Recently, Apple released its programming language, Swift 2, to the public. By releasing Swift to the open source community, Apple is giving software developers more access to and control over the programming language. This release opens up a myriad of exciting possibilities for application development, software advancements and increased functionality.
The immediate result of Apple’s decision regarding Swift is that more developers will be able to leverage this code to create apps and software. However, Swift is simply the latest language to become open sourced, and this event points to a larger and deeper ongoing trend that affects more than Web developers. This release re-emphasizes the fact that open source is fast becoming a technology standard, and suggests that more prominent technology companies will be embracing open source in the near future, rather than resisting it.
Widespread adoption of open source has positive implications for developers as well as for the public at large, including:
- More resources and freedom: Open source gives developers access to the inner workings of the code and more options for working with it. Rather than engaging in risky and non-compliant practices to further innovation, developers can focus energy on creating useful apps and software with the unprecedented freedom that open source provides.
- New platforms: More open source code means that apps and programs don’t have to be confined to one or two platforms, but can be designed to work on any platform and device. This will lead to additional options for technology consumers as well as for developers, and will increase healthy competition in the marketplace.
- Increased opportunity for innovation: Open source gives developers free reign to use their creativity and knowledge to tinker with code and create something entirely new. They can be led by their own imaginations as well as by consumer demand, rather than being restricted by proprietary or platform-based software.
Read more: Top Web Technology Trends to Watch