Quality

How can free software be high quality software?

Just like any other type of software, there are high quality Open Source applications and there are others that are not. Among the thousands of Open Source Projects, there are some that have developed a tremendous community of programmers and users. The contributions of this developer and user base drive the quality of these projects.

A corporate or non-profit sponsor often supervises large Open Source Projects. These sponsors coordinate the contributions and modifications of the development community. Because companies and organizations depend on the software for their own operations, they are willing to spend their resources to develop it. Although others are free to benefit from their investment, they are also free to benefit from the investments of others. Open Source developers may also earn a living by installing and supporting these projects.

The Open Source development model encourages talented developers to learn from one another and work together to achieve great things. This form of productive collaboration is one of the best real world examples of the collaboration that educators develop in their students.