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Topic 15Libre software for corporate businessLoïc DACHARY Keywords
MotivationSince 1992, when the majority of key economic players took a "turn" to Linux (Oracle, IBM, Informix, SAP and so on), the solutions based on libre software have been more and more used in small companies, whose means are modest, as well as in big ones (Alcatel, France Telecom, Carrefour, and so on). Libre software conveys one or several new economic models, inherited from the world of research and narrowly linked to the New Economy (or, more precisely, to the Internet culture based on economy and technology) Like the famous question: "Which was first, the chicken or the egg?", we can ask "Which was first, libre software or the Internet?". Just an example: Without "bind", a libre software which works in the heart of Internet and enables the transformation of electronic addresses (IP) into domain names, Internet would be less effective. Just imagine: without "bind" domain names would be made up of series of numbers (electronic addresses) and one would be obliged to "surf" on 192.0.10.101. followed by 121.10.5.212. , In the heart of all of these sectors, libre software plays a leading part in the creation of wealth and value of the New Economy. In this way, we can reason by induction, "without libre software, there would be no Net Economy, nor Nasdaq, ... and so on. It is quite impossible to apprehend the new models and keep in mind the models linked to the industrial revolution of the twentieth century. That is the reason for saying that we are talking about a new culture. Indeed, on the Internet, any company, no matter how small it may be, has the same needs in technology, marketing, efficiency and rapidity... and thus the same chances of success. For example, new-born companies such as NetGem or Com1 have the same chance as large ones (as Alcatel) in the Internet Appliances field. For information, more than 60% of start-ups use libre software for their software/hardware platform. We can ths consider that the market is largely open to competition and especially for the card redealing in computer industry. (see for instance Microsoft's problems, the commercial outcome of some projects such as Apache or IBM's involvement into the libre software development. All these examples show that the use of libre software in companies is a rising and heavy trend. The qualities, recognised by all professionals (including its detractors), of the Linux operating system are a proof that the community, who is developing these libre software, is going in the right technical direction. Indeed, we are talking about robustness, reliability, multi-platform use and adaptability. Just take up again this last term (adaptability)... It means that Linux can be modified according to the needs of the company. The company and its chief executives can envisage to transform Linux in order to use it for an industrial production. Some examples: Lectra Systems, which uses Linux for cutting up line in production or another case, British assurance company Hill House Hammond of Norwich Union group, which uses Linux in all of its offices. In this case, the introduction of libre software into the heart of the company's information system does not make any problem but in fact, makes it stronger. There is no need to change software versions while it works. There is no need to depend on a retailer to make your production means evolve, and finally there is no need to spend more money than you must (You can find a worse solution, but it will be more expensive). We can imagine that a computer chief executive, by choosing a libre software, ensures independently a maximal control of his information system and, in this way, enables his company to grow-up according to his own requirements as productivity, return on investment and gains.The prospects which offer libre software are encouraging as prove a rise in shares of Red Hat or Va Linux. According to a new trend in industrial logic, which is devoted to its primary activity and subcontract other activities to "out-sourcing", the libre software model shows again a big efficiency. Take for instance the case of the American company Cygnus (recently bought by Red Hat): Cygnus's job is to provide its customers, in particular to big industrial and electronic firms such as Thomson or Motoraola, an environment favourable to C/C++, in order to allow the engineers of huge companies to use preferment means enabling them to develop company's projects (process controller, telephony) on new micro- processors. What's Cygnus doing? It supports and develops a little software, CC, in order to meet client's demand. Since Cygnus has been developing technical expertise in compiler since 1987, it is now able to offer the port on any newly created processor. This new job, compiler adapter, was unknown until recently (or, at least, it was extremely specialised, offering very expensive products). The use of libre software, which gathers the experiences of all adapts as well as the interested companies, satisfies efficiently a large number of industrials, contributing so to speed-up the technological progress linked to the New Technologies of Information and Communication. In a more "classical" environment, the library of available libre software put at computer heads' dispsition a set (whole) of technical components offering solutions to the everyday headache of heterogeneous systems. We are talking about "commodity components" which enable the use of federating protocol of companies like as SMB, SNA, TCP/IP,IPX,APPLET ALK and so on... Among companies which offer a detailed expertise in these domains we can hold up some start-ups (Alcove, Aliacom, AlphaCSP, Brainstorm), as well as world-famous firms (IBM Global Services or Ernest& Young). The purpose of this half-day information meeting is to show how problems regarding companies information systems and their evolution can be solved thanks to the use of libre software. In that way, we hope to allow any chief executive or executive to make his mind about it and leave all of you free to choose. ProgramThis public session will take place at the Université Bordeaux I, not at the ENSERB. See the public sessions page for information. All of the talks will be in French. Session chair: Jean-Paul SMETS, DRIRE Lorraine.
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© ABUL, 2000