Java Tutorial - Java Script :
Putting All the Factors Together
This section summarizes what the previous sections covered to give you sort of an aerial view of what those sections covered:
· Open source software has low initial acquisition costs, but may have a longer learning curve if staff is unfamiliar with the tools.
· Open source software is usually faster to acquire than commercial because there is no procurement cycle.
· The quality of open source software is at least as good as,if not better than, comparable commercial products.
· Risks associated with using open source software are comparable to similar risks using commercial software
· Suitability and features such as standards conformance and performancemetrics are likely to vary widelyamong products, whether open source or commercial.
So, the best product for a given project is normally the one with the lowest cost, lowest risk, highest quality, and immediate availability, and one that does exactly what you need. In practice, of course, you often end up having to come up with the best compromise in all of these areas. If the features of an open source component meet the development or deployment requirements of a project, then open source software represents a high-value solution to addressing the project’s needs.
