Vermont and Free Software
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Why is Gateway Anti-Virus Free Software?
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Cost - It takes very little effort and doesn't cost the state anything
to publish the source code, we use a free service called
Source Forge. If we receive source code contributions
from outside developers it will actually result in a savings because the contributed
code is code that Vermont didn't have to pay developers to write.
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To be a good Neighbor - Many states are implementing Streamlined Sales Tax
and other XML-based electronic return systems. Sharing the code with fellow states
would be a nice thing to do because it helps them accomplish their goals while reducing
their costs. Additionally, other Vermont agencies and departments could adapt and enhance
the code to meet their needs.
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Education - Vermonters who are studying Java software development could learn
by studying our code. Our code has a lot of interesting pieces in it that aren't directly
related to taxes (our event logging system, authentication system, unit test setup, etc).
Developers of open source software could legally copy and use the code in their projects.
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Better Software - With more people using our code and more developers looking at our
code, bugs would be more easily spotted and fixed. Sharing the code with the transmitters
who send us data allows them to test changes to their software and debug problems more
easily. They could examine exactly what our code does with their input and setup their own
private testing environment.
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Are there other State of Vermont or the Vermont Department of Taxes Free / Open Source Software projects?
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The Vermont Department of Taxes maintains gateway,
tmx-editor,
inoclam,
locale4j,
maven-har-plugin, and
maven-sar-plugin.
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Does the State of Vermont or the Vermont Department of Taxes plan on releasing any other Free / Open Source Software?
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At this time there are no specific plans that we know of.
