A Bloomberg News article reprinted on the editorial page of the Sun Journal on Oct. 31 with the headline “This government website works just fine,” highlights the dire need for new technological solutions within all levels of government.
Upon reading that the new user-friendly, bug-free Consumer Financial Protection Bureau website took only eight months to create and launch (as opposed to three years for HealthCare.gov), it was no surprise to me to learn that it was designed and developed using open source software.
An increasing number of governments around the world — including Israel, the United Kingdom, China, Russia, Argentina, Korea and the Philippines — have made the switch to open source technology, which has saved them millions of dollars while increasing both ease of use and security.
As a freelance Web designer and developer whose goal has always been to create the best possible solution at the lowest cost in the least amount of time, I can personally attest to myriad benefits of Linux and other open source products over their costly commercial counterparts.
If I can do it, and if the private-sector developers of the CFPB website can do it, then our government should be able to do it.
Don Cunningham, Lewiston
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