Archive for the 'Open Standards' Category
Wednesday, July 2nd, 2008
Bob Sutor goes 100% Linux on the desktop; Mac surges; where’s Windows?
Nice to see Bob Sutor has made the complete switch to Linux for laptop use at work. I remember the day I wiped out my Windows partition on my laptop - it was memorable. I then went an entire year booting Windows in VMWare only about 3-5 times.
It’s great to see the transition starting to happen everywhere. Even if some of the transitions are to Mac, it’s greater choice.
This is all going to be even easier as technologies like Firefox, OpenOffice/ODF and open standards start to permeate the set of options available to users.
Tuesday, June 24th, 2008
Shameless Analyst Report Plug: “IBM & Linux – 9 Years Later”
A colleague sent me a link to this analyst paper today that takes a look at whether IBM has made good on the Linux promises it made back in 1999. I’m obviously biased, but I’m interested in hearing if anyone has thoughts on this topic.
Here’s the report: ftp://ftp.software.ibm.com/linux/pdfs/GCG_IBM_and_Linux-9_years_later.pdf
The opening teaser:
In 1999, IBM issued a series of announcements fully committing the company to supporting Linux. IBM vowed to Linux-enable all of their hardware platforms, including their non-x86 based mainframe, mini, and RISC-based systems. They also promised to release Linux versions of their software products and develop
Linux-centric service practices. Moreover, they pledged significant resources to the Linux community with the goal of advancing Linux and open source technology.So, nine years later, did IBM deliver on these promises? Was their commitment to Linux genuine or just lip service? This report examines IBM’s current Linux products, services, and community support in light of the promises they made in 1999…
While I think it’s obvious IBM has been a huge investor in the Linux community, one thing that I noticed reading the report is just how much IBM is actually different from other community members. There are some noticeable differences in the investments and approach to supporting the Linux platform and community. I often forget to just take in all the Linux technologies IBM has been heavily involved in from Xen, KVM and libvirt to filesystems, to systemtap, kprobes and then there’s RAS, scalability and performance enhancements.
Another interesting thought to reflect on is just how important it has been that there are multiple investors in this field. If this report captures just what IBM did, think of the industry combined. IBM couldn’t have done anything this big with Linux if it weren’t for co-creating with a community of enthusiasts, researchers, governments, Intel, AMD, Google, Nokia, Motorola, Oracle and thousands more. What would the report look like if you compiled all the investments and work the entire community leveraged across the industry. Linux is “bigger than huge” when you stop to think about it. This is also why I’ve said for a couple years now when you extend the investment model 3 to 5 years into the future, Sun and its anti-Linux, Solaris push against the tide of the industry loses in the end. I think we’re starting to witness that now. Sure, OpenSolaris is a great idea… it’s just 9 years late and it’s too late to matter now.
I’m interested in outside perspectives too - where do you think IBM stands? Has the community development and investment model worked? Where will this lead in the future and what will be the next evolution of the model? Red Hat seems to think the model will evolve to include increased customer co-creation - I tend to agree. Why? Because the incentive model to invest aligns very well - and when you have alignment, it almost naturally will happen.
Tuesday, May 27th, 2008
OOXML: “Dead Format Walking”
Jason Brooks’ title sums it all up succinctly.
Since most Office users would be happy to continue using Microsoft’s old binary formats, and since those for whom open standards are important would probably prefer ODF or PDF formats anyhow, I won’t be surprised if OOXML quietly dies before that future Office iteration ever sees the light of day.
Friday, May 9th, 2008
An honest look at Xen and a future with KVM
I think we can finally admit that we, the Linux community, made a very big mistake with Xen. Xen should have never been included in a Linux distribution. There, I’ve said it. We’ve all been thinking it, have whispered it in closed rooms, and have done our bests to avoid it.
He makes a very valid point that the Xen kernel will never be upstream and therefore it will always be an extra layer. The difference between Xen or other packages around the kernel is that Xen is at the core its own kernel. This is what makes KVM so attractive - you don’t need that extra layer (which creates complexity no matter what).
Quite simply, Xen is not, and will never be, a part of Linux. Therefore, including it in a Linux distribution has only led to massive user confusion about the relationship between Linux and Xen.
Now one thing Anthony didn’t mention is that the ability to swap Xen as the virtualization technology with another, future, and better technology was something the kernel developers perceived long ago. Because of that foresight, most people are starting to use libvirt which abstracts the interface layer into managing virtualization hypervisors like Xen and KVM. What does this mean for enterprise and ordinary users alike? The migration from one technology like Xen to another like KVM can be done near seamlessly because the libvirt-based management tools can plug into either hypervisor, checkpoint start/stop, and bring the images up on another hypervisor.
