FLOSS and types of Libre Software

Understanding the terms

What is FLOSS?

GNU Logo

Free / Libre / Open Source Software (FLOSS) is an umbrella term that comprises of Free software, Libre Software as well as Open-Source Software.
FLOSS provides the user with a high-level control and ability to view and modify the source-code as compared to the proprietary software counterpart. For the complete, official definition, visit gnu.org

This freedom to explore, learn and spread that knowledge further is what makes the idea of FLOSS so brilliant and unique.

What is ‘Free Software’

Free Software Foundation

Free Software does not refer to software ‘free-of-cost’ but rather uses the word Free as in Freedom.
This software respects the users’ freedom, privacy and community. Now the question arises :

“Freedom from what exactly?”

The answer to that question is covered in the Four Essential Freedoms which are upheld by every free software:

The freedom to run the program as you wish, for any purpose (freedom 0).
The freedom to study how the program works, and change it so it does your computing as you wish (freedom 1). Access to the source code is a precondition for this.
The freedom to redistribute copies so you can help others (freedom 2).
The freedom to distribute copies of your modified versions to others (freedom 3). By doing this you can give the whole community a chance to benefit from your changes. Access to the source code is a precondition for this.

Although a huge amount of free software is indeed free of charge, and most developers of free software are volunteers, there is also a great amount that is not. For example, many distributions of the GNU/Linux system are paid for by the customer.

What is Open-Source Software

FOSS Logo

Open source software is different. Its authors make its source code available to others who would like to view that code, copy it, learn from it, alter it, or share it. LibreOffice and the GNU Image Manipulation Program are examples of open source software.

As they do with proprietary software, users must accept the terms of a license when they use open source software—but the legal terms of open source licenses differ dramatically from those of proprietary licenses. These licenses affect the way people can use, study, modify, and distribute software. In general, open source licenses grant computer users permission to use open source software for any purpose they wish.

The Open Source Definition is used by the Open Source Initiative (OSI) to determine if a license qualifies as a open-source license: