Category: 1. Software Industry
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Looking for examples of open source user consortia
We are researching the governance of open source software foundations. We are specifically interested in what we call open source user consortia, that is, open source foundations where the users of the software are in the driver’s seat. A primary example would be Kuali, which hosts the development of software for academic institutions. A more…
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EU survey on open source software and standardization
Open source software and patents are a tricky topic and resolution of the many hairy issues may need new and/or revised laws. Fraunhofer Gesellschaft is currently running a survey for the European Union to gather broad stakeholder input on the topic. I encourage participation. Deadline is Nov 30th, 2018.
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Amazon’s announcement about Corretto and Java’s future
Ever since Oracle got their hands on Java (by way of acquiring Sun Microsystems), it has worked hard on making money of it. As far as I can tell, it has been as unsuccessful at this as the prior owner, Sun. Compared to Sun, Oracle upped the ante by way of suing Google over Dalvik,…
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No open-source software allowed in products and services
I was recently pointed to a German bank’s AGB (general purchasing terms and conditions), which contained the following clause: 9.5 The SUPPLIER guarantees that as part of provided services no open source software has been used. I think such a clause warrants a deeply humored #MUWHAHA. First, the factual. Even Windows contains open-source software. Open-source…
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Cargo cult startup incubators
The continued creation of me-too startup incubators reminds me of the (South Seas’) cargo cult. Richard Feynman tells the story this way: The cargo cult people were natives of the South Seas who, during the world war, benefited from Western civilizations bringing cargo to their land. After the war ended, and the cargo stopped coming,…
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On the state of using vs. contributing to open source
Digital Ocean just published a survey of developers that indicates how companies are getting more comfortable with using open source, but remain much less comfortable with contributing to open source. Matt Asay and Chris Aniszczyk picked up on this, suggesting that open source will become more sustainable if we get those contribution numbers up. What…