Try open-source software to lower operating costs

Although open-source software is free, it almost always has a license. Typically, the license just restricts people from redistributing the code without crediting the authors.

Wait a minute. Why are these guys giving away code for free? Some say its altruism or the hope that the open-source code will bring attention and consulting dollars. Others work on open-source projects because their company is using the source code to run a portion of their business. Others participate in a form of

political crusades against large commercial entities such as

Microsoft Corp.

The best explanation of why open-source software exists and why it is successful is contained in a paper by Eric Raymond called The Cathedral and the Bazaar (www.catb.org/~esr/writings/). It is a must-read if you are interested in open source.

The most popular open-source product is Linux. Linux is an operating system similar to Unix, MAC OS and Microsoft Windows. Linux is now offered preinstalled by companies such as IBM, Hewlett Packard and Dell.

Another well-known, open source product is the Web server Apache, which companies have been using for years to power their Web sites. Some studies have shown that Apache powers about half of most Web sites.

Open-source products number in the thousands. They vary greatly in scope and maturity. Here are some well-known ones:

< SAP, the large enterprise-resource planning company, released its database, SAP DB, as an open-source product. Two other widely used open-source databases are MySQL and PostrgeSQL.

< In November 2001, IBM released the source code for some

of its application-development tools under the project name Eclipse. Eclipse is an open platform for building software development tools. Eclipse has most of the features of commercial software. In addition, it has an open architecture so you can add features.

< An up-and-coming open-source project is OpenNMS, a network and systems management system under development by Shane ODonnell. He is the former chief architect of the network used by State Farm Insurance.

OpenNMS is designed for Internet service providers and midsize businesses with a large-scale system to follow. The 10 developers who started the OpenNMS project formed a company around it, PlatformWorks. In September, Atipa Technologies bought PlatformWorks. Atipa plans to build commercial products around the core open-source code.

In the last couple of years, companies began to take the open-source code and create branded versions. Then they resold the software with maintenance and support (which is legal as long as they adhere to the license). The total cost of one of these packaged open-source products is generally less than that of its commercial counterparts.

I recommend you pick an open-source project that has development support. Here are some simple guidelines for sorting through whats available:

< Choose one that is well-known and that others are using, such as Apache or Linux.