Yes, Twake is Open-Source
Twake is a secure open-source collaboration platform powered by Linagora. Linagora is the French leader in open-source industry and has strongly believed in free and open-source software since its inception in 2000.
What is Open Source software?
Open Source software is software with source code that is made freely available and that anyone can inspect, modify, and enhance.
Most computer users never see "source code", which is the code that computer programmers can manipulate to alter how a piece of software - a "program" or "application" - works. Programmers who have access to the source code of a software may enhance it by adding new features or fixing sections that do not always work properly.
While open source was originally presented as a programming approach, it now encompasses the concepts of open sharing, collaborative participation, transparency, and community-oriented development.
How is Open Source software different from other types of software?
Some software has source code that can only be modified by the individual, team, or organization who developed it and has exclusive ownership of it. This type of software is referred to as "closed source" or "proprietary".
Only the original authors of proprietary software have the legal right to copy, inspect, and change it. To use proprietary software, users must consent (usually by signing a license shown the first time they run it) that they will not do something with it that the software's developers have not specifically approved. Some examples of proprietary software include Microsoft Office and Slack.
However, Open Source software is different. Its creators make the source code open to anyone who would like to view that code, copy it, learn from it, alter it, or share it. Open Source software includes applications like OnlyOffice and Jitsi.
Users must accept the terms of a license when using open source software, as they must while using proprietary software - but the legal terms of open source licenses vary significantly from those of proprietary license.
Since the open source software licenses enable others to make improvements to source code and integrate those changes into their own projects, they are designed to encourage collaboration and sharing. They enable programmers to use, access, and change open source software whenever they want, as long as they allow others to do the same when they share their work.
Linagora's Open-Source Philosophy
Linagora has the following goals regarding our products and services:
- Anyone should be able to download their own instance of Linagora products.
- There should be no difference between our SaaS and our open-source product.
- There should be minimal limitations on usage of code; should be as free as possible.
- There should be protections from other companies selling our work without giving back.
- This last bullet point - protections from other companies selling our work - may seem contentious, but we believe it is important to ensure Linagora's survival and continued development and innovation of Linagora products. All these lead us to use Affero GPL Version 3 with additional terms and conditions.
Alexandre Zapolsky, President & Co-founder, LINAGORA
Open Source is a wonderful opportunity about freedom and to change rules. For me, creation is like art. Developers, coders, hackers, are like artists. The best way for them to express themselves is to use open source. For me, it was both the economic model, the market, and the possibilities for anyone to create freely.
Why are we an open source company?
At Linagora, we have a unified company vision to build Good Tech - ethical and open source software, to make the world a better place by having maximum positive impact on people, society, and the planet. We believe there is no other choice but open source to achieve that vision.
Flexible
Any developer can update and modify open source code on their own computer. It can be tailored to each user's individual goals and use case, and any changes can be shared with the rest of the group.
Security
Inherently, the software that is publicly viewable contains incentives to identify and fix security and other vulnerabilities more quickly.
Interoperability
Long-term usage and user experiences include the ability to exchange and communicate data between systems and services. Integration openness is a fundamental tenet of modern computing and critical for user experience.
Community - Oriented
Open Source software is free and available to everyone, but it needs care and support from a vibrant community. A common point of reference - the source code - is a starting point for contributors to coalesce and evaluate direction and further development.
Platform Extensible
There are few barriers to modifying open source packages for various contexts, such as libraries or SDKs for your system of choice. Even finding community members to collaborate on projects that help everybody is simpler with open source.
Educational
Open Source is more than a test-before-you-buy sales model. It allows users to learn by putting the software to use at a large scale, lowering their own barriers to adoption. It also aids in the retention of employees and the onboarding of new team members.