Pros and cons of open source software development with Jeff Genender
Date: Feb 25, 2011Open source expert Jeff Genender's interest in open source software development may have started with a desire to save money, but he also found open source toolsets that provide functionality that is sometimes lacking in even the expensive corporate offerings. Corporate products often come with escalating maintenance costs that can, in some cases, be avoided by using open source. In addition, finding and fixing bugs can be problematic when dealing with a corporate provider, whereas, according to Jeff Genender, open source developers are able to quickly develop patches and release them back into the open source community.
On the other hand, open source Java development can require more resources in terms of staff hours, as the open source community depends on contributions from its member parts. In other words, you can have a quick turnaround on bug fixes, as long as you're willing to put in the time and effort to help build and release the patch. Another tradeoff when it comes to the quickness with which a specific bug can be fixed is that the patch sets are not as smooth because multiple different teams are working them out at the same time. According to Genender, there can also be a certain amount of "political turmoil" or red tape involved in making larger changes to open source toolsets.
