In this last post of reasons churches should consider using open source computer tools I will be discussing responsibility.  In particular our responsibility to keep parishioners information private and our responsibility to keep records accessible for future generations.

Security 

Computers used for churches will probably have some very sensitive and private information.  At the minimum a church computer probably has a list of phone numbers and addresses of church members.  Some ministers keep counseling and visitation notes which would contain information parishioners wouldn’t won’t shared.  Even if you don’t have this sort of information, there’s a good chance that copies of emails, letters you have written or just a note in your calendar program  — ’10:00 Marital counseling with the Smiths’ — would have private information about church members.

Spyware, viruses and security problems make this information vulnerable.  While everyone should be concerned about computer security, people who hold private information about others should be especially vigilant.  Since open source is by it’s definition exposed for others to see it lends itself to being more secure; people can see if there are security problems.

Accessability 

As I am currently working on a research degree in church history, I am very aware of how valuable day-to-day documents can be for future generations.  Letters mailed, student essays, notes jotted on the side of a book and registration records has made up a large part of my reading the last few years.  These records, many of which were probably never considered to be of much value during there time, are priceless in what they tell about a particular time and place in history.  I understand archivists are concerned now with how contemporary records of church business, correspondence and sermons will be preserved for the future generations.  The larger problem seems to be the degradation of digitally stored material, but another is the obsolescence of formats.  If you keep notes in a program that stores the files in a format only readable by that one program you limit the access others might have to it in the future.  Open formats gives an assurance that if the file is preserved, it will be available to others.

Well that ends the series on my reasons churches should consider Open Source and Open Formats as an option.  I’ll discuss some of these specific options in upcoming posts.