Abdul Kalam – Open Source
Dr. Kalam made this statement impromptu on noticing the extensive use of Microsoft Windows at an IT institute in Pune, while on a walk-through there.
“The most unfortunate thing is that India still seems to believe in proprietary solutions. Further spread of IT which is influencing the daily life of individuals would have a devastating effect on the lives of society due to any small shift in the business practice involving these proprietary solutions. It is precisely for these reasons open source software needs to be built which would be cost effective for the entire society”
How many presidents in the world can even spell “open source”? For once it is nice to have a highly qualified president; one from advanced research and academic background, and can speak the voice of the people instead of industrial lobbies. Recently he put in some strong words for doing more in traditional/organic farming, Ayurveda, Siddha, etc. — and that too when he was invited to address a conference of biotechnology industries!