When People Freely Share, It Makes Things Better For Everyone

Joshua Holm is the kind of guy you want to have on your chat list if you’re ever looking for an open source tool to tackle a task. That’s because he actively keeps up with the latest open source tools and projects because much of his work involves helping people find the right software tool to meet their needs. So if you’re looking for an open source version of something, chances are Joshua can make a recommendation...

Beyond evangelizing for open source tools and resources, Joshua also enjoys academic research and providing technical assistance to job seekers. Learn more about how Joshua uses open source tools in his life in this Community Spotlight interview...

What do you wish were more open?

Academic research and cultural/historical collections... It really disappoints me when access to knowledge is placed behind a price tag.  I don't wish to disparage any non-open/free effort to make knowledge more accessible, but I much prefer seeing things like the British Library's digital edition of Cotton MS Vitellius A XV (The Beowulf Manuscript) than products like those produced by Evellum...

Why choose the open source way?

Because doing things the open source way removes barriers. A piece of software provides someone with a tool they can use. Open source software takes that farther and provides them with a tool they can use and the code needed to understand how that software works. Not everyone is going to want to, or need to, read the source code, but anyone interested in improving the software they are using, or learning how to program in general, has access to information that they can use. The source code provides learners with real world examples to learn from...

I choose the open source way because it makes things better for people. When people freely share, it makes things better for everyone.