Last Tuesday's readings explored the the open source movement, its origins, and how it relates those proprietary options more recognizable to us -- namely, Microsoft and Microsoft products. Here are some issues/questions that you may have considered, along with some issues that we will consider at some point during the course of the White Paper Project:

• How have Microsoft and other proprietary software manufacturers responded to open source projects, and the open-source community? Do these companies consider open source technologies to be a threat? A formidable competitor? An inferior development? A trend that will eventually fade? A development with which it can co-exist? A development with which it can collaborate? A development that it can infiltrate, and eventually absorb?
• To what degree do open source technologies function/exist in relation to Microsoft and other proprietary manufacturers/products? To what degree can open source technologies and the open source movement function independently of Microsoft and other proprietary manufacturers?
• Why do open source technologies enjoy widespread use and popularity among some audiences, but not others? How can we learn about open source technologies if we don't know they exist and/or don't know how to acquire them? How can the open source community increase our overall awareness of its products and goals. How can it feasibly endorse technologies for which there doesn't appear to be a single, identifiable, accountable "name" to which users can look to for identification or support?
• Given open source technologies' collaborative,volunteer-based nature, to what degree are OSS programs more reliable, more "current" than proprietary products? To what degree are they less reliable, less "current" than proprietary products?
• Who determines whether an open source program and/or program modification is released to the public? Can a single, random person cause immediate, significant damage to an entire program -- and all of its users -- by making one or more "undesirable" source-code modifications (whether from malicious intent, carelessness, lack of knowledge, or incompatibilities with other users' computers/programs)?
• Is it possible for an open source program/project to "die"? What impact, if any, does this have on its users? On a similar note, what happens if developers of an open-source program opt to: a) stop offering access to source code; b) restrict access to source code; or c) begin charging for the program's use/license?
• Given Microsoft's extremely high product saturation worldwide -- especially in the United States -- how can Americans gain more knowledge about open source technologies and their possible uses?
• Under what circumstances might adoption of open source technologies not necessarily be the most viable or prudent choice -- even, but perhaps especially, for a small company/organization or a larger one with a low technology budget?

Of course, we'll also address issues related to the white paper genre; after all, this is the White Paper Project. It's important, though, that all of you have a clear idea of what open source technologies are, and what the larger open-source movement, are about before you get started with the white paper itself. Think of it this way: your topic, focus, argument, and audience will determine the shape and scope of your white paper!