[libreplanet-discuss] Reasons to free/open source internal company code

[Rudolf]

I'm trying to explain the benefits of releasing internal tools and libraries as free software. Currently the company has released two libraries under the modified BSD license.

The only reasons we have for doing this are that it makes the company look good in the community (and could be used for recruiting) and that it benefits the community.

I want to release the deployment tool we're using but I can't quite find the right reasoning to use. The arguments against this are that the tool is too specific to our setup, and that it isn't polished enough to be released.

How do I counter these arguments? What sorts of practical reasons and examples can I use to encourage more licensing of internal tools as free software?