elevateIT - Open Source Blog

Linux Foundation's Jim Zemlin on the Virtues of Open Source

Submitted by admin. on 2007-10-20 17:56.

"We take a long view, saying that Linux desktop may have gotten a later start in the game, but because of this shared innovation and the rapid development model, we think, over time, functionally, the Linux desktop will be superior to Windows. It's just a matter of timing," said Jim Zemlin, director of the Linux Foundation.

Comments: 0

OSI approves two Microsoft shared source licenses

Submitted by admin. on 2007-10-20 16:31.

San Francisco (IDGNS) - The board of the Open Source Initiative (OSI) has approved two Microsoft licenses that allow proprietary source code to be shared, a move that is likely to inspire protest and spur controversy for die-hard open source proponents. ADVERTISEMENT The Microsoft Public License (MPL) and the Microsoft Reciprocal License (MRL), two of Microsoft's "shared source" licenses, are now viable OSI licenses for distributing open source code alongside more widely used community licenses such as the GNU General Public License and the Mozilla Public License. "Today's approval by the OSI concludes a tremendous learning experience for Microsoft, and I look forward to our continued participation in the open source community," said Microsoft general manager of Windows Server Marketing and Platform Strategy Bill Hilf in a press statement.

Comments: 0

Sun offers potpourri of open-source plans

Submitted by admin. on 2007-10-20 16:28.

San Francisco (InfoWorld) - Sun offered informational updates Monday on several ongoing efforts in the open-source arena, including product plans for the OpenSolaris version of the Solaris OS, Java, and the GlassFish application server. ADVERTISEMENT Cited were improvements like a binary release of OpenSolaris and plans for dynamic scripting support in Sun's Java Virtual Machine. Executives from throughout the company met with the media at Sun's Santa Clara, Calif. headquarters campus for an open-source "summit" briefing. "We have so many people who work on open source inside Sun," that they must be brought together for an annual conference, said Simon Phipps, chief open-source officer at the company.

Comments: 0

Microsoft licences get open source nod

Submitted by admin. on 2007-10-20 16:21.

In a surprising announcement the Open Source Initiative said it had approved two of Microsoft's licences as being acceptable for licensing open source software. While many within the open source community will view this as tantamount to allowing a wolf into sheep's clothing, the OSI board (which did not a approve a less permissive third licence) appears to be happy with these two. OSI president Michael Tiemann wrote that the OSI board had approved the Microsoft Public License (Ms-PL) and the Microsoft Reciprocal License (Ms-RL). "The decision to approve was informed by the overwhelming (though not unanimous) consensus from the open source community that these licenses satisfied the 10 criteria of the Open Source definition, and should therefore be approved."

Comments: 0

IBM partners in scheme to reduce poverty

Submitted by admin. on 2007-10-20 16:20.

BM has announced that it will collaborate with the Grameen Foundation to help microfinance institutions (MFIs) better serve the world's poor communities. Together they will expand the Grameen Foundation's open source microfinance software platform, Mifos. The goal is to provide MFIs with software that streamlines the lending process and cuts costs so that they can expand their operations to provide loans to more people and offer a wider range of services. IBM will assist in building added functionality and making the application more robust.

Comments: 0

EU antitrust ruling renews hope for developers

Submitted by admin. on 2007-10-20 17:51.

San Francisco (IDGNS) - Microsoft's defeat in a European appeals court Monday has left open-source developers hopeful about the future although still dissatisfied with the company's compliance with a 3-year-old antitrust ruling. The European Commission ordered Microsoft to license its workgroup server communications protocols to rivals in March 2004, aiming to make it easier for those companies to develop and sell enterprise software interoperating -- and competing -- with Microsoft's own products. So far, though, there have been few takers for the licenses Microsoft now proposes under its WSPP (Workgroup Server Protocol Program) -- and the licenses have proved useless to open-source developers.

Comments: 0

Open source court ruling impacts debated

Submitted by admin. on 2007-08-30 17:45.

