Since 1989, many things have changed in Romania, including computers, and the way how other nations perceive the country. Romania is better known for its “Dracula figure” than for its IT involvement.
The history of open source systems in Romania can be divided in the following 4 phases:
1980 - 1990: During the last decade of Ceausescu\'s government, computers could only be found in computing centres of large enterprises and institutes. All efforts to develop anything had to be private. Attempts to establish any commercial enterprise, even on a small scale, were against laws of the communist state.
1992 - 1996: After 1990, DOS-based PC’s became easier to find. The first metropolitan and national networks for internet access were established at the Bucharest Polytechnic Institute and resulted in a separate influx of free software. However, as a result of the free software introduction, a number of system administrators, programmers and Linux users appeared and realised also the expansion of the Internet in Romania.
1997 - 2002: The market for computers, software and IT services was gradually established before 1997. Initially, there were few potential buyers outside state companies and institutions. However, IP networks and Internet access points have been growing as well as the number of used Linux servers.
2002 - near future, Internet phase: Around 2002, cable TV companies, which are very widespread in Romania, even in villages, started to compete in offering broadband internet access. High speed internet connections bring along with them the possibility to obtain Linux distributions over the internet. It is the easiest way to have access to open source software. Now, some companies are diligently installing optic fibre based connections in most quarters of the larger cities.
The 4 phases of Romania’s open source software history
There are many Linux communities in Romania, but they can be divided into three main categories:
- Commercial users
- User-supported groups
- Linux Fests
The commercial communities have a money-influenced backbone and are driven by profit. The user groups, web sites, and forums are supported by regular users. Thirdly, Romania has several meetings between Linux users – the so-called "Linux Fests."
Meetings take place in numerous cities in Romania, e.g. Sibiu, Bucharest, Cluj-Napoca, Lasi, and Timisoara. The participants share open source software knowledge, exchange Linux distributions and help beginners in using free software. Apart from the monthly meetings, once a year the Linux Open Alternative Days (LOAD) is held in Romania where companies, public organizations and individuals share their experiences.
The biggest Romanian Linux forum is called Linux360 and provides users with the possibility to get answers to their open source software questions. The community-authored online Linux magazine, also called Linux360, delivers open source software related content.
Romania is developing its own Linux distributions. One of the biggest is Darkstar Linux, based on Slackware. Furthermore, the open source community is translating free software projects into Romanian, e.g. KDE or GNOME. The Romanian Linux User Group (RLUG) translates and improves the Debian documentation.
Like many other European countries, Romania has caught a glimpse of what Linux and other open source software can do for business or private use. Romanian user hope the government will realise one day that instead of wasting money on proprietary products, it can not only improve the functionality of institutions but also use open source software as a way to direct those funds to other more important issues.
The APC European Internet Rights Project’s Country Report on Romania concluded in 2000 that “the main obstacles to public Internet access in Romania are economic, educational and cultural. Romania has made the first steps to develop high-capacity networking infrastructure in order to achieve high quality public Internet access. However the high costs together with low living standards will still limit access in the near future. The regulation of legal aspects of information matters may lead in time to attempts to restrict or control the freedom of public Internet access.”
At present, in order to promote local development opportunities in Romania, it is also necessary to adopt open standards in administration, thus creating the possibility of avoiding dependence on a single technology provider. “Digital Cities” and Linux Centres, represent projects in order to increase the coverage and the rate of usage for the Information Society products and services. The intention of logistics suppliers is not to limit their presence to Bucharest, but to gear up the capacities and experience from all around the country.
Further Information:
Government of Romania
Linux360 Forum
Paper Versions of this Case Study
Open Source Software in Romania (PDF)
© European Communities 2005
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