I typically se a lot of apps or websites day they are open source. I have wondered what stops someone from using the code from creating a competitor to the original? Are there different levels to open source? By this I mean do they only allow a specific amount of code to be looked at and if so, how do they delegate who sees what?
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Nothing stops people from copying and using open source software, except the law and the prospect of being sued.
Open source is a different concept than “free to use.”
You may have heard the term “free *and* open source” (FOSS).
Open source software simply means that whoever owns the code makes it available for others to see.
However, someone cannot legally copy and use software unless the software license grants permission to do so.
FOSS is open source software whose license permits anyone to reuse the code, often with some restrictions (e.g. must credit the author, must identify which code was used, etc.)
Software licensing can be complex. But that’s the short answer.
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