Open Source Software

I'd like to take the time today to remind people to support Open Source software. I'm not saying you have to donate money, time, or code to it, but I'm asking you to use it as much as possible. If you can donate or code, the projects could certainly use the help. (Unfortunately, when I program I prefer to do it in Pascal, most Open Source projects, including the Pascal compiler I use, are done in C++.)

Using software, particularly programs like OpenOffice by Sun Microsystems helps break up Microsoft's monopoly and forces more competition on the software giant.

Don't worry about compatibility either, OpenOffice supports the formats used by Microsoft and Corell, so you can transfer documents between them with ease.

The best thing about Open source projects is that they are absolutely free. You can download any number of them on the Intenet. I myself use: OpenOffice, Mozilla, Bloodshed Pascal, and Bloodshed Dev C++.

While I cannot abandon Microsoft entirely (I'm sorry but it would take more effort than I want to put into it to get Linux running), I can certainly decide not to give them support by using their other programs.