Related papers: An analysis of open source software licensing ques…
Background: Sub-optimal code is prevalent in software systems. Developers may write low-quality code due to many reasons, such as lack of technical knowledge, lack of experience, time pressure, management decisions, and even unhappiness.…
Development organizations and International Non-Governmental Organizations have been emphasizing the high potential of Free and Open Source Software for the Less Developed Countries. Cost reduction, less vendor dependency and increased…
Open Source Software (OSS) has been recognized by the software development community as an effective way to deliver software. Unlike traditional software development, OSS development is driven by collaboration among developers spread…
Open data is an emerging paradigm to share large and diverse datasets -- primarily from governmental agencies, but also from other organizations -- with the goal to enable the exploitation of the data for societal, academic, and commercial…
A software release note is one of the essential documents in the software development life cycle. The software release contains a set of information, e.g., bug fixes and security fixes. Release notes are used in different phases, e.g.,…
Many open source software (OSS) projects need more human resources for maintenance, improvements, and sometimes even their survival. These needs allegedly apply even to vital OSS projects that can be seen as being a part of the world's…
Standardisation is an important component in the maturation of any field of technology. It contributes to the formation of a recognisable identity and enables interactions with a wider community. This article reviews past and current…
One important goal in sustainability is making technologies available to the maximum possible number of individuals, and especially to those living in less developed areas (Goal 9 of SDG). However, the diffusion of technical knowledge is…
The package manager (PM) is crucial to most technology stacks, acting as a broker to ensure that a verified dependency package is correctly installed, configured, or removed from an application. Diversity in technology stacks has led to…
Open source software (OSS) vulnerabilities threaten the security of software systems that use OSS. Vulnerability databases provide valuable information (e.g., vulnerable version and patch) to mitigate OSS vulnerabilities. There arises a…
To fork a project is to copy the existing code base and move in a direction different than that of the erstwhile project leadership. Forking provides a rapid way to address new requirements by adapting an existing solution. However, it can…
Bug tracking tools are vital for managing bugs in any open source as well as proprietary commercial projects. Considering the significance of using an appropriate bug tracking tool, we assess the features offered by 31 open source bug…
For teams using distributed version control systems, the right collaborative development workflows can help maintaining the long-term quality of project repositories and improving work efficiency. Despite the fact that the workflows are…
Modern science is relying on software more than ever. The behavior and outcomes of this software shape the scientific and public discourse on important topics like climate change, economic growth, or the spread of infections. Most…
In Open Source Software, resources of any project are open for reuse by introducing dependencies or copying the resource itself. In contrast to dependency-based reuse, the infrastructure to systematically support copy-based reuse appears to…
Development of scientific and engineering software is usually different and could be more challenging than the development of conventional enterprise software. The authors were involved in a technology-transfer project between academia and…
The use of third-party packages is becoming increasingly popular and has led to the emergence of large software package ecosystems with a maze of inter-dependencies. Since the reliance on these ecosystems enables developers to reduce…
Background: Open Source Software (OSS) is often seen as an option to mitigate risks of lock-ins. Yet, single-vendor OSS can still result in soft lock-ins due to knowledge asymmetries and technical barriers. Aim: This study explores actors…
The software supply chain involves a multitude of tools and processes that enable software developers to write, build, and ship applications. Recently, security compromises of tools or processes has led to a surge in proposals to address…
In large-scale projects operated in regulated environments, standard development processes are employed to meet strict compliance demands. Since such processes are usually complex, providing process users with access to their required…