When he started researching online, he found out about RepRap, an open-source project for 3D printing, which provided the foundation to at least start creating a 3D printer, not only because of the open-source instructions but also because of a community of enthusiastic tinkerers like himself.

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But a few have also been tinkering with open-source platforms like Tizen (a collaboration between Samsung and Intel) Linux, GENIVI, and Android.

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Sun's OpenOffice.org project should be ready by October and will not only give users access to open-source code but will also provide filters to allow Sun customers to use Microsoft's rival products.

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