The Open Source Advocate

Introduction It has been over a year since I last posted about an exciting open source project called ZipTie . We use ZipTie to automatically discover our network devices, backup their configurations, and perform a variety of functions related to these devices. Many things have changed with ZipTie since my last post and I want to share those with you. I'll start with the positive changes first, because I am a positive type of person. New Features The most obvious improvement is the slick web interface that replaces the previous Java fat client. This interface is powered by Adobe Flex , so it has a great look and feel to it. Having a web interface also simplifies deploying ZipTie, because you don't have to worry about installing a Java application and all the required dependencies. Check out the screenshots : ZipTie has also added a great community resource called ZipForge , which is a place where anyone can publish custom tools that perform specific functions on network...

Introduction If you have followed this blog for a while, you will know about my passion for open source software. I have always predicted that open source software would revolutionize the software industry, but I didn't quite understand how this would happen. My initial views expected that open source would disrupt traditional software companies so much that it would eventually put them out of business. I am now realizing that the future of open source software looks much different than I first expected. Proprietary software will be quietly built on open source software One of the primary benefits of open source software is that it reduces the cost to produce software. Gartner agrees with this point; open source software is the most efficient method to create software. Traditional proprietary software vendors are realizing this fact , and are beginning to quietly build their closed software products using lots of open source software. I say "quietly" because these...