Open Source Increasingly Replaced By Open APIs 224
Posted
by
Soulskill
from the playing-with-somebody-else's-toys dept.
from the playing-with-somebody-else's-toys dept.
SharkLaser writes "Open APIs might be the way to get rich in 2012. At the same time, it can also be what ultimately hinders open source development. A wide range of companies, including Google, Facebook, Amazon and Twitter, are building open APIs for other developers to use and build upon. Open APIs can be used by companies to grow their user base and introduce new, interesting features on top of their platform. Independent developers can utilize established services and their users to grow their own business. A perfect example of open APIs is Facebook Apps, which lets individuals and companies develop applications and games on top of the Facebook platform. Developers gain access to Facebook's established user base and Facebook gains new features and fun stuff to do on their site. Instead of open sourcing their platforms, companies like Google and Facebook are providing Open APIs and data access to outside developers. The actual source code for the services sits safely inside the company's network and never needs to be disclosed to outside parties, thus hindering open source development."
Re:No way (Score:5, Informative)
Programmers seem to routinely toss away their entire codebase from time to time anyway.
With disastrous consequences: Netscape, KDE4, etc. Throwing away a large codebase is stupid.
Re:Software packages, too (Score:5, Informative)
Different tools for different goals.
When you need to recreate the functionality of an existing application in a new application, as would be the case if you wanted to create a Facebook competitor, you may want the source code of the existing application.
When you want to integrate your new application with one that already exists, as would be the case if you are creating a complementary or dependent project, you want SDKs/APIs.
Developers do frequently use the APIs published for toolkits (jQuery, for example) and often load those toolkits from a third-party hosting service (like Google's, for example). This does create a dependency that would need to be updated if the hosting service made an incompatible change or discontinued their service, and that is something that developers need to keep in mind.
When developers tie into the APIs of platforms like Facebook and Twitter, it would usually do them no good to have access to the source code, as they are usually trying to tie into those existing platforms to connect with their user bases. If the developer chooses to make their application dependent upon a third-party API, that is a strategic decision and the committment is theirs to make. It makes sense if the purpose of the application is dependent upon the third-party platform.
As for published APIs interfering with open source development, I think it is possible that developers may choose to use proprietary products with published APIs rather than implement an open source solution. An example might be a developer choosing to use Google Charts rather than integrating gnuplot into their project. This might have some impact on the momentum of some open source projects, but the examples given in the summary are way off. A developer choosing to use an API published by Facebook for Facebook integration is not taking anything away from open source software.
Re:What's the point? (Score:3, Informative)
Uhhh...because unlike you I'm not a militant FOSSie which like a Moonie treats software as a religion? I mean when you equate a software license to be groped by the TSA? Step away from the keyboard little FOSSie for you are coming off as more than a little batshit.
By the way FOSSie, where do you think software comes from? Magic fairies shit it out like that bunny shitting jelly beans? Newsflash the VAST majority of software INCLUDING FOSS is PAID FOR BY COMPANIES. Companies that got a Goatse in their inbox from RMS so naturally they ain't too keen in jumping aboard his little communist utopia. Kinda funny that a guy that is a self proclaimed "squatter from MIT" garners so much batshit loyalty but the rest of us just can't squat on a campus without getting hauled away in cuffs. We have bills to pay and families to feed and there are many companies that will happily pay for code, even FOSS, if they don't feel like they are getting backed into a corner.
But there is a simple way to tell if its you or i that is right, every year Slashdot should have an article called "The state of GPL V3" and show how the numbers are coming along. Personally i think GPL is gonna continue to nosedive because even Torvalds won't touch it because its too restrictive. And if companies were so damned evil how do you explain apache? How do you explain Red hat or all the other companies making money with GPL? Hell apache is practically THE Internet now and i don't see them sitting on street corners with a cup and a cardboard sign and their license is one of the most permissive around.
In the end I truly believe RMS got trolled by TiVo and like most that get trolled completely overreacted and screwed himself and the GPL in the process. The numbers don't lie and as we saw here on Slashdot not too long ago GPL is declining like a rock rolling downhill, every month since GPL V3 the numbers have gotten WORSE not better. A logical person would sit down with developers and say "What EXACTLY is it you hate about GPL V3?" and work with them to come up with a license all could live with, but RMS is a militant and as we've seen time and time again militants NEVER compromise, its their way or the highway. Given that choice i believe the developers of the world will choose the highway and there will be an offshoot of MPL or AGPL or Apache crafted that will be what GPL V3 SHOULD have been, a license that does its best to protect the users while still giving companies an incentive to keep paying FOSS developers.
But you go right on comparing those that don't drink the koolaid with facists, hell i'm shocked you didn't just go for full troll and call me a Nazi. Its this kind of foaming at the mouth "all that don't follow the 'one true way' are evil and burn babies!" bullshit that gives FOSS a bad name and is why I separate FOSS users and developers, which are generally a smart and reasonable bunch, with FOSSies like you that think all those that don't worship RMS dirty sandals are nazi baby killers. Frankly you should work for MSFT because between guys like you and videos like this [youtube.com] you make it too damned easy for any company to label FOSS as a bunch of nutters.