I have been bothered by a coworker's comments regarding a presentation I have been writing. He said:
This slide seems awfully biased. It’s obvious that your favorite is CVS. Is this what you were shooting for?
I honestly don't know anymore. I am finding that I am comfortable with certain tools, they kinda feel like home. So, I resist learning a new tool simply to avoid the discomfort of having to learn something new. I have been known to go around saying, "This is the best" or "That is the best" when in fact that is only my opinion, and it may be a little bit closed minded at that.
I fell in love with Linux as an idea. Free is good. However, you will not find that I use it at home. For any server I am ever responsible for, you will find Linux or Solaris if it is a Sun box, but never Windows. Mainly because setting up a Windows server is a pain and maintaining it is even more of a pain. Of course much of that is changing with the advent of Remote Desktop and its cousins.
I am lost. I have lost the youthful enthusiasm of my 20's and have gotten into a rut. I have been singing this song for so long, I forgot why I was singing in the first place. I fell in love with it because it was free, but is that a good enough reason to continue using it now?
Now, I remember that I also love the fact that free things, open source code, is rapidly available. I don't have to download a license to use it. I don't have to wait for the check to clear to get a key to open the door. If I have a problem with it, I can look at the code and make a change. If the change that needs to be made is over my head or to complex, then I can contact the developer directly.
There have been numerous occasions where I have helped a project get better through suggestions or actually supplying code. And that gives me comfort.
So I started this post, without really knowing why I open source was the way to go. I have now reminded myself that I am indeed walking in the right direction. The path before me looks very exciting and I can't wait to see the scenery during my walk.
Posted by carl at January 27, 2004 10:19 PM
Comments