www.public-software.in

Representatives from NGOs, academic institutions, government, schools and colleges attended the Workshop on “Public Software for Social Sector – Principles and Practice”, held in Jaipur on 25 Feb, 2010. The event aimed at promoting awareness about the advantages of Public Software amongst those who have not heard about FOSS or have inhibitions adopting it; addressing the perceptions of people who are aware of Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) to Appreciate the benefits of public software over proprietary software; and helping people/institutions who are convinced about the imperative for public institutions to adopt public software to adopt it.

Read the workshop concept note

Read the workshop session plan

Policy makers from the four South Indian States (Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu) and Pondicherry met in Bangalore on 1 and 2 Feb for a “South India Regional Workshop on 'Software Principles for the Public Sector, with Focus on Public Education” along with members from academia and civil society. This workshop was co-organized by UNESCO, e-Governance Department, Department of Public Instruction and Sarva Shiksha Abhiyaan (Government of Karnataka), Karnataka Jnana Aayoga (Karnataka Knowledge Commission) and IT for Change (ITfC).

Click here to read the draft version of the Workshop Report

Click here to read the draft version of the Guiding Principles for Public Software

Click here to read the session plan and the detailed presentations / synopses of the resource persons of the workshop

Click on the links to read
1. The concept note
2. The Session Plan
3. Case Studies on Public Software
4. Note for the Resource People
5. Press release
6. Policy Brief
7. The Participants List

ಈ ಕಾರ್ಯಾಗಾರದ ದಾಸ್ತಾವೇಜುಗಳನ್ನು ಓದಲು ಇಲ್ಲಿ ಕ್ಲಿಕ್ ಮಾಡಿ.

Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) is software which anybody has the freedom to use, study, modify and share. The source code of FOSS applications is made available to the user for this purpose. FOSS is often also free or gratis (zero cost). However the 'Free' in Free Software means 'freedom' (just like free speech means freedom to speak and express ourselves) and not 'no cost'.

There are several reasons to use and promote FOSS in educational institutions, governments, businesses, as well as in non-profit organisations. The reasons are even stronger in the case of institutions in the 'public sector' which work for the public interest.

This website is intended for the Indian public sector, and especially for the public sector in Karnataka. It aims to provide resources (technical support, training and development), information about FOSS and about its importance for the public sector. It also aims to build a 'coalition of individuals and institutions' working on similar issues, for creating a strong eco-system to facilitate the success of FOSS in the public sector.

If you believe in the ideals of Free Software, please lend your support and participation to this movement.

1. FOSS provides affordable and sustainable solutions to different sectors' information and communication needs, particularly for those sectors in the 'developing' countries where most people and organisations cannot afford high licensing fees that are bundled with proprietary software.
2. FOSS offers low cost access to high performing software for developing nations.
3. FOSS lowers administrative costs and enhance local IT skills.
4. FOSS has socio-economic advantages: The adoption of FOSS can improve national competitiveness and help support local innovation. By keeping funds in the country and building skills and capacity locally, the preference for FOSS in government systems can boost the local economy.