
Steve Ballmer was right about open source - ViralBShah
https://blog.tidelift.com/steve-ballmer-was-right-about-open-source
======
ocdtrekkie
I think the biggest thing open source does is allow you to choose the level of
investment you have in it. As someone who works in IT, I don't generally just
grab an open source project and deploy it at work: It becomes a burden on me,
not the developer, when things aren't working right. I need things which are
supported.

But that's a choice I make. I could choose to use an open source system, and
we could hire a developer to make it do what we need rather than paying the
company. Maybe I can just use a free open source solution for something if
it's temporary or not critical and not a big deal if something happens.

Many open source products have commercial tiers and support offerings, and I
can choose those if needbe, but I'm not forced to. Really, the main difference
here is that I get to choose my risk with open source, whereas a closed source
product will have a set cost.

