open source: chairperson richard boateng, phd. director of research, icitd, southern university, usa...

Open Source:Open Source:

ChairpersonChairperson

Richard Boateng, PhD.Richard Boateng, PhD.Director of Research, ICITD, Southern University, USALecturer, University of Ghana Business School, Ghana

Website:Website:www.pearlrichards.org; www.icitd.comwww.pearlrichards.org; www.icitd.com

Email:Email:[email protected]@pearlrichards.org

- Solutions for Business- Solutions for Business

www.icitd.com www.pearlrichards.org

UNDERSTANDING FOSS

2

“Free/open source software (F/OSS) is software for which the human-readable source code is made available to the user of the software, who can then modify the code in order to fit the software to the users needs.

This is not ‘free’ as in ‘free beer’ but free in the form of expression and usage…

But support & services may not be free…


THE FOSS CHALLENGE

3

FOSS Community

ProprietaryCommercial

Software

Resource-poor

Resource-rich

Resource-exploiters

Software Development User Community

Restricted

Access


ICTS, AFRICA & BUSINESS – WHY FOSS

4

ICTs diffuse in path of least cost of adoption– Internal IT resource poverty

– Substituting global resources for local resources– Use of social networks and capital

Managerial Capabilities – IT-Business knowledge & Social-Business links

– Intimacy maximizes value from resources– Applications which require Low Tech skills and

knowledge

Post-adoption– ICT becomes a lesser concern ...gradually fades away– More business and social concerns/unintended consequences


5

Lesser cost at start-up and long-termRelatively low cost of ownership

Low Tech skill requirement Scalability – resource poor contexts;

language; culture Security – responsiveness; reduce piracy &

increase intellectual property Democratization & Development – more

business/job opportunities

ICTS, AFRICA & BUSINESS – WHY FOSS


6

LankahA car firm that enables Ghanaians to purchase used cars from Germany. The firm has no physical showroom or warehouse for the cars. Customers view the cars through the firm’s website and express their interest. Cars are shipped to Ghana after the customers make payment. The company sold 9 cars in 2004; 16 (2005) and 18 (2006). In 2009 (100 cars every two months). – Joomla Content Management SystemCompany FOSS ApplicationEwuraba, Gender Development Project for Africa (www.ewuraba.com)

Linux and Apache Servers, Joomla Content Management System, WAMP Server

B’ExotiQ Designs Convention People’s Party (CPP)

Joomla Content Management System and EXPOSE

Vivauniversity.wordpress.com Wordpress.com

International Conference on ICT for Africa (www.ictforafrica.org)

Joomla Content Management System and My Review Platform

African Journal of Information Systems (www.ajisonline.com)

Apache Servers, Open Journal Systems and Joomla Content Management System

FOSS IN GHANA – SUCCESS STORIES


7

Latest catalogue entries

Search functionality

Featured entries

Articles to support buying decisions

Advanced searchOnline catalogue


8


9

FOSS IN GHANA – SUCCESS STORIES


10


Requires more effort... But has more possibilitiesGhana is opportune for business and research

How to Navigate FOSS DomainOpen Content Open Applications Open FunctionalitySelecting the Right ApplicationDoing Business with FOSS

11

FOSS IN GHANA – SOLUTIONS FOR BUSINESSES


12


Open


13


Open

Open

Open


14

FOSS IN GHANA – SELECT THE RIGHT APPLICATION

Select applications which have either a potential for growth or have reached maturity


15

FOSS IN GHANA – SELECT THE RIGHT APPLICATION

Have a thorough understanding of what you or your users need

open source: chairperson richard boateng, phd. director of research, icitd, southern university, usa...

Documents