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What is Free Software?

Published on December 7, 2020

Glossary

Senior Developer Educator

Free software is any program released with a license approved by the Free Software Foundation that allows users to view, modify, and share source code.

Like open source, the goal of free software is to amplify developer freedom using software and to curb the spread of proprietary software licenses. Learn more about the Free Software Foundation’s philosophy.

For an in-depth explanation of the free software movement, check out DigitalOcean’s tutorial on The Difference Between Free and Open-Source Software.

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About the authors

Lyn Muldrow

author

Senior Developer Educator

Software engineer, writer, and speaker who loves solving problems and educating the next generation.