Open Source Software vs. Freeware

Web development can get expensive. Hiring a programer, creating custom graphic designs, and maintaining the site can start to rack up costs. Therefore, many businesses turn to one of 2 options for their web needs: open source software or freeware. While both of these are options, they are certainly not equal. This article will help you to understand the advantages and disadvantages of each type of software and help you to figure out which will best suit your needs.

The obvious difference between open source software and freeware is certainly price. Freeware is free while open source software usually carries a price. However, with software you often get what you pay for. Freeware may save some money, but in the long run it could cost you your company.

Open source software is developed by professional programmers who spend hours a day placing their full attention on the project at hand. Freeware, however, is usually created as an experiment by an inexperienced individual. Yes, each process results in software, but the quality is certainly in question.

A big difference comes in terms of customer support. Since freeware is often produced by amateurs working from basements, home offices, and personal computers, customer support is limited or nonexistent. Open source software is developed by a company, which almost always includes a technical support team. This team is able to fix problems and answer questions on a regular basis, eliminating a lot of the problems associated with running a website. Do you need customer support? The short answer is yes. Customer support comes with updates that allow you to prevent problems before they occur. Updates also protect your security. Freeware is not updated regularly, so hackers are more able to access the websites. And if a security breech does occur, a tehcnical support team will need to help rebuild, but with freeware this is not possible.

The easy answer to this question is no. Look for 100% open source software, because this allows for each and every piece of the software to be modified and customized. Also, the features of each software will vary quite a bit. Whatever kind of website you are trying to create, there is software for it. You can purchase multi vendor shopping cart software, social networking software, or anything else you are interested in.

Price is also a question. Just because a software is affordable doesn't mean it is bad. While freeware is not usually of quality, affordable software is usually a great deal. If you look at the features, support, and customization options and believe it suits your needs, then you don't have to pay hundreds of dollars. Many softwares are under $100 and many more are under $200.