> -----Original Message-----
> From: Museums Computer Group [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of
> Dan Zambonini
> Sent: 11 November 2009 15:56
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: Re: CMS recommendations
>
> Hi,
>
> Our product is 'commercial open source', therefore you'd be fine with
> all of
> your questions (i.e. you can hack away to your hearts content, you get
> all
> the source code, you can distribute any changes you make to other
> customers,
> you can employ any supplier to work on it). We've even built specific
> interfaces into the system to make it easier to share modules.
>
> The only *real* difference is you pay a fee up-front to get the code,
> and
> you can't re-sell/distribute the code to other people who haven't paid
> for
> it (we have a full-time team of 9 expert developers working on it
every
> single day, who we need to pay). In my opinion, that's a small price
> for the
> increased usability (we spent over 2 man-years on the user experience
> design) and, arguably, a better architecture and delivery model than
> any
> open source system I've used.
This is why I said 'proprietary', not 'free' :) I totally agree with the
support side, and I also don't have a problem with people making money
from software they've written! I was only trying to get across (rather
badly, in hindsight; it's been a long day) my fears of proprietary
lock-in. I think it's great that there exist companies like yours who
embrace the spirit of OS but make money off it too, and would much
rather recommend that than an entirely closed solution. I do think,
however, if one has the web developers and time, it's not a bad idea to
invest in using a FOSS system like Drupal or Joomla, over a commercial
OS system.
Never meant to come across as a bearded, antlered advocate, either,
sorry if I did!
>
> It sounds like a sales pitch, I apologise; that's not why I wanted to
> get
> involved in this conversation.
>
> I find it ridiculous, actually, that we're still having the 'open
> source vs
> paid' argument in 2010, about forty years after it surfaced. I love
> open
> source apps in some contexts; in others, I prefer paid software. I
> would
> never use Windows (which has more software available) or Linux (which
> gives
> me the source code) over my beloved Mac, because my time and enjoyment
> is
> more valuable (to me) than the price difference, or the lock-in.
>
> And on that note, I give up. Each to their own.
>
> Dan
>
> PS Sea Your History - pretty cool.
>
>
> On 11/11/2009 15:28, "Hayden Young" <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>
> > Dan, if I purchase your product and a few months later we have a
> falling
> > out, who do I go to for continued support of my system? What about
if
> I want
> > to find a cheaper supplier?
> >
> > What about if I find that the system almost does what I want it to
do
> but I
> > need to make some hacks to the core? What about if I want to
> distribute
> > those hacks to a number of museums that are using the same system?
> What
> > about if I fix some bugs and want to distribute those fixes to other
> users?
> >
> > Now, which system do you think is more flexible? The free and open
> source
> > one, or your proprietary one?
> >
> > If you want systems that are scalable and flexible your only option
> should
> > be free and open source. Proprietary products are showing their
> shortcomings
> > time and again when it comes to performance, security and
> reliability.
> >
> > As for evidence, check out the sea your history project
> > http://www.seayourhistory.org.uk. Hosts 50,000+ multimedia assets,
> images,
> > sound, video, text and all on Joomla!. Hardly a simple, out-of-the-
> box web
> > site.
> >
> > Cheers
> >
> >
> > Hayden
> >
> > On Wed, 11 Nov 2009 14:20:35 +0000, Dan Zambonini
> <[log in to unmask]>
> > wrote:
> >
> >> First off, massive disclaimer/conflict of interest: my company
makes
> a CMS
> >> (whose name I won't mention to lessen the conflict).
> >>
> >> I am a fan of open source systems, and use them myself on a number
> of
> >> personal websites. They're quick and do-the-job for a
semi-technical
> person
> >> like myself who can tweak them to do what I need to run a blog or
> simple
> >> site.
> >>
> >> However, to say that they are "almost always going to be way better
> and more
> >> flexible and extensible than any proprietary system" is misleading.
