Software

Software decisions have a lifecycle of often more than 10 years. The choice of programming language, framework, or database determines an organisation's long-term recruiting capability, maintenance costs, and scalability.

This section provides objective assessments of the relevant technologies, from established languages (PHP, Python) and modern systems languages (Go, Rust) through to specific enterprise applications (Mautic, Tryton).

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Table of Contents

• Banana Accounting: Local accounting with full data sovereignty: Banana covers double-entry bookkeeping, income-expense accounting and VAT through local installation.
• C# and .NET: Productive enterprise development: C# and .NET combine strong typing, a broad standard library and mature Visual Studio and Azure tooling.
• Chatwoot: Centralised customer support with data sovereignty: Chatwoot bundles channels and keeps accounts, conversations and attachments on in-house infrastructure.
• Claude Code: AI-assisted development in the local project context: Claude Code can read files, prepare refactorings and work under clear supervision.
• Contao: Accessible CMS foundations: Contao provides semantic output, accessible templates and back-end tooling, while editorial discipline remains essential.
• Cursor IDE: Faster editor-driven changes: Cursor integrates language models into the IDE context and orchestrates multi-file work through natural language.
• Drupal: Structured content for complex portals: Drupal separates content, configuration and presentation and maps rich data relationships through entities.
• Duplicati: Sovereign backups with tested restore: Duplicati encrypts data client-side and stores incremental backups on NAS, cloud or other storage targets.
• Euro-Office: European office work with open code: Euro-Office is an AGPL fork of ONLYOFFICE, backed by European providers and aimed at digital sovereignty.
• Figma: Collaborative product design in the cloud: Figma is the market standard and makes data location a sovereignty question in the Swiss context.
• Flutter: Cross-platform UI development from one codebase: Flutter compiles to machine code and shortens development cycles with Hot Reload.
• Go: Portable infrastructure services with simple Deployment: Go produces static binaries and combines static typing, garbage collection and goroutines.
• Grav CMS: Fast, database-free and Git-managed websites: Grav reduces runtime overhead, keeps SQL injection surface closed and keeps content portable.
• Joomla: Flexible portals with built-in access control: Joomla supports hierarchical user groups, access levels, modules and position-based layouts in core.
• LAMP Stack: Portable web hosting foundations: Linux, Apache, MySQL and PHP form a proven open-source stack available as standard on many hosting platforms.
• Laravel: Standardised PHP application development: Laravel includes migrations, authentication, queue management and full-stack building blocks out of the box.
• LibreChat: Shared AI access under organisational control: LibreChat provides one self-hostable interface for many models, keys and data on owned infrastructure.
• LibreOffice: Local office work with desktop autonomy: LibreOffice uses OpenDocument natively and serves as a sovereignty reference for Microsoft compatibility.
• Matomo: Privacy-compliant web analytics with owned data storage: Matomo stores analytics on Swiss or EU infrastructure and simplifies nFADP and GDPR checks.
• Mautic: Centralised campaign automation with open source: Mautic combines landing pages, email workflows and lead scoring in one campaign platform.
• Nextcloud: Data, accounts and access rules stay under organisational control with Nextcloud, an AGPL platform for files, collaboration and communication.
• Node.js: Scalable real-time services and APIs gain a JavaScript runtime with Node.js, built on an event loop and backed by the broad npm ecosystem.
• Obsidian: Knowledge stays local, readable and extensible with Obsidian: Markdown files, strong linking and plugins for notes through project work.
• OpenCode: Code work moves into the terminal with OpenCode: an open AI coding agent that reads projects, proposes changes and keeps model choice open.
• Open WebUI: Language models gain an independent chat interface with Open WebUI, pooling local and compatible external models for offline-capable use.
• Penpot: Design files stay portable and controllable with Penpot: MPL 2.0 open source code, an open file format and browser-based workflows.
• PHP: Robust web applications gain a proven scripting language with PHP: simple scaling, shared-nothing execution and modern frameworks like Laravel.
• Podman: Container work stays close to Docker workflows with Podman, adding daemonless operation, rootless containers and Kubernetes manifest support.
• PostgreSQL: Transactional data and AI vectors share one stable base with PostgreSQL: strict SQL, modern extensibility and extensions such as pgvector.
• PostHog: Product behaviour becomes measurable with PostHog: events, funnels, session recordings and feature flags, with a self-hostable open core.
• Python: Data work, automation and AI gain a readable language with Python, backed by a broad standard library and early access to new AI models.
• Rocket.Chat: Team communication stays on chosen infrastructure with Rocket.Chat, combining real-time chat, Matrix interoperability and plan-based compliance options.
• rsync: Large file sets stay aligned efficiently with rsync: delta transfer sends changed data and supports backup, mirroring and distribution routines.
• Rust: System software gains performance and compile-time safety with Rust, whose ownership model supports secure infrastructure and WebAssembly work.
• Symfony: Large PHP projects gain a stable foundation with Symfony: reusable components, clear design patterns and architecture for long-lived applications.
• Syncthing: Files stay current across devices with Syncthing: peer-to-peer synchronisation for sovereign infrastructure and clear backup boundaries.
• Tryton: Business processes fit into one modular ERP with Tryton: accounting, sales, warehousing, production and projects on a clean technical core.
• TYPO3: Large multilingual portals gain structure and longevity with TYPO3: clear editorial roles, fine-grained permissions and a predictable LTS cycle.
• Vtiger CRM: Sales and service processes gain structure with Vtiger CRM: leads, quotes, invoices and project tracking in one integrated PHP application.
• Wiki.js: Maintained knowledge becomes machine-readable with Wiki.js: versioned Markdown pages, YAML headers and programmatic access through GraphQL.
• WiseMapping: Mind maps stay on self-run infrastructure with WiseMapping: open-source browser mapping, collaborative idea work and a clear view of project maturity.
• WordPress: Content-rich websites become manageable with WordPress: editorial workflows, broad plugin extensions and access for non-technical teams.