Thursday, May 1st, 2008
Adobe’s opening up (a little)
Good direction for Adobe - I’d like to say there was more, but for now, this is a good direction.
http://www.adobe.com/openscreenproject/
Just notice Cote covered the action: http://www.redmonk.com/cote/2008/05/01/adobes-open-screen-project-a-plan-lower-barriers-to-using-flash-checking-up-on-the-ria-wars/
Tuesday, April 29th, 2008
Shameless Plug: IBM Next Generation Linux Event in NYC
If you’re in the NYC area, IBM is hosting a great “Next Generation Linux” event at the Hilton on Church St. It should be a great day of speakers discussing where Linux is heading, what makes Linux unique and “special”, and what workloads are great for running Linux. It’s a packed session from 9-12 (breakfast at 8 if you’re an early riser).
You can register here:
https://www-950.ibm.com/events/wwe/grp/grp017.nsf/agenda?openform&seminar=692H5MES&locale=en_US/
| Time | Description |
|---|---|
| 8:00 am | Registration & Continental Breakfast |
| 9:00 am | Welcome & Introduction |
Linux and Innovation
|
|
| Break | |
Linux for Business-Critical Workloads
|
|
| Break | |
Breakout Sessions
|
|
| A Customer’s Perspective: Linux for Business Critical Workloads | |
| 12:00 pm | Wrap Up & Q&A |
| RSVP for Lunch! Take this opportunity to chat with the speakers and to network |
Monday, April 21st, 2008
OOXML: A standard with no implementation
Even Microsoft cannot conform to its own OOXML standard…
Thursday, April 3rd, 2008
Who really writes “Linux”? A special report from the Linux Foundation
Steven posted a good eWeek article summarizing the recent Linux Foundation report on who writes and contributes to the Linux kernel development. Too many have written blogs with titles like “who writes Linux” that I had to put “Linux” in quotes in my title. The reason is that this document/report is about the Linux kernel and there are many things that people commonly associate with “Linux” that are outside the kernel. Think of Gnome which is written by the Gnome community, KDE which is sponsored by Trolltech, package management tools from Red Hat, Debian or Novell (e.g. YaST, Apt Yum), a multitude of libraries, and even OpenOffice which is still controlled by Sun, but now with contributions from IBM.
So I would agree this report is fantastic - it provides a view into what’s going on beyond what we “think” happens. The Linux kernel community is a great success story in what Amanda calls “mass community collaboration” - even more ironic because there are many competitors, vendors, academics, hobbyists, customers and other random experts collaborating in one place.
Read the report (it’s “free as in beer”) and find out everything you wanted to know about Linux kernel development (including perhaps that IBM is the #3 contributor to the kernel). The story this report tells is a truly unique feature of the Linux community. You won’t see it anywhere in the communities or practices of other OSs, no matter how “open” they proclaim to have become.
The report is interesting in how it also debunks some myths that somehow get spread around. For instance, some have said “kernel development will slow down as the features catch up to UNIX/Windows”. Not true.
Some have said “Linux is just IBM” or “Linux is just Red Hat” trying to position Linux as dominated or caused by one entity that they’re not fond of. Again, not true (see the section of the report on Contributors).
Finally, take a look at how some end user companies are participating and reaping the benefits of a true collaborative development community. Did you know your next VW will be powered by Linux? Did you ever think the same features that make an auto’s systems “crash-proof” could also help on a server or mobile phone? The VW bullet is a pure example of innovation being applied to adjacent spaces - it would never happen in Windows, AIX or Solaris.
- Companies like Sony, Nokia, and Samsung ship Linux as a component of products like video cameras, television sets, and mobile telephones. Working with the development process helps these companies ensure that Linux will continue to be a solid base for their products in the future.
- Companies which are not in the information technology business can still find working with Linux beneficial. The 2.6.25 kernel will include an implementation of the PF_CAN network protocol which was contributed by Volkswagen. PF_CAN allows for reliable communications between components in an interference-prone environment – such as that found in an automobile. Linux gave Volkswagen a platform upon which it could build its networking code; the company then found it worthwhile to contribute the code back so that it could be maintained with the rest of the kernel. http://lwn.net/Articles/253425/ for more information on this work.
So with that I will end my praises and simply point you to the source over at the LF website here.
Wednesday, March 26th, 2008
Happy Document Freedom Day 2008
In case you haven’t yet heard, today is apparently Document Freedom Day ;-)
http://documentfreedom.org/News/20080326
Thursday, March 20th, 2008
OpenOffice 3.0 Preview
I can’t wait for this release. The Notes2 features are fantastic and probably the best feature will be native tables in Impress (FINALLY!). I wonder when these features will make it into Lotus Symphony… hopefully soon.
Check out the overview of new features here:
http://www.oooninja.com/2008/03/openofficeorg-30-new-features.html
Wednesday, March 19th, 2008
Eclipse takes on Java and .NET with OSGi model for run time apps
Very cool news…
http://blogs.zdnet.com/open-source/?p=2136&tag=nl.e622
Friday, March 7th, 2008
The Linux Foundation is looking for a Community Manager: it could be you!
