In communications, especially with regard to the ISO Open Systems Interconnection model, a computer network designed to incorporate all devices – regardless of manufacturer or model- that can use the same communications facilities and protocols. In reference to individual pieces of computer hardware or software, an open system is one that can accept add-ons produced by third-party suppliers.

Is a system that transfers both matter and energy can cross its boundary to the surrounding environment. Most ecosystems are an example of an open system.

An open system is an aquatic system that uses an existing body of water, such as a beach or lake, as its source of water. Water is pumped from the body of water, through a LSS, to the tank(s), and back to the source. This type of system is often used in public aquariums and aquaculture facilities. Permits are usually required to utilize this type of system.

A system whose characteristics comply with standards made available throughout the industry and that therefore can be connected to other systems complying with the same standards. This openness allows computing resources to work together, linking with devices and applications across organizational and geographic boundaries—an essential element of on demand business.

A system that can exchange both matter and energy with the surroundings.

a system that exchanges energy, resources and information with its environment.

An operating system or API whose specifications are made available to ISVs, so that they can create compliant applications that users can purchase off the shelf; for example, TAPI, TSAPI, ASAI, DOS, Windows 3.1, Windows 95, Windows NT, and Macintosh. Closed operating systems are called "proprietary" systems.

A card System that involves multiple issuers of cards that can be used to access services or purchase products at multiple service providers. An open system requires the processing of interchange transactions, usually by an independent “system operator”.

Open systems have all parts are interconnected and have no boundaries (thus there is only one open system). Changing one part may thus affect any other part of the system. Relationships and linkages are important. Idealists see the world as an open system and Positivist attempts to create closed systems as futile and misleading. Idealism

A system that interacts freely with its environment, taking input and returning output. See also Closed system.

A system capable of communicating with other open systems by virtue of implementing common international standard protocols.

A system that fails to meet one or more of the requirements that set the criteria for a closed system.

A system which exchanges matter with the surroundings, it may also exchange energy with the surroundings.

A system that interacts with and is acted upon by its larger environment. The laws of thermodynamics proved that for life (which builds up complex systems, in apparent violation of the second law of thermodynamics) to occur an open system is necessary, because entropy must be dumped outside the individual being. The only way you could have life in a closed system would be as a perpetual motion machine, a physical impossibility. Note that this does not have to refer to only the dense physical dynamics of matter and energy; Steven Guth and I have proposed the concept of Astrognosis, whereby cosmic influences ray down on Earth. The Earth is not a closed system, a little bubble separate from everything else, but a holon that is part of a larger, galactic, ecology which incorporates "astrodevic" forces.

a co-evolutionary system that can move forward, interacting with all the best computing concepts no matter where they were invented

a computer system that can be extended and re-implemented in various ways because its key interfaces are published

a computer system that embodies supplier-independent standards so that software may be applied on many different platforms and can interoperate with other applications on local and remote systems

a computer system that permits the use of a wide range of software and hardware by many vendors

a healthy system

an evolutionary means for a substation control system that is based on the use of nonproprietary, standard software and hardware interfaces

a representation of a real system that is known to comply with the architecture and protocols

a solution that is non proprietary

a system that does not require authentication

a system that uses a general-purpose computer and a printer which is not dedicated to the printing of indicia for printing information-based indicia

a system where the components are made by different manufacturers and combined by the user in ways not always anticipated by the manufacturers

a system where the major components adhere to certain standards

a system which allows application portability, system interoperability, and user portability between many different computer vendor hardware platforms

a thermodynamic system in which energy and matter flow in and out

A Radiant Heat or Hydronic Heating system that is open to atmospheric conditions. In an open system components must be resistant to corrosion related to oxygen.

Describes a way of using an operating system that is characterized by a lack of advance knowledge about either the set of applications that will be run or their relative importances to the user or users. General-purpose operating systems are often used as open systems, meaning that users are free to install and run a new application at any time, with the expectation that all running applications will work properly as long as no resource (for example, memory, disk bandwidth, or CPU bandwidth) is oversubscribed.

a hydroponic system in which the nutrient solution passes only once through the plant roots; the leachate is not collected and returned to a cistern for repeated irrigations

A system with publicly known protocols or architectures, one that requires no special protocols and is simple to implement.

a system that does exchange matter as well as energy with the surroundings

A system that employs modular design, uses widely supported and consensus based standards for its key interfaces, and has been subjected to successful validation and verification tests to ensure the openness of its key interfaces.

