Open source vs. proprietary
Open source is an approach and philosophy to developing the code that runs any given piece of software. The main characteristics of open source software are:
- Freedom of use - It can be used however the user wants to use it
- Freedom of access - The user has free access to the source code
- Freedom of distribution -The software can be freely redistributed
- Freedom of improvement - Anyone can improve the software and release those improvements to the public
Open source grants more control
Software released under an open source license will generally grant you more freedom to do what you want to do. Proprietary licenses often restricts the amount of freedom the user has to manipulate, change, or alter how the produce works. For a real-world analogy, open source might mean that you can open the hood of a car and swap out the engine with a higher-power one of a different manufacture. A car produced under a proprietary license might mean that only certified technicians can open the hood and make changes to the "source code." With this metaphor, the car might do, look, and act the same under both licenses, but the open source license grants the end user the freedom to modify the car as they wish.
In the newspaper world, Ellington (based on the Django framework) is a lauded CMS for newspapers. Purchasing a full license to modify the source code, however, can costs hundreds of thousands of dollars. Without the full license, newspapers have restricted control over how the site works. This means they have wait for the company to add features. College Publisher, for example, does not offer any access to the behind-the-scenes workings of their proprietary content management system. If you want a new feature added, you would have to build it outside of the content management system.
Open source platforms offer the freedom to modify the code at the very core of the product. Open source platforms such as Wordpress and Drupal have very active development communities and thousands of plugins to do almost everything imaginable exist for each. Because both are open source, if you want to do something that has been thought up yet you are free and encouraged to develop your own plugin.
Relevancy
Often, an old version of a proprietary software is neglected due to the development and/or release of a newer version.
While College Publisher developed CP5, CP4 languished, meaning many newspapers were ill-equipped to develop forward-thinking sites. In addition, if you pay for a proprietary CMS it is very possible you will have to pay to upgrade to the newer version, much like you have to pay for each version of the Adobe Suite.
Updates to open source CMSes with highly-engaged communities, like Drupal and WordPress, come frequently and with feature updates that are of benefit to the entire community. Open source projects function in such a fashion that, if you're a proficient-enough programmer, you can actually contribute code back to the original project that will then be rolled out in a subsequent release.
Cost
Proprietary CMSes are developed with companies that have bottom lines, so they will need revenues before giving you their software. College Publisher expects a certain amount of ad revenue (up to four advertising spots on each page), stripping you of prime advertising spots in the process and severely limiting your site design. Other companies, such as Ellington, want money, often in the hundreds of thousands. Open source platforms, by their very nature, are free, although donations are always accepted.
