However, the SSC has stopped well short of following countries such as India, Italy and South Africa and calling for open source products to be preferred over commercial software as a matter of course.
Instead, it says a "neutral" position should be maintained, with software chosen on the basis of value-for-money and "fitness for purpose".
Open source is the term used to describe software that has been written for free by enthusiasts. It is usually distributed, customised and supported by a wide variety of commercial interests, in competition to licensed software from the likes of Microsoft. The software and services market, in which open source software is battling it out with commercial software, is valued at about $2.3 billion in New Zealand.
Many diversified IT multinationals, such as IBM and Sun, have a foot in both camps - marketing both Linux-based products, sometimes proprietary software, and systems based on their own commercial variants of the standards-based Unix operating system, on which Linux was modelled.
The SSC's briefing paper says commercial software firms and open source groups are both lobbying governments.
"There is no inherent reason why government agencies shouldn't consider open source software on the same basis as commercial software," the paper says.
As well as Linux, the paper identifies Sun's office suite Open Office, Web browser Mozilla, the world's most popular Web server Apache, and e-mail and calendar program Evolution as leading the way in open source.
Mr Boyle notes a study commissioned by the British government which predicts 50 per cent of the market for operating systems, databases, Web servers and other infrastructure software could be open source within five years.
The briefing paper also points to high-profile open source wins in the private sector with businesses such as Amazon, Deutsche Telekom and Air New Zealand.
It says Telstra is "rumoured" to be considering switching its 45,000 desktop computers from Microsoft Windows to Linux.
TelstraClear head of customer operations Connell Graham says outsourcing partner Unisys is investigating open source options for a ClearPath mainframe, in conjunction with IBM, but that no decisions have been made.
The SSC accepts the question of open source versus commercial software is "a complex and multifaceted debate" which "encompasses cost, functionality, interoperability and security".
While the paper says the absence of software licensing costs is increasingly forcing organisations to assess the opportunities presented by open source software, it accepts open source does not mean "free".
"It will attract costs in terms of ongoing software maintenance support, configuration and integration with other applications and transition costs - including training."
Arguments over whether commercial software or open source software is more secure from hacking cut different ways, the briefing paper says.
It highlights the decision of the German interior ministry to supply Linux-equipped machines to all levels of government and the German government's concerns regarding the security implications of relying on a "single closed-source software provider headquartered overseas".
The governments of South Africa, Argentina, Italy, Peru and India encourage or require government organisations to use open source software, wherever feasible, the briefing paper says.
The SSC says its proposed stance is consistent with that of the British government, which tries to ensure value for money by encouraging agencies to consider open source software, while not "explicitly" stating a preference for open source.
Quelle: stuff
