Open-source software is often described as a triumph of cooperative labor over proprietary control. The description fits many flagship projects. But contemporary analyses of major repositories show that a small number of unpaid maintainers handle a disproportionate share of critical updates, suggesting that the cooperative ideal coexists with a substantial dependence on overworked individuals.
Which choice best describes the function of the third sentence in the text?
- A
It rejects the cooperative description of open-source software.
- Bcheck_circle
It qualifies the cooperative description by identifying a structural dependence on a small number of maintainers.
- C
It introduces a competing software model.
- D
It restates the first sentence using different words.
Explanation
The third sentence concedes the cooperative ideal but pairs it with a maintainer-dependence finding. B captures this qualifying function.