> >>
> >> In the last few months, I've installed and used the most recent
> version of
> >> nearly every major open source PHP CMS I could find: Drupal,
Joomla,
> >> Wordpress MU, etc. (Our CMS is PHP, though commercial open source,
> so this
> >> was for competitive research).
> >>
> >> Each has pros and cons (I'd go as far to say that most of these are
> NOT
> >> flexible and extensible, with the exception of Drupal), both
> relative to
> >> one-another and to commercial/commercial-open-source offerings. I
> wouldn't
> >> say that ANY of them were more flexible or extensible than our
> offering, or
> >> that of a number of our commercial competitors. Sure, some have
more
> >> modules, but this comes with its own drawbacks (Want an events
> calendar?
> >> Hey, why not look through 35 of them to see if any of them work!).
> >>
> >> This could turn into a heated debate, which I imagine might be more
> opinion
> >> based than evidence based (in reality, how many of us have actually
> used all
> >> the open source and commercial offerings out there?), so think I'll
> stop
> >> now... But just wanted to put a word in for the other side!
> >>
> >> Dan
> >>
> >> PS I do *really* like Wordpress (for blogs) though. It rocks.
> >>
> >>
> >> On 11/11/2009 13:54, "Tom Jenkins"
> <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> >>
> >>>> -----Original Message-----
> >>>> From: Museums Computer Group [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On
Behalf
> Of
> >>>> Michael Guthrie
> >>>> Sent: 11 November 2009 12:52
> >>>> To: [log in to unmask]
> >>>> Subject: Re: CMS recommendations
> >>>>
> >>>> Hi Karen
> >>>>
> >>>> I would say that using an Open Source solution like Joomla or
> Drupal
> >>> is
> >>>> most advantageous, and doesn't lock you in to inflexible,
> proprietary
> >>>> and unnecessarily expensive licenses from vendors.
> >>>
> >>> Just wanted to say - absolutely second this. One of the top open
> source
> >>> system like Drupal or Joomla is almsot always going to be way
> better and
> >>> more flexible and extensible than any proprietary system, mainly
> because
> >>> of the huge critical mass the contributing communities for these
> open
> >>> source systems tend to gather.
> >>
> >> ----------------------------------------
> >> Dan Zambonini
> >> Box UK
> >> Internet Development and Consultancy
> >>
> >> t: +44 (0)29 2022 8822
> >> f: +44 (0)29 2022 8820
> >> e: [log in to unmask]
> >> w: http://www.boxuk.com
> >> ----------------------------------------
> >>
> >> Eight years in the making and more investment in usability than any
> other
> >> Content Management System. Visit http://www.amaxus.com and find out
> why
> >> hundreds of websites are powered by Amaxus.
> >>
> >> Registered Office Address: 6a Poland Street, London, W1F 8PT.
> Registered in
> >> England and Wales No. 3606919.
> >>
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> >>
> >> ****************************************************************
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>
> ----------------------------------------
> Dan Zambonini
> Box UK
> Internet Development and Consultancy
>
> t: +44 (0)29 2022 8822
> f: +44 (0)29 2022 8820
> e: [log in to unmask]
> w: http://www.boxuk.com
> ----------------------------------------
>
> Eight years in the making and more investment in usability than any
> other
> Content Management System. Visit http://www.amaxus.com and find out
why
> hundreds of websites are powered by Amaxus.
>
> Registered Office Address: 6a Poland Street, London, W1F 8PT.
> Registered in
> England and Wales No. 3606919.
>
> Important Information: This message may contain confidential,
> proprietary or
> privileged information. If you are not the intended recipient, please
> notify
> the sender immediately and delete the message from your system. You
> should
> not copy or use it for any purpose, nor disclose its contents to any
> other
> person.
>
> ****************************************************************
> For mcg information visit the mcg website at
> http://www.museumscomputergroup.org.uk
> To manage your subscription to this email list visit
> http://www.museumscomputergroup.org.uk/email.shtml
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