Open source software can provide free options for small businesses that don’t have the budget for expensive enterprise proprietary applications.
Choosing to use open-source software for your business allows you to keep costs down and stay on the cutting edge while working with software that is almost always more transparent and often more secure than proprietary alternatives.
Many, if not most, desktop PCs or laptops in South Africa you come across will be running Microsoft OS and proprietary applications, with a few in a distant second followed by Apple MacOS.
Linux and other wholly open source operating systems have only a tiny market share, and it’s understandable. The vast majority of companies simply aren’t prepared to make office workers use an open source OS and most office workers aren’t prepared to use them, which at most times is caused by a lack of understanding or fear of how open source works.
But imagine if there was a global community of software design experts who were independently building and improving digital tools that you could use for free. Tools that could help you render a service to your customer and be able to communicate with them.
This community is referred to as the open source community which is made up of amateur and professional computer coders who work on publicly available computer code, providing a wide range applications that one can use for free.
The question then: “Is it possible to run a business entirely on software that can be downloaded for free?”
Yes, there certainly are many options that make it possible. For starters, if you are running Windows OS and have MS Office, you can start by downloading alternative suites to the MS Office package (a caveat, download only from the official home page or a recognised web-based service that offers these apps).
Here are four open source alternatives to Microsoft Office (these suites will all run on most if not all Window OS):
• Open source office productivity suites
Apache OpenOffice (a comprehensive suite for Windows, macOS and Linux);
Open Document Foundation’s LibreOffice (a fork of OpenOffice for Windows, macOS and Linux);
NeoOffice (a Java-based fork of OpenOffice for macOS)
Calligra (which runs on Windows, Linux, FreeBSD and macOS).
• Open source finance and accounting applications
GnuCash (Windows, macOS and Linux) helps very small businesses apply professional accounting principles and track bank accounts, income and expenses to help ensure balanced books and accurate financial reports.
TurboCASH (Windows), aimed at the small to medium-sized business market, provides a general ledger and offers core functionality, such as posting transactions into accounts and producing financial reports. The product supports wide range of tax regimes.
These are some of the most popular tools, but there are open source security tools, network management tools, e-commerce software packages, content management systems, publishing and design tools, all which can help a SME save money.
Contact Vincent Marino, CEO of the Aerotropolis Chamber of Commerce and Industry on 082 257 3213 or at vincent@eacci.org.za for more information.
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