OSS Watch undertakes research to gain a better understanding of the needs of its stakeholder communities. Reports from this research are available here. In addition to our own research, significant research by other bodies is also referenced here.

OSS Watch research

  • OSS Watch National Software Survey 2013 In late 2013 OSS Watch conducted the fourth bi-annual survey of Higher and Further Education IT directors’ attitudes towards, and adoption of, open source software.
  • OSS Watch National Software Survey 2010 In late 2010 OSS Watch conducted the fourth bi-annual survey of Higher and Further Education IT directors’ attitudes towards, and adoption of, open source software.
  • OSS Watch National Software Survey 2008 During 2008 OSS Watch once again conducted a national survey to assess the state of software policies and usage in HE and FE in the UK. This was the third time that the software survey has been conducted and so the report is able to identify trends and draw comparisons with data from previous years.
  • Automatic survey of inbound mail (MX) servers in academic domains in the UK In September 2007 OSS Watch performed a semi-automated survey of inbound mail (MX) servers in all academic domains in the UK, with a focus on Further and Higher Education. This report presents not only the results of this survey but also details of the methodology used.
  • OSS Watch Survey 2006 An investigation into the levels of use of open source software in further and higher education in the UK and its place in policy and decision-making processes.
  • OSS Watch Scoping Study (2003) An investigation into the current state of participation in free and open source software in UK higher and further education, both in terms of projects developing such software and institutional deployment of such software.

third party research