Although many people believe that there are many differences between Open Source Software projects and commercial software projects, the two types of projects still have many things in common.
Differences Between OSS and Commercial Software
With Open Source Software (OSS), the source code is available to the public for free, which is different from commercial software (like Micosoft Windows). Virtually anyone can use the software, change it, and redistribute to others as they wish. Programmers can access the open source code via the Internet and use it to develop their own programs and applications. They can also redistribute their new develpments to others as well. Open Source Software also alleviates the competition, which saves money as well.
Similarities of OSS to Commercial Software
When it comes to software development many Open Source Software developers claim that no deadlines need to be met, and that quality issues are left to a community of users; that simply isn’t the situation. According to many programmers, the development of Open Source Software is very similar to the development of regular, commercial software as you might expect.
Open Source Software projects go through the same phases of project development, testing, and documentation as commercial software projects. In most (if not all) Open Source Software projects, a project manager is hired to oversee software development process. He/she is responsible for project definition, planning, organizing, executing, and closing the project. In fact, many of the same principles used in commercial projects are used in Open Source Software (OSS) projects as well.
So, although many people feel that Open Source Software software development is vastly different, and the end of the day, the principles involved in the development process are much the same as any commercial software project. The only major difference is that open source software is available at no charge.