Strengthening Your Basics - FOSS A General Introduction by IOSN on Wikibooks
“FOSS A General Introduction” serves as an introduction to various aspects and dimensions of FOSS issues, including, FOSS in education, FOSS and government policy, localization, open standards and licensing. This book has been donated to Wikibooks by the International Open Source Network (IOSN) [here] and the UNDP Asia-Pacific Development Information Programme (UNDP-APDIP) [here].
The Wikibook gives a detailed introduction to FOSS, presents various FOSS Success Stories, discusses Linux, Intellectual Property Rights and Licensing, covers Localization and Internationalization of software and has a Glossary and list of various FOSS Licenses in its annextures. Wikibooks [here] is an open-content textbooks collection initiative and contains information and knowledge on a number of other areas of great importance.
According to the book, FOSS is software that can be used, copied, studied, modified and redistributed without restriction. It provides a framework for the usage and sharing of intellectual capital in a way that is applicable to many areas of development. The adoption of FOSS presents opportunities for industry and capacity development, software piracy reduction, and localization and customization for diverse cultural and development needs.
This book is originally part of the e-Primer on Free/Open Source Software Series by IOSN. IOSN’s overall objective is to serve as a Center of Excellence and a Clearinghouse for Information on FOSS in the Asia-Pacific region. In order to accelerate the world-wide adoption of FOSS, IOSN seeks to raise awareness, facilitate networking of people, strengthen capacities, and conduct R&D. The beneficiaries of IOSN are governments, IT professionals, software developers, the FOSS R&D community, academics and the NGO community.
IOSN is an initiative of UNDP-APDIP and supported by the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) of Canada. IOSN aims to promote the adoption of FOSS, open standards and open content for sustainable human development in the Asia-Pacific region. It is a network with a small secretariat based at the UNDP Regional Centre in Bangkok and three centres of excellence – IOSN ASEAN+3, IOSN PIC (Pacific Island Countries), and IOSN South Asia, based in Manila, Suva and Chennai respectively.
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