A World of Free Alternatives

It's no secret that I think that needs to be gotten rid of, and I'm by no means alone in that opinion. In this era of lawsuits and revenue models based heavily on patent licensing fees (I'm looking at you, Apple, Microsoft and Oracle), the harm they're doing to innovation is right before our very eyes all the time.

Regardless of your opinion on patents, however, the fact remains that there's simply no need to get proprietary software illegally and risk legal action. On MoneyTalksNews, Brandon Ballenger a few specific alternatives, but in fact there's a whole wide world of open source software available to you, generally for free.

Even besides the operating system--which is available in for every taste and purpose--there are great for just about every proprietary package you may be used to. Not only are they typically free, but they also offer numerous , including flexibility, customizability, interoperability and freedom from restrictive licenses and vendor lock-in.

It's easy to keep repeating past mistakes out of sheer habit--'' is one perfect illustration--but once you start looking around, it's just as easy to break free.