The market for open source and free software is surging high with its appreciation in mainstream segment also. The free software products like Linux or others are moving from the walled boundaries of servers to desktops and laptops. Recently, launched Ultra low cost laptops were supported on Linux and that came as a major breakthrough for it to garner some spotlight from tech analysts.

But still the concept of free software and open source software is not clear with many of us. We are confused at the basic level and interchanging the terms for each other. We use the terms Free Source and Open Source interchangeably and get them confused with the concept that they are available for free.

To some extent the concept gels with what we consider “available for free” but not in complete sense. The word “free” is basically the misnomer. We confuse it with “free burgers” but it should be considered for “free speech”. No doubt that some softwares from both the communities are available for free of cost and are offered as free downloads but not all utilities.

The two communities working with the aim of offering freedom to developers are working in the same direction but are literally and fundamentally different in their approaches. Till 1998, they were more or less same but after that the two movements separated with a different prospective, a different philosophy, and different motives.

The commonality in both the approaches is the open availability of source code to developers but the aim backing this approach is different with both the communities.

Where Free Software Community lays stress on providing source code to developers with the aim that user is free to do what he wish with the software’s source code. It is more philosophical in nature.

However, Open Source believes in offering source code to users with the aim that collaborative efforts can bring more subtle results. It has motivation that users can freely provide their suggestions for the source code and can append it to the existing one if results provided are efficient enough.

Both the communities lay stress on redistribution of code with no restrictions but the principles and motivations are different.

Where one seeks the liberty provided to users; the other targets the development of more efficient software programs with collaborative approach. Against the philosophical methodology of Free Software Community, the Open Source Community is driven by more practical reasons.

To some years the movements were working as a common alliance and Open Source was used as a marketing term for free software to reduce the ambiguity; but to worst it added more problems. So finally the two movements parted and started their own way.

Where the software developed by open source are more or less fits to zero-cost category, nothing like that can be defined for free software. To define it better, nothing which is free of cost can be a tailored fit for both the communities but cannot be turned off even.

Open Source is opposite to original context of Free Software. Free Software aims the freedom of users but Open Source aims the collaborative approach. The former stresses that users can freely see, modify and redistribute the code but latter has the approach that users can see the code but cannot modify it to suit its needs. In OSS, the liberty availed is in accordance of specific licensing agreements allowing one to fiddle with the code.

Free Software values freedom offered to users but Open Source believes in team development of software. Where one can be attached to social movement, the other is a development methodology. Both are against the patents and proprietary software, but cannot go hand in hand due to disagreement on certain principles.

To ask you, is GNU/ Linux is a free software or open source software? Cannot answer surely; Linux is not an open source software but a product of free software community (as you are free to make modifications).

At crux, it can be said that both are different movements with differing principles but are fighting against the common objective “Proprietary Software”.

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Windows only

How many things in life take photos of art can be a lot of fun, but following the organization of images is not always exciting. This is especially difficult if you have thousands of photos scattered around in obscure places on your computer, which always used to sort, but not quite, but to be around.
free Adebis Photo Sorter wants to help you get pictures organized. This handy tool allows you to define the folder structure on the images based on season and / or the date of their execution. will index all the images to organize them into folders, so you can quickly find them in the future. Here is an overview of what the application is able to:
Sorting and structure of the whole collection of photos in the system user to rename a series of images using masks defined by the user Creating a chronologically arranged series of images from multiple source folders Integration EXIF data to rename files in batches
Generally I would say this application is useful for anyone that is a picture of the organization, or anyone who wants to take the stress off your back photo management.
Adebis Photo Sorter Home (Windows only, freeware)

Via: Photo Free Software Sorting
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Free software, according to the definition created by Free Software Foundation is any computer program that can be used, copied, studied and redistributed with some restrictions. The freedom of such guidelines is central to the concept, which is opposed to software proprietor’s concept, but not to the software that is sold longing for profit (commercial software). The usual way of distribution of free software is to enclose to this a license of free software, and to turn the code source of the available program.

Definition

A software is considered as free when he/she assists to the four types of freedom for the users of the software defined by Free Software Foundation:

* The freedom to execute the program, for any purpose (freedom no. 0);

* The freedom of studying as the program works, and to adapt him/it for their needs (freedom no. 1). I access to the code-source is a prerequisite for this freedom;

* The freedom of redistributing, besides to sell, copies so that you can help to his/her close one (freedom no. 2);

* The freedom of modifying the program, and to liberate these modifications, so that the whole community benefits (freedom no. 3). I access to the code-source is a prerequisite for this freedom;

The freedom of executing the program means the freedom for any natural person type or juridical to use the software in how many machines he/she wants, in any type of system computacional, for any work type or activity, without any restriction imposed by the supplier.

The freedom of redistributing the compiled program, that is in binary format, necessarily includes the compulsory nature of making available their code-source. In case the software comes to be modified and the author of the modification wants to distribute him/it, gratuitously or no, it will also be obligatory the distribution of the code source of the modifications, since they come to integrate the program. It is not necessary the author’s authorization or of the distributor of the software so that he can be redistributed, since the software licenses liberate allow like this him/it.

So that it is possible to study or to modify the software (for private use or to distribute) is necessary to have access to the code-source. Therefore the readiness of those files is prerequisite for the freedom of the software. Each license determines how it will be made the supply of the code source for typical distributions, as it is only the case of distributions in portable media with the binary codes concluded (without the source) already. In the case of the license GPL, the source should be made available at place from where can be accessed, or it should be given to the user, if requested, without additional (except transport and media) costs.

For those freedoms to be real, they should be irrevocable. In case the desenvolvedor of the software has the power to revoke the license, the software is not free.

Most of the free softwares is licensed through a license of free software, as to GNU GPL, the more acquaintance.

Free software and Software in Public Domain

Free software is different from software in public domain. The first, when used in combination with typical (as the licenses GPL and BSD) licenses, it guarantees the authorship of the desenvolvedor or organization. The second case happens when the years pass foreseen in the laws of each country of protection of the author’s rights and east becomes very common. Nevertheless, a software in public domain can be considered as a free software.

Free software and Copyleft

Licenses as GPL contain an additional concept, known like Copyleft, that bases on the propagation of the rights. A free software without copyleft can be turned no-free for an user, case wants like this him/it. Already a free software protected by a license that offers copyleft, if distributed, it should be under the same license, in other words, reviewing the rights.

Associating the copyleft concepts and free software, programs and derived services of a free code obligatorily should stay with a free (the details of which you program, which services and which licenses are defined for the original license of the program) license. The user, however, it stays with the possibility of not to distribute the program and to maintain the modifications or services used for itself own.

Sale of Free Software

The licenses of free software allow them to be sold, but these in his/her great majority are available gratuitously.

Once the buyer of the free software is entitled to the four striped freedoms, he could redistribute this software gratuitously or for a smaller price than that that paid.

As example could mention Red Hat Enterprise Linux that is marketed by Red Hat, starting from him, several clones were created as CentOS that can be lowered gratuitously.

A lot of companies opt to distribute the same product on two or more licenses, usually one on a license copyleft and free like GPL and another on a license landlady and he/she pays. Another very common difference is that the versions pay usually accompany some type of additional service, as right to it supports technician, for instance.

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