Fifteen years ago, open source developers were considered geeky. Today, on the contrary, these are the most sought after developers. Redpill Linpro, a company only working with products based on open source code, hosted the last SNITS lunch of the year on 5 December, with the theme “Kickstarting your career with open source”.
Software developed from source code that is open to everyone to use, change, develop and distribute is known as open source. The opposite is licenced source codes, or so-called proprietary software.
“Fifteen years ago, the established software companies laughed at open source,” says Fredrik Svensson, regional manager and one of the founders of Redpill Linpro. “Today it is a well-established term in the branch and many of the large digital companies, like Spotify, Google, Twitter and Facebook, use open source-based software.”
One of the best-known open source projects is the Linux operating system. It was started by a single person at the beginning of the 1990s and was later developed by a number of enthusiasts. Today large, established software companies, such as IBM, contribute to the development of Linux.
“Working with open source makes concentrating completely on the needs of each client possible, instead of chasing licencing fees,” says Fredrik Svensson. “Today, many companies claim that there are business advantages to using open source code and that the best and most sought after developers are those working with open source.”
Redpill Linpro joined SNITS, a network group that facilitates exchange between business and IT students, in the autumn semester of 2017.
“Redpill Linpro collaborates in different ways with Karlstad University. We have been involved in a number of research projects and we deem successful partnerships between the public sector, the private sector and the university central in increasing the competitiveness of the region,” says Fredrik Svensson. “We continue this partnership through our involvement in SNITS by creating opportunities for collaborating directly with students. In the long term, we could increase our own competiveness by attracting top talent and ambitious students who had completed their degrees at Karlstad University.”
Redpill was funded in Karlstad in 2003. Together with the Norwegian company Linpro, they formed Redpill Linpro in 2008. Today the company has offices in Karlstad, Stockholm, Gothenburg, Oslo and Copenhagen with 150 employees, of which 25 are based in Karlstad.
Andreas Arvidsson and Michael Bui, who both studied computer engineering at Karlstad University and now work at Redpill Linpro, also participated in the SNITS lunch.
“I am really a nerd and a techie, and my curiosity led me to study and end up where I am today. If you use open source you can change, test and adjust everything, and that attracted me,” says Andreas Arvidsson. “I was attracted to Redpill Linpro precisely because of their openness, sharing and values. We contribute to development instead of only basin our work on quarterly reports.”
SNITS give students a good start to their careers SNITS is a network group that facilitates exchange between business, Karlstad University and IT students. We arrange study visits, guest lectures, breakfast meetings, mentor activities, practical placements and degree projects.
Read more on SNITS here https://www.kau.se/snits
Read more on Redpill Linpro here https://www.redpill-linpro.com
