computer science

Open platform

Open platform is a computer science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Open platform rather than just read about it. In short: In computing, an open platform describes a software system which is based on open standards, such as published and fully documented external application programming interfaces (API) that allow using the software to function in other ways than the original programmer intended, without requiring modification of the source code. Using these interfaces, a third party could integrate with the platform to add functionalit…

Key takeaways

Open platform belongs to computer science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Open platform to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Open platform from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

In computing, an open platform describes a software system which is based on open standards, such as published and fully documented external application programming interfaces (API) that allow using the software to function in other ways than the original programmer intended, without requiring modification of the source code. Using these interfaces, a third party could integrate with the platform to add functionality. The opposite is a closed platform. An open platform does not mean it is open source, however most open platforms have multiple implementations of APIs. For example, Common Gateway Interface (CGI) is implemented by open source web servers as well as Microsoft Internet Information Server (IIS). An open platform can consist of software components or modules that are either proprietary or open source or both. It can also exist as a part of closed platform, such as CGI, which is an open platform, while many servers that implement CGI also have other proprietary parts that are not part of the open platform. An open platform implies that the vendor allows, and perhaps supports, the ability to do this. Using an open platform a developer could add features or functionality that the platform vendor had not completed or had not conceived of. An open platform allows the developer to change existing functionality, as the specifications are publicly available open standards. A service-oriented architecture (SOA) allows applications, running as services, to be accessed in a distributed computing environment, such as between multiple systems or across the Internet. A major focus of Web services is to make functional building blocks accessible over standard Internet protocols that are independent from platforms and programming languages. An open SOA platform would allow anyone to access and interact with these building blocks. A 2008 Harvard Business School working paper, titled "Opening Platforms: How, When and Why?", differentiated a platform's openness in four aspects and gave example platforms.

See also Application programming interface Open standard Open architecture Service-oriented architecture

References

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Open platform

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Open platform claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In computer science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Open platform before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Open platform ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Open platform

In research: Open platform appears in computer science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Open platform in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Open platform is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Application programming interfaces, Computing platforms, Computing stubs, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Open platform outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Open platform in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Open platform means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Open platform out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Open platform in simple terms?

Why does Open platform matter?

Because it connects several computer science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Open platform?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Open platform.