Title: Free Software or Open Source Software
Course: CIS 121: Linux/UNIX I: Fundamentals ~ For IGNITE Review > Section: Learning Modules

Both the Free Software and the Open Source Software movement largely pursue similar goals and endorse similar software licenses. But historically, there has been some perception of differentiation due to different emphases. Where the Free Software movement focuses on the rights (the four freedoms) which Free Software provides to its users, the Open Source Software movement points to its Open Source Definition and the advantages of peer-to-peer software development. Additionally, under Free Software, licenses of derivative works must also have the same license type. But under Open Source, derivative works do not have to have the same Open Source license. They can have other license types.

Recently, the term free and open source software or FOSS has arisen as a neutral alternative. A lesser-used variant is free/libre/open source software (FLOSS), which uses libre to clarify the meaning of free as in freedom rather than as in at no charge.

Examples of free software are gcc, MySQL and gimp.

Detailed information about the four freedoms can be found here:www.gnu.org/philosophy/free-sw.html

The open source definition can be found at: http://www.opensource.org/docs/osd

The above definition is based on the Debian Free Software Guidelines available here:  http://www.debian.org/social_contract#guidelines

(Source: Linux Fundamentals, by Paul Cobbaut)