When free programs are reported in blogs like Navigaweb, they are divided into three categories: those completely free by choice of the developer, those free but supported by sponsors or "adware" and those open source . The most important feature of open source software is its open source code which can be downloaded and used by anyone who wants, for example, to create a new version or to develop plugins and additions.
For a normal user like me, this is not so important, but rather knowing that no software under the GPL (General Public License) can be accompanied by viruses or commercial proposals . Just to mention the most famous open source programs and to understand what we are talking about we name, for example, OpenOffice, VLC, Gimp, 7-Zip, Mozilla Firefox, Apache Web Server, Google Chrome, Android and then also the Wikipedia website where they can write all and the Linux operating system.
Basically, getting to the point, when an open source program is reported from IT sites, blogs and forums, it will always be safe and there will never be a scam attempt. An open source program, generally, unless it is very famous and has its own reference website, is recognized because it comes from one of the websites on this list.
Unlike the best program download sites listed on another page, these are the portals where developers all over the world distribute their programs with an open license, programs that you can download for free and always use without limitations or registrations. The programs of these sites are almost always available for PCs and computers of any type: Windows, Linux and Mac.
1) SourceForge is the main website where the open source programs to download are published. SourceForge also provides the source code of each software. On the site there are 2 million users registered voluntarily (to download it is absolutely not necessary to register) and 230, 000 freely usable software projects. For a developer it is really an important site because it has a free web space in which to download its program with the support of a forum, a mailing list, distribution tools and so on. For those who want to find out what exists and to look for new little-known programs, you can browse the site from the home page using the menu with the categories of programs and looking at the ratings you like.
2) GitHub is the site of open source software projects acquired by Microsoft in 2018.
On the site there are many free projects to participate in and many programs, tools and codes to download for free.
If you are not a developer, browsing the Github site is of no use because there is no easy way to browse programs in search of something useful or interesting. You can still use the Explore page to see the most downloaded software of the moment.
3) OpenHub is mostly a public directory of the open source community, with the list of the main free and free software that can be downloaded to your PC.
4) Softpedia has the largest online Linux program index, with many programs to download, all open source.
5) The Free Software Directory is a project of the Free Software Foundation (FSF) and UNESCO. It is an index for categories of free software that can be installed and used on free operating systems (GNU and Linux). FSD is important for its commitment to the dissemination of free software that aims to combat restrictive policies such as the infamous Digital Restrictions Management (DRM).
On another page is the list of sites for downloading free Mac programs.
If there was no open source in computing, we would have been forced to use only what is offered to us by commercial companies that do not always work for the good of users, but, more often to earn as much as possible (see, for example, the Apple's commercial philosophy).
