The library community is abuzz about open source software. Open source usually refers to an application whose source code is made available for use or modification as users see fit. Make sense? Probably not! Would it help if you knew that open source is not just about programming, but about following a philosophy?

Still confused? Not surprising. What will open source mean to our libraries? More flexibility and freedom than software purchased with license restrictions. This is an important path for libraries to consider. Why open source? Because both the open source community and the library world live by the same rules and principles.

This book will give you the facts and dispel myths about open source. The chapters will not only introduce librarians to what open source is and what it means for libraries, but also provide readers with links to a toolbox full of freely available open source products to use in their libraries.