It is the great debate: can Open Source products really do everything their proprietary brethren can do? The answer is yes, yes they can. Not only are they just as good (and often better) than their proprietary counterparts, they often address issues the proprietary software doesn’t.

For every single piece of proprietary software, there is an equal and opposite Open Source version. There are also Open Source software answers for questions proprietary software makers haven’t even thought of yet. In fact, my hard drive consists mainly of Open Source and low cost shareware solutions, with few pieces of proprietary software left on it that didn’t come as part of the Mac OS.

That’s right, Open Source programmers don’t leave out the Mac crowd, another point in their favor. Too often, proprietary software programmers like Microsoft refuse to keep their software updated for the Mac. This means they are losing sales hand over fist to Open Source solutions.

Other proprietary software makers, like Adobe, simply charge far too much for their software. At over $1500 for a complete set of design tools, Adobe gouges the design set far more than most can afford, then wonders why so much of its software was getting pirated. Why do I say was? Because now fledgling designers with no budget don’t have to pirate Adobe - they can use software like Splashup, iConv, or XPDF instead.

With such a rise in Open Source popularity, you’d think proprietary software companies would be lowering prices and doing more to remain competitive. Unfortunately, they aren’t. They count on that small segment of the population who doesn’t spend as much time surfing the net for better solutions, those people who want the in-store experience of browsing, buying and opening a box. Until Open Source programmers address that segment, proprietary software will still hold a lead, however slight or undeserved.

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