FreeMeansFreedom

When an idea is made ‘open’ you have the ability to build on previous trials. Nothing is hidden behind corporate secrecy. Not only will the world get better ideas faster, but the knowledge of making things is not restricted to a select few. The sharing of knowledge leads to more inspiration in human development.

“He had been extremely chastened to realize that although he originally came from a world which had cars and computers and ballet and Armagnac, he didn’t, by himself know how any of it worked. He couldn’t do it. Left to his own devices he couldn’t build a toaster. He could just about make a sandwich and that was it” - Douglas Adams

When open sharing is not common practice, knowledge is thought of as sacred. Only members of a group can discuss information. Pythagoras is known for his contributions to geometry, but his secret school linked geometry with religion. Members were not allowed to ‘improve’ concepts and outsiders were not allowed to know any more than what was documented. It was a time of repression. A time where decisions of progress were only made by those in charge.

Today the philosophy of knowledge sharing has a name, thanks to a marketing campaign in the 90’s. Open source projects have poured through many fields, most notably software. One of the biggest projects, the Linux operating system, has had over 8,000 people contribute to the project since 2005. It is the choice operating system for many products, like android phones and televisions. Wikipedia proves to be another success of open source. Users from around the world come together to share knowledge or improve on what others have written.

Previously restricted domains are beginning to open themselves to the idea of ‘open’. Open source product development, open source ecology, even open source government are all being explored. Original arguments of effectiveness and longevity are settling as more open up their ideas and connect with other like minded people. Our minds work better together than individually.