San Francisco (InfoWorld) - A recent federal court ruling pertaining to open-source software in model railroads could derail enforcement of open-source licenses altogether, according to Mark Radcliffe, general counsel for the Open Source Initiative. If allowed to stand, the decision could withhold an important and expected remedy from open-source licensors, that being the ability to get an injunction against license violations, Radcliffe said. But the case does not necessarily set a precedent for other judges to follow, countered Eben Moglen, founding director of the Software Freedom Law Center.

Comments: 0

Does the Linux Patent Suit Involve Microsoft?

Submitted by admin. on 2007-10-20 16:35.

If you expected to read a story someday about a new patent-infringement suit against Linux, this is it. But, while neither of the plaintiffs in this lawsuit is named Microsoft, at least one technology law blog is suggesting the Redmond, Washington-based software giant might be involved. ADVERTISEMENT Several news outlets are reporting that IP Innovation LLC and Technology Licensing Corp. have sued Red Hat and Novell in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, claiming patent infringement from such products as the Red Hat Linux system and Novell's SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop and SUSE Linux Enterprise Server. The plaintiffs are seeking an injunction and damages, and have alleged that, because Red Hat and Novell had notice of the patents, their infringement is willful.

Comments: 0

Is it easier to hire open source developers?

Submitted by admin. on 2007-10-20 16:14.

Chatting to Steve Raby, UK country manager for open source ECM vendor Nuxeo yesterday, an interesting point was raised around the issue of motivation of open source developers versus developers on proprietary poducts, and hiring them. Namely: what are the benefits of hiring open source developers, and what are the benefits of developing open source software if you're looking to get hired. Naturaly Steve, who hails from JBoss, will have a biased view of such matters - after all it is his job to sell the idea of open source software to enterprises. But his thesis made sense and is based on his experience so I shall repeat it here.

Comments: 0

O3Spaces 2.2: A step closer to open source

Submitted by admin. on 2007-10-20 16:11.

O3Spaces is a proprietary integrated collaboration and document management application for workgroups and businesses. Almost a year after its launch, the company behind the software has released version 2.2 beta. While the new version doesn't offer any earth-shattering new features, O3Spaces 2.2 sports a wealth of improvements aimed at solidifying its position as a viable alternative to Microsoft SharePoint.

Comments: 0

Talking FOSS at the UN

Submitted by admin. on 2007-10-20 16:07.

When Nathan Eckenrode goes to the United Nations in New York City next week to help demonstrate the technology behind open source software, he doesn't really expect to discover the answer to world peace. If he gets a little closer, though, he's all right with that. Last year the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) and the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) held a joint meeting to discuss the feasibility of using free and open source software (FOSS) as a means to bolster the growth of technology in developing countries. Delegates were intrigued by the information presented by such notables as the Free Software Foundation's Richard Stallman, Intel's Danese Cooper, and IBM's Bob Sutor, and asked to hear more about the real-world practicality of FOSS.

Comments: 0

Open source booming in Asia

Submitted by admin. on 2006-12-13 20:27.

Open source code is now used by over 70 per cent of software developers in Asia, according to a new report. The number of developers using open source in the region has surged more than 40 per cent in just three years, Evans Data Corporation revealed in a recent survey of software engineers. "Developers who faced difficult coding assignments had a harder time before open source software became common," said the research firm.

Comments: 0

A first run with IBM's free office suite

Submitted by admin. on 2007-09-19 20:51.

Computer giant IBM yesterday released a free office suite for Windows and Linux machines called Lotus Symphony. Symphony is available from the Symphony website which requires users to register and be logged on to download the software. Symphony is made up of three applications: Lotus Symphony Documents, Lotus Symphony Spreadsheets and Lotus Symphony Presentations. Lotus Symphony supports multiple file formats including Microsoft Office and ODF (Open Document Format), and can also output content in PDF format. Symphony is available for both Linux and Windows platform and houses much of the same technology as IBM's enterprise-grade Lotus Notes 8 product.

Comments: 0

EU court upholds Microsoft anti-trust decision

Submitted by admin. on 2007-09-19 20:31.

