Open Source Car
I like to use automotive analogies when I explain the various GIS platforms to clients and prospects. Most people can understand and picture in their minds the differences between Porsche-Ford-Hyundai (or 18-wheeler/pickup truck/4-door-sedan). But where does open source fit in my analogy? Is there an open source car?
It turns out, there is. Local Motors brings open development to car manufacturing, which is the closest thing to open source. But is this a fair analogy? Could I show a GIS prospect a photo of the Local Motors’ Rally Fighter interior (below, also here) and tell them: “This is what your open source GIS will look like.”?
Posted by Atanas Entchev at 4/29/2010 10:31 AM 
Categories: Open Source, Web 2.0, Opinion, blog, GIS, Design, Software, OS, Technology, OSM
Tags: Open Source Web 2.0 Opinion blog GIS Design Software OS Technology OSM
Categories: Open Source, Web 2.0, Opinion, blog, GIS, Design, Software, OS, Technology, OSM
Tags: Open Source Web 2.0 Opinion blog GIS Design Software OS Technology OSM
Interesting concept. Cars can be thought of as another computing platform in addition to an analogy.
Seems like auto industry should get serious about open source.
"For today’s premium cars, ”the cost of software and electronics can reach 35 to 40 percent of the cost of a car,” states Broy, with software development contributing about 13 to 15 percent of that cost. He says that if it costs US $10 a line for developed software -- a cost he says is low -- for a premium car, its software alone represents about a billion dollars’ worth of investment."
http://news.discovery.com/tech/toyota-recall-software-code.html
I hope someday I can debug the reason why my "check engine" light comes on without paying the dealer $30.
Reply to this
Those Ford/Microsoft SYNC commercials always make me cringe.
Reply to this
>>“This is what your open source GIS will look like.”?
No, we're past that point now. The people who build and maintain the FOSS4G systems will see the components but the drivers/uesrs will see normal dashboards and other decorative exterior packaging.
Reply to this
To be clear, I am not knocking open source. I am independent, as in "independent." I try to find the best tool for the job and for the client. With this post I am trying to find a suitable automotive analogy for open source GIS. And stir up some discussion, of course.
Reply to this