From Open Source to Open Libraries
Most contributions in this issue are concerned with open source software (OSS) in libraries. Their basic angle is to look at what is being done with OSS in libraries – or what can be done. This contribution takes a broader look. It outlines a number of direct correlations between the functions of libraries and the characteristics of OSS, and by extension, how the principles of OSS can be applied to the distribution of “open libraries” as a future direction for librarianship. Software is nothing but information. The OSS communities create and maintain a bundle of highly structured information for free. What are the implications for the library community? Can they learn something for the open source communities? In other words, I want to look at what can be learned from the OSS software to understand the changing nature of libraries. Libraries are changing dramatically at this time because we are moving from print storage to digital storage and from slow physical transport to fast transport via computer networks.
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