A European Union court on Monday dismissed Microsoft's appeal against the 2004 ruling which found the company had abused its dominant market position to score over rivals. Microsoft's lawyers failed to impress the European Court of First Instance, which not only dismissed the case but also rejected the appeal against the €497 million ($690 million) fine imposed on the company. Update: Red Hat has issued a statement about the Commission's ruling.

Comments: 0

Open-Source-Musikbörse gestartet

Submitted by admin. on 2006-02-09 14:28.

Der Musikbrowser Songbird ermöglicht Zugang zu verschiedensten kommerziellen und kostenlosen Musikportalen. Von Mitentwicklern von Winamp und Firefox kommt die eben fertig gestellte Musik-Browser-Software Songbird. Aufgabe des Singvogels ist es, MP3s nicht nur in einem bestimmten, sondern vielen verschiedenen Musikportalen zu finden. Auf diesem Weg soll der Musikfreund leichter Zugang zu langgesuchten Songs erhalten. Eine Preview-Version für Windows steht bereits online, weitere Betriebssystem werden in den nächsten Wochen versorgt...

Comments: 0

Frankreichs Polizei ersetzt Microsoft Office durch Open-Source-Software

Submitted by admin. on 2006-02-09 14:24.

Rund 45 000 Polizisten arbeiten seit dem vergangenen Jahr mit der Open-Source-Software, berichtete Nicolas Géraud, IT-Manager im französischen Verteidigungsministerium auf der Konferenz Solutions Linux in Paris. Zuvor war Microsofts Office-Suite im Einsatz. Mehr als 80 Prozent der Beamten greifen zudem auf eine eigenentwickelte Backoffice-Software zu, die die Behörde unter Verwendung von Open-Source-Systemen entwickelt hat...

Comments: 0

Gründung: Open Source Geospatial Foundation gegründet

Submitted by admin. on 2006-02-09 14:23.

Am vergangenen Samstag trafen sich in Chicago 25 Repräsentanten von Unternehmen und Open Source Projekten aus dem GIS-Umfeld, um über die Gründung der bis dato geplanten 'MapServer Foundation' zu beraten. Das Ergebnis der Konferenz ist die Gründung der 'Open Source Geospatial Foundation', einer Non-Profit-Organisation mit dem Ziel, Open Source-Projekte im Geo-Umfeld zu unterstützen und deren Verbreitung zu fördern...

Comments: 0

Effective application of an Open Source CMS in a large EU organization

Submitted by admin. on 2006-02-09 13:56.

This year´s award-winning project of SYSLAB.COM is proof of the fact that Open Source plays an ever increasing role in the organisation of the information world. At the annual International Information Industry (III) Awards in London the new CMS-Portal of the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work, based on the Open Source product elevateIT, won in the category “Project Awards - Innovation in Content Management” (http://www.online-information.co.uk/ol05/awardwinners.html)...

Comments: 0

Microsoft blockiert internationale Konferenz zu Open Source

Submitted by admin. on 2006-02-08 15:25.

Microsoft hat offenbar die Durchführung einer Konferenz der World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) zur Förderung von Open Source verhindert. Die in der Schweiz beheimatete Organisation vertritt Mitglieder aus 180 Nationen und hatte eine internationale Konferenz zur Förderung von Open Source geplant. Rund 60 WIPO-Wissenschaftler hatten in einem offenen Brief im Wissenschaftsmagazin Nature zur Teilnahme an der Konferenz aufgerufen. Aus einem Bericht der Washington Post geht hervor, dass es Microsoft durch Lobbyarbeit im Auswärtigen Amt der USA sowie dem Patentamt erreicht hat, dass diese Konferenz nun nicht stattfindet...

Comments: 0

Nasdaq integriert Akquisitionen mit Open-Source-Software

Submitted by admin. on 2006-02-03 17:14.

Die US-Technologiebörse Nasdaq will ihr proprietäres Order-Erfassung- und Ausführungs-System “Super-Montage” durch eine Open-Source-Software ersetzen. Die neue Applikation gehört zur Mitgift des Broker-Unternehmens Instinet Group Inc., dessen Akquisitiod ie Nasdaq angekündigt hat…

Comments: 0