The questions below are answered throughout the interview:
- What is ownCloud?
- How technical does one have to be to use ownCloud?
- How does ownCloud manage third-party extensions/plugins?
- What is next for ownCloud version 8?
After learning more about the project, you can launch ownCloud to the cloud or deploy it locally with free installers, virtual machines and cloud templates from Bitnami. Get started in the cloud for free with a $200 credit from Microsoft Azure.
Stuart Langridge: These are the Bitnami Open Source Leaders Series of interviews. I’m Stuart Langridge and I’m here talking to Frank Karlitschek of the ownCloud project.
Frank Karlitschek: Hey, Stuart. Thanks for having me.
Stuart Langridge: I think a lot of people may have heard of ownCloud generally, but can you give us a brief description of what ownCloud is and what it’s for?
Frank Karlitschek: The mission of ownCloud is to provide functionality similar to Google Drive, Dropbox, or OneDrive from Microsoft. The difference is that ownCloud is completely free software, open-source, and it’s actually designed to run wherever you want.
There’s only one ownCloud like there is only one Dropbox, but you can download the ownCloud source code and install it wherever you want. You can run it on your repository at home, an old desktop computer, or on a server on the Internet. It can run at a university, your company, or wherever you want. You can even run it on a shared web space. For example, if you have web space on a university, you can just pick the ownCloud Zip file, put it in there and unzip it, and you have your own server.
Stuart Langridge: What types of people are using ownCloud at the moment? Is it primarily individuals, organizations, companies, or university students? Of the people who aren’t using it yet, are there particular areas/demographics you’re targeting?