A system that uses industry standard development approaches. Open systems allow issuers to call upon multiple suppliers for a given product.

A system with characteristics that comply with specified, publicly maintained, readily available standards and that therefore can be connected to other systems that comply with these same standards.

Where Both Energy & Matter are Exchanged with Surroundings OPENINGS See: Long Walls

A system that implements sufficient open specifications for interfaces, services, and supporting formats to enable properly engineered Application Software: To be ported with minimal changes across a wide range of systems To interoperate with other applications on local and remote systems To interact with users in a style that facilitates user portability

A system that provides for the body's metabolism in an aircraft or spacecraft cabin by removal of respiratory products and of waste from the cabin and by use of stored food and oxygen. Compare closed system.

A system that can connect and communicate with any other Open System using OSI standards.

Any barcode system that is designed to have the barcode labels read by scanners outside the control of the company printing the barcode label. Because the label will be scanned by barcode readers of unknown quality, the specification for the barcode label will be tighter in an open system.

Computer industry term for computer hardware and software that is built to common public standards, allowing purchasers to select components from a variety of vendors and use them together.

An open system is a collection of interacting software, hardware, and human components designed to satisfy stated needs with interface specifications of its components that are fully defined available to the public maintained according to group consensus in which the implementations of the components conform to the interface specifications

A system whose interfaces — for example, application programming interfaces (APIs) or protocols — conform to formal, multilateral, generally available industry standards. "Formal" implies that the standard is selected and maintained using a structured, public process. "Multilateral" implies that, while no technology is ever completely vendor-neutral, the standard is not controlled by a single vendor. "Generally available" implies that the specifications are fully published (preferably with source code of a reference implementation), and that anyone can readily obtain license rights for free or at low cost.

A computer system that allows application portability by adhering to and implementing industry standards, in contrast to a closed system which is implemented against a particular vendor's proprietary software and hardware technology .

is a system that is capable of communicating with other open systems through common international standard protocols.

system that has flows to or links with its environment.

A computer or communications system whose technical specifications are readily available to distributors, users and other third parties that want to add value to the system by developing their own customized versions for use or resale. Open systems are widely cloned.

In OSI, a data communications system that conforms to the standards and protocols.

An open heating system is one that is open to the environment or where the heating fluid is continuously replaced. For example, a domestic water heater is an open system because the heating fluid (fresh potable water) is constantly flowing through it. (See Closed System)

is a type of system which receives materials from external sources and releases materials to the outside

Some part of the System is open to the atmosphere, or system contains fresh or changeable water.

A thermodynamic system so chosen that there may be transfer of mass across the boundaries; for example, an air parcel undergoing a pseudoadiabatic expansion. Compare closed system.

A crankcase, emission-control system having no tube from the crankcase to the air cleaner; drawing air through the oil filter cap only.

An environment in which system access is not controlled by persons who are responsible for the content of electronic records that are on the system.

1. A system whose characteristics comply with standards made available throughout the industry and therefore can be connected to other systems complying with the same standards. 2. (IRM) A computer system with specifications that are public knowledge or domain.

A system that facilitates multivendor, multitechnology integration based on publicly available standards for subsystem interaction. Three characteristics of an open system are portability, scalability, and interoperability.

n. 1. In communications, a computer network designed to incorporate all devices--regardless of manufacturer or model--that can use the same communications facilities and protocols. 2. In reference to computer hardware or software, a system that can accept add-ons produced by third-party suppliers. See also open architecture (definition 1).

n: A system, such as a living organism, in which both matter and energy are exchanged between the system and the environment.

Open systems are computer systems that provide some combination of interoperability, portability, and open software standards. (It can also mean systems configured to allow unrestricted access by people and/or other computers; this article only discusses the first meaning.)

In thermodynamics, an open system is one whose border is permeable to both energy and mass. A closed system, by contrast, is permeable to energy but not to matter. The definition of a "system" is arbitrary; a system may be defined as the region of space under study being characterized by a collection of components or related in some way.

An open system is a feedforward system that does not have any feedback loop to control its output in a control system in systems theory. The system is an "open" system because it does not have a feedback loop in its control. In contrast, a closed system uses on a feedback loop to control the operation of the system.