Abstract

Open Source software and hardware alternatives are being deployed and developed by archaeologists around the world in order to replace the frequently very costly proprietary tools. From individuals to commercial companies and institutions, the discipline of archaeology has embraced the use and philosophy of open source communities. In Europe, the use of and contribution to, open source projects from the discipline of archaeology is widespread. Institutions such as University College London use open source software stacks in their teaching and research. The commercial company Oxford Archaeology is moving the entire company’s infrastructure over to open source alternatives. Operating systems, web browsers, GIS applications, web and server software, network visualisation, statistics software, total station download, data collectors, digital globes and more all have thriving open source communities.

In this session we would like to hear from individual researchers, project leaders and developers, academic and governmental institutions as well as commercial companies about their motives and experience of using open source alternatives in heritage. We are interested in how the software was approached, applied, whether any alterations were made to codes, and in the user experience in general. Furthermore, we would like to hear about the reception of the product, by fellow researchers or clients, or the users themselves. Support and community are vital factors when it comes to software in general, both open source and proprietary. Papers outlining experience with support, such as user and expert forums and mailing-lists would be welcome, as well as those from users who opted to pay for support while using open source tools.

Using the focus session format we would like to hear short presentations on the use of open source in various situations, experience with support and open source communities online, training and education using open source, projects which have adopted open data policies to foster collaboration. Posters detailing projects are invited as are live demonstrations and training sessions which we hope to work around the course of the conference. During the breakout session we will be welcoming demonstrations and basic instruction sessions by users in order to encourage the sharing of knowledge and use of open source software.