The Strategic Advantages of Open Source

Being a good web designer also means getting the right tools (and skills) to accomplish the task.

Fortunately, there are an incredible number of resources available to those of us who work in this area. Here's the thing: most of them are free.
 

A smart and cheap start

There are some costs involved in starting a project in almost all service areas, the so-called "materials". Without first having all the supplies in the kitchen, a restaurant can not serve food.

A carpenter will not be able to build a piece of furniture without a supply of wood.

And what about the internet developers?

Well, it's a bit hard.

Yes, a developer could create every element of a site from scratch. For a simple, static website, this is quite easy to do.

But it's gonna take a huge effort to do more. Would you like to build your own database language, for example? How about starting a complete CMS from scratch? Or would you rather create your own complex JavaScript library?

It's likely that some pre-packaged software will help you meet one or more of these needs. In other areas, it may cost a lot of cash to rely on applications developed by others.

But you may also not have to pay for anything.

This not only relieves us of large overhead costs, but also means that our customers can save some money.

Moreover, tools such as Bootstrap give us a huge advantage over our projects. Can you imagine building from the floor upwards every time?
 

Find new opportunities to grow

Learning something fresh is one of the most efficient ways to move up in your career: you are opening the door to distinct kinds of projects by enhancing your knowledge. Furthermore, having a higher level of knowledge implies you can charge more for your services as well.

This is also an area where internet developers benefit from the open source community. Learning to do more using different tools does not necessarily imply following a traditional school career (although you might). You won't even need to have a license the way things are done by any company (think of Microsoft).

Rather, education is an experience that is much more personalized and accessible. You might choose to take a course online at comparatively low or no price. Or, you might choose to grab one of the millions of free tutorials out there. Why can even study formal paperwork or support forums be a excellent way to advance your learning.

The concept is that the open source movement has led us to a destination where it's not just for those who not have enough cash to spend. While formal education still has a lot of advantages, it is no longer the only way to learn.

This kind of flexibility has allowed those who have received a traditional and self-study education in the field of web design to prosper. We are free to choose how, when and what we are learning. There is no longer a single "correct" way to do this. Rather, we can all follow the path that best suits who we are and what we want to achieve.

Sharing knowledge: the winning formula

Almost all of us found ourselves in a situation where we didn't know how to efficiently and functionally create a module or script for our website.

Fortunately, there is someone else out there who has faced the same challenge and recorded and documented the solution.

The open source world has facilitated learning, but it has also helped to create a culture that promotes information sharing. In fact, there is no shortage of people ready to share their knowledge and help.

An interesting part is that sharing is not relegated to virtual space.

Many events, such as WordCamps are bringing together a lot of people who want to learn and exchange knowledge.

The main purpose is to do things to help others, however tiny they may be.

This has led to a large collection of useful data from decentralized repositories.
 

Open Surce: "stand on the shoulders of giants"

The internet would have been a very distinct location without open source instruments and libraries. For one, if all were run with costly proprietary software, the obstacles to becoming a web designer would be significantly greater. This would have a negative effect not only on a lot of prospective designers, but also on diversity and innovation.

Thanks to open source, people have had access to low-cost software, which has led to the creation of ingenious products. We can manage, customize and use an open source product to build a good living. This is a profound effect.

So, this is just a small thank you to the open source movement and those who contribute to it. Like our careers, the Internet continues to develop thanks in part to your attempts.