, 2024
What we today call open source was originally called 'Free Software.' The word 'free' wasn't meant to refer to the price of the software, but to independence and liberty from corporate control.
As the popularity of Free Software grew, so did the confusion over the word 'free,' and it became clear that a different word was required.
Where did the term 'open source' come from?
On February 5 1998, there was a meeting at VA Research of IT workers looking to promote free software as an approach to improving software security and reliability. In this meeting, Christine Peterson, with support from Todd Anderson, formally proposed to influential technologists the term 'open source' for software that made its source code available for review, modification, and sharing.