IPA IP 2021 Question 78
A question IPA Japan published in 令和3年度 ITパスポート試験 公開問題 問78, translated into English. ITPEC is based on the same exams.
Which of the following is an appropriate description concerning OSS (Open Source Software)?
Explanation
Some OSS products come with paid support — OSS can be obtained free, but companies may sell support, maintenance and packaged distributions for it.
OSS (Open Source Software) is software whose source code is published under a licence that lets anyone use, modify and redistribute it. The licence still rests on the copyright, which the authors keep. Free use of the software does not rule out business around it: for example, Red Hat Enterprise Linux and other distributions are sold with paid support contracts, and companies that need guaranteed help take them.
Answer (d)
Why not others:
- •(a) — publishing source code is not enough; OSS needs a licence meeting the open-source conditions, such as free redistribution and allowing modification. Code published only for viewing is not OSS
- •(b) — the copyright is not waived; the author keeps it and grants the rights through the licence, whose conditions users must follow
- •(c) — much OSS is developed by companies and organisations, often by paid staff, not only by individual volunteers
Key rule: OSS keeps its copyright and is used under a licence; it is free to obtain and redistribute, but paid support and services around it are allowed.
Software · AI-written, may contain errors
This question comes from the past questions IPA Japan publishes, translated into English by ITPEC Practice. ITPEC Practice is an independent study tool and is not affiliated with IPA or ITPEC. See the original paper (PDF) or Report an issue.