This spring, the Open Source Program Office (OSPO) surveyed the UW–Madison campus community to gauge the use of open-source tools, identify open-source projects, and collect feedback on improving the open-source environment on campus. Among their findings:
- Most survey respondents were familiar with open-source software. Python, Linux and Julia topped the list of tools important to their work. More than half said they use open-source tools more often than UW-provided, licensed software (excluding Adobe and Microsoft).
- A majority of respondents said that open-source tools are critical to their research, teaching and learning. Most agreed that open source is a valuable research output that translates into innovation. They identified knowledge sharing and lower costs as its biggest benefits.
- 60% of respondents said that having a vibrant open-source culture is very valuable, but only 31% agreed that this culture exists at UW–Madison.
- 73% of respondents expressed interest in open source training organized by OSPO.
OSPO worked with the Data Science Institute to create a website that summarizes the survey results. Additionally, OSPO has made this survey, and the tool to analyze the results, open source. Their hope is that other universities will use it and share their results, leading to a broader understanding of open source in academia.
With support from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, OSPO is positioned to support and grow a vibrant open-source ecosystem at UW–Madison. Learn more at ospo.wisc.edu.