Executive Summary (This is a document excerpt)

Potential problems ranging from software maintenance nightmares to intellectual property lawsuits can be avoided by putting a sound open source policy in place. Policies provide guidance to ensure that we all do the right thing. If your strategy involves using open source software in conjunction with internal development, then you need a policy that provides guidance on how to evaluate, use, and maintain open source software. Open source policy needs to address the unique aspects of open source and defer to other IT policies in areas where open source is no different than other software being used or developed internally. Your policy should address how projects are brought into the company, how they are used in the course of development, and procedures that developers should follow to ensure that risks in areas like maintaining the code and protecting intellectual property are minimized. Before a policy is implemented, IT should educate employees so that anyone affected by the policy has a sound foundation in the areas, such as licensing and code maintenance, that gave rise to the need for a policy in the first place.

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