What does “open source” mean? 

The term open source refers to software that can be inspected, used, modified, and shared by anyone and designed to be publicly accessible. Open source projects, products, or initiatives embrace and celebrate a broad set of principles, including open exchange, collaborative participation, transparency, meritocracy, and community-oriented development.

Open-source digital tools are…

• Free to use, study, change, and distribute without limits. That’s a big difference—practically and ethically—from the way that most proprietary software engages with users. On paid, freemium, or otherwise ad-based or data-extracting proprietary platforms, users often sign long agreements (has anyone read a whole one?) that turn over the rights to the work they create to the software provider. With open-source tools, you’ll have total control over what you do with your work, including the usage rights you assign to it.
• Available to anyone for any purpose. Open-source platforms distribute their software AND their source codes freely, without the need for payment or institutional licensing to access their tools—and with the ability to take the code itself and create new things! Useful for everyone, from the explorative first-time user to the seasoned software developer.
• Meant to encourage public scholarship. Public scholarship is research-based work intended for audiences beyond the university. Public scholarship bridges the gap between scholarly expertise and the public’s desire to better understand current events.
• Assisting in creating shareable cultural goods. Open source tools are created to help scholars, teachers, and learners contribute openly shareable cultural goods (books, magazines, multimedia products, software, recordings, films, videos, audio-visual programs, crafts, fashion, etc.) and include open educational resources (OER) and open pedagogy.