The Cathedral and the Bazaar: 8 key ideas
The core ideas of The Cathedral and the Bazaar, each in under a minute, written in our own words. Want the full depth? Get the book.
- IDEA 1 OF 8
Open development can beat closed
Raymond contrasts two ways of building software.
In the cathedral model, a small group works in private before releasing, while in the bazaar model, used for Linux, code is shared openly and many people contribute.
- IDEA 2 OF 8
Linux surprised the experts
Raymond describes how Linus Torvalds built the Linux operating system by inviting contributions from programmers around the world.
Raymond had expected such an open process to produce chaos. The outcome showed that openness could work.
- IDEA 3 OF 8
He tested the idea himself
Raymond describes running his own open project, an email tool called fetchmail, using the bazaar method.
Its success convinced him the approach worked. He saw first hand how outside helpers could improve a program quickly.
- IDEA 4 OF 8
More reviewers find more bugs
Raymond argues that when many people examine code, problems are found and fixed quickly.
He calls this idea Linus's law. Many eyes on the same code means one person's blind spot is covered by another's view.
- IDEA 5 OF 8
Release often
Raymond recommends releasing new versions early and frequently.
This keeps contributors engaged and finds problems sooner. Frequent releases give people something new to try and respond to, so they stay interested. Small updates also make mistakes easier to trace.
- IDEA 6 OF 8
Users become developers
Raymond argues that treating users as co-developers is the best way to improve software rapidly.
Their feedback guides improvements. Users know best what is broken or missing, so involving them saves the developers much guesswork.
- IDEA 7 OF 8
Hackers trade in reputation
Raymond describes open source culture as a gift culture, where people gain respect by giving away their work.
Status comes from the quality and generosity of one's contributions instead of from money or job titles.
- IDEA 8 OF 8
Open source can be profitable
Raymond argues that companies can make money from open source through services and support.
His ideas influenced Netscape to release its browser code. The software itself is free, but expert help, training and customisation can still earn income.
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