Which is an advantage of open source software?

• A. No cost to acquire the software
• B. Can be modified to suit specific needs
• C. Requires licensing fees
• D. Vendor dependency

Answer: (A)

Open source software is typically available at little to no cost to obtain, because the source code is shared under licenses that allow free use and redistribution. This means you can download and run the software without paying a license fee, lowering the initial entry barrier and reducing upfront costs, especially when evaluating tools or deploying across many users. While there are other advantages like the ability to tailor the code to specific needs, the financial benefit of not having to pay to acquire the software is a clear and widely recognized advantage that this option highlights.