Apache
For a long time "Apache" referred to an http server developed by
a group of people that needed some functionality that was not available through
the other webservers of the time (NCSA and CERN). Since those humble beginings,
"Apache" has grown into The Apache
Foundation and has a wide range of projects under it's umbrella.
The flagship project is, of course, the Apache
Webserver. According to Netcraft surveys, The Apache Webserver or one of
it's variations, runs most of the public web servers on the Internet.The server
runs on a wide range of operating systems and supports a very flexible and open
API for extensibility. The fact that the base version of Apache does not cost
anything to download and run is apealing, but not as apealing as the fact the
the source code is free and open for all to review and modify to their own needs.
This is the point of free software and Open Source and this is what is resonating
with businesses large and small.
Other projects at the Apache Foundation include XML software, XSL software,
a JSP Servlet Engine called Jakarta and a scripting language called PHP.
We don't use Apache software because of the cost. We use Apache software because
it has proven to be reliable, robust, scalable, flexible and extensible. The
community support of Apache software is excellent and there are commercial support
options if necessary.
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