At 07:05 PM 4/10/2002 -0700, you wrote: >Because open source means open libraries, open >documentation and open standards, whereas closed >source means that not everything is disclosed. > >And what I said initially was that it is easier to >screw up closed source because the libraries/APIs are >not fully disclosed. At least in M$'s case.
That might have been implied, but wasn't stated. Regardless, I'm not sure that I fully agree with this train of thought. Some products do fully disclose their APIs. In that situation is it still the case that it is easier to introduce errors into code in close source projects? All in all though, I do agree that more documentation does provide better results. I'm not sure though if we can use a blanket statement that open source software is better documented in a [form that is immediately usable]. However, the fact that you can view open source code gives you the potential for more documentation, but it also requires more work. So that is a trade-off if you follow that line of reasoning. Regards, Dustin >John Hebert > >--- Dustin Puryear <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > At 05:39 PM 4/10/2002 -0700, you wrote: > > >Yes. > > > > How does writing open source software reduce the > > number of errors that you > > introduce into code? In my view open source software > > only increases the > > number of eyeballs that can spot those errors. > > > > Regards, Dustin > > > > > > > > >John Hebert > > > > > >--- Dustin Puryear <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > > > At 03:25 PM 4/10/2002 -0700, you wrote: > > > > >Sounds like a combination of problems. But, > > when it > > > > >comes to tracking down problems, I _always_ > > suspect > > > > >software, not hardware, first. Software is just > > > > easier > > > > >to screw up, especially on a closed source > > > > operating > > > > >system. Now, it may be that the hardware in the > > > > > > > > Do you think closed software is easier to "screw > > up" > > > > or simply more > > > > difficult to fix? Does writing open source > > software > > > > reduce the number of > > > > errors you introduce into code, or increase the > > > > number of people able to > > > > spot the errors? > > > > > > > > Regards, Dustin > > > > > > > > > > > > --- > > > > Dustin Puryear <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > > > > UNIX and Network Consultant > > > > http://members.telocity.com/~dpuryear > > > > PGP Key available at http://www.us.pgp.net > > > > In the beginning the Universe was created. > > > > This has been widely regarded as a bad move. - > > > > Douglas Adams > > > > > > > > ================================================ > > > > BRLUG - The Baton Rouge Linux User Group > > > > Visit http://www.brlug.net for more information. > > > > Send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] to change > > > > your subscription information. > > > > ================================================ > > > > > > > > >__________________________________________________ > > >Do You Yahoo!? > > >Yahoo! Tax Center - online filing with TurboTax > > >http://taxes.yahoo.com/ > > >================================================ > > >BRLUG - The Baton Rouge Linux User Group > > >Visit http://www.brlug.net for more information. > > >Send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] to change > > >your subscription information. > > >================================================ > > > > > > --- > > Dustin Puryear <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > > UNIX and Network Consultant > > http://members.telocity.com/~dpuryear > > PGP Key available at http://www.us.pgp.net > > In the beginning the Universe was created. > > This has been widely regarded as a bad move. - > > Douglas Adams > > > > ================================================ > > BRLUG - The Baton Rouge Linux User Group > > Visit http://www.brlug.net for more information. > > Send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] to change > > your subscription information. > > ================================================ > > >__________________________________________________ >Do You Yahoo!? >Yahoo! Tax Center - online filing with TurboTax >http://taxes.yahoo.com/ >================================================ >BRLUG - The Baton Rouge Linux User Group >Visit http://www.brlug.net for more information. >Send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] to change >your subscription information. >================================================ --- Dustin Puryear <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> UNIX and Network Consultant http://members.telocity.com/~dpuryear PGP Key available at http://www.us.pgp.net In the beginning the Universe was created. This has been widely regarded as a bad move. - Douglas Adams ================================================ BRLUG - The Baton Rouge Linux User Group Visit http://www.brlug.net for more information. Send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] to change your subscription information. ================================================
