“Charles! Put your head back in the car and close the window immediately!”
“But Mummy” said Charles “Look, Look!”
“Charles dear, close the window tight… We don’t want them coming through the window do we, dear.”
“Charles, do what your mother asked you.. close the window please..” said Sir William sternly.
“But daddy” said the nine year old, in amazement. “Look! Open Source BPM !!”
“That’s nice, dear… now come away from the window…that’s a good boy…”
“Wow!!” said the boy… “I’ve never seen an open source BPM before… Blimey”
“Oh William!” cried Elizabeth “Why have you taken us to this god forsaken place”
“Don’t worry, my sweetheart, I thought it would be educational, some fun… you know.. learning about different species… ” said Sir William
“but this is a horrid place” she said. “Look at it…. full of code… horrid”
“but it’s free” said Sir William.
Shocked, she replied: “Even a better reason not to be here… why would I want something for free…. I want the best our money can buy… anyway, there is no such thing as a free lunch.. you should know better than that”
“It’s not only lower cost of ownership” said Sir William in his authoritative voice, “it’s also less dependent on software vendors and easier to customize”
“My dearest” she replied “That might be true, but escaping vendor lock-in is only one side of the coin.. what about development resources, training, administration, support. The value of a software offering lies not simply in having open access to the associated source code, but more specifically in possessing the knowledge associated with its implementation and operation. Would you risk your family fortune on the good will of open source contributors?”
There was a silence as he pondered over her last remark.
He then sat up and said softly: “Open Source BPM is also very ethical.”
Ohh.. well then… she blushed,.. that’s another matter…if it’s ethical then we must embrace it.
Adam Deane 
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