“Ugly interface”
I agree that there are some real ugly ones out there. Although this can be down to the OS environment you use … most open source software I know of has been designed to run on Linux or some *NIX equivalent, so it might not integrate into windows or mac so well. Exceptions to that rule (as far as UI is concerned at least) can be applications built using a programming language like java for example.

“Terrible file structures or code”
It does happen. Using tools to reformat code can be a minor inconvenience.

“Lack of updates and bugs”
Yes. Long established apps with a big community doesn’t suffer from this problem so much though and are often updated faster then then a lot of commercial equivalents.

@iphotoshoppr
Blender is one of the industry standard open source 3D design applications. Asking if GIMP can do 3D design is like asking if a screwdriver can be used as a hacksaw. Also, GIMP’s support for printing (or lack of) is more a legal issue, although there are work arounds ;)

Though there are a lot of open-source apps that meet everyone’s needs (e.g. Chrome, Filezilla, Thunderbird, Firefox, Pidgin), there are some that can’t be used by designers and illustrators: inkspace and GIMP. Inkspace is slow if it has a certain number of layers. Use Xara instead (not free, but not expensive). Xara has features Inkspace doesn’t. Illustrator is much more powerful than Xara and is an ultimate tool for any kind of creative people. GIMP can’t be used for print at all. It doesn’t have support for 3D, does it? Something similar to VersionCue? Pen tablets support? Open-source community that develops GIMP has to invest a lot of time/money to create a commercial-like software that does its job as well as Photoshop does. If they did, they won’t give it for free :) GIMP is still for an occasional use but not for serious projects.

Linux can be great for developers but I wonder how you guys, check sites you develop in IE 6-8 if you run Linux on your machines? Do you use Virtualbox or any similar app? Do you use a legal copy of Windows/MacOS to run inside it? Do you use some online services like browsershots? There are a couple of free apps for Windows like ietester/multipleIE you can use but Windows still ain’t free. Linux is great for servers and web development but you can’t live without Windows and it can’t be completely replaced while 80% of people use it.

MS office is still better though it gets slower with every release and bloated with features a normal user won’t ever need. But I’m sure some people need them. OpenOffice is just slow. OO Writer can’t format text/lists normally. OO Calc has problems with a floating point calculations. There’s no need to pay $400 for MS office if you need Word/Excel. Get them for $100. Or replace them with Google/Zoho if you’re an occasional user and spend a lot of time online.

My point is that only simple commercial apps can be replaced with open-source ones (which are a way better in most cases).

While I agree with many of the points made here by users, regarding the fact that open source has great community support, that you can find a solution to nearly anything on open source software and that it will constantly evolve, I still think paid apps have a fundamental advantage.

With a paid app you do have a better structure, as designers have been paid to facilitate this side of the product, the code structure is better and more reliable, and there is usually a good customer support structure in place. I’d be interested to see what alternative apps people suggest in the user comments.