If you read my blog, you’re a potentially interested party for a new Community Manager position at the Linux Foundation. One perk they didn’t list is that someone in this position will also get great visibility and interaction with the Linux leads and team members at the various member organizations (e.g. IBM, HP, Intel, AMD, Oracle, etc. etc.). If you’re interested in the Linux community, this is a great position to be in.
http://www.linux-foundation.org/en/Jobs#Linux_Foundation_Community_Manager
Linux Foundation Community Manager
Linux Foundation Community Manager
We’re looking for world class talent to join the non-profit organization that is accelerating Linux. If you’re passionate about Linux, there is no better place to work. We have a unique opportunity for the right individual to make a huge difference in Linux.
The Community Manager must have both a technical and business view of key issues facing Linux and can do the following:
- Organize workgroups by galvanizing member leaders and participants. Push agendas on calls and in Collaboration Summit meetings. Recruit the right people and enable them to lead the workgroups. This person will be the LF liaison between us and our members.
- Build community in these workgroups and in the general LF online presence by writing content, recruiting volunteers to write content and managing new web properties and strategies. This is a chance for you to be creative and be a thought leader.
- Be a technical source for Linux issues for LF management and prepare them for press and speaking opps in specific areas of expertise.
- Handle details around LF workgroups and advisory councils. You will own these groups so you are responsible for everytihng, down to the details. If you’re used to a large staff to handle details for you, this is probably not the right job for you.
- Assist LF staff with conference and events. This could be writing and leading workgroup sessions, recruiting the right people, speaking at conferences, etc.
- Assist engineering in LSB content and community. (Moderating forums, recruiting participants, etc. for a new Web property.)
- You must understand the Linux ecosystem, especially server-related Linux issues, and be technical. (You don’t have to be a kernel programmer but you need to know who they are individually. If someone says GCC you know what that means.)
- You need to be able to express yourself in writing but just as importantly you need to be able to organize and run a meeting. You need to be able to do details and get things done but also have a big picture view.
- You have to be politically savvy and understand motivations and sensitivities of divergent people and groups.
- Web programming or at least a high proficiency in new web strategies is preferred.
If you’d like to apply for this job, please send your resume to angela (at) linux-foundation (dot) org.
Wednesday, February 27th, 2008
Microsoft gets slapped by the EU for another record fine - will it really help??
Perhaps Microsoft’s recent, lame “open” announcements were prompted by an impending $1.3B fine… does anyone really think this will stop Microsoft? It’s just a tax and you know who will bear the cost (yes, those using Microsoft’s products, or Microsoft’s investors). I think a better solution would have been to look at what market structure would be necessary to facilitate the behavior that is needed. I think when it comes to Microsoft and its constant run-ins with antitrust regulators it is evident fines are not working. The industry needs regulators to step in with an effective structural change.
http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2008/02/27/ap4702025.html?partner=alerts
BRUSSELS, Belgium - The European Union fined Microsoft Corp. a record euro899 million (US$1.3 billion) on Wednesday for charging rivals too much for software information.
EU regulators said the company charged “unreasonable prices” until last October to software developers who wanted to make products compatible with the Windows desktop operating system.
Monday, February 4th, 2008
IBM’s Bob Sutor responds to Microsoft’s… nonsense and whining
Saw this article over at Ars today:
We spoke to Bob Sutor, vice president of standards and open source for IBM, who responded to Microsoft’s recent claims regarding IBM’s involvement in the OOXML dispute. “IBM believes that there is a revolution occurring in the IT industry, and that smart people around the world are demanding truly open standards developed in a collaborative, democratic way for the betterment of all,” Sutor told Ars. “If ‘business as usual’ means trying to foist a rushed, technically inferior and product-specific piece of work like OOXML on the IT industry, we’re proud to stand with the tens of countries and thousands of individuals who are willing to fight against such bad behavior.
Monday, January 21st, 2008
Ubuntu and IBM bring enterprise collaboration to a user friendly Linux desktop
I read this news release with great excitement and will take a shameless opportunity to plug what I think is a fantastic partnership. The news? IBM’s Lotus group has announced support of its Open Collaboration Client Solution (OCCS) for Ubuntu Linux. OCCS is a layer of rich client communications apps including IBM Lotus Notes 8.5 (Calendaring, Email), Sametime 7.x (Instant Messaging), and Symphony (OpenOffice in an Eclipse RCP form). I’ve switched to Ubuntu for my primary system at home for well over a year now and while I took a very short break to dabble in Fedora 8, I’m back on Ubuntu again. I’ve been using a RHEL5 base at work for over a year as well but now that we have Ubuntu support coming, I’ll probably switch to Ubuntu once the OCCS solution is released (yes, I work in a strategy group in IBM and I don’t use Windows or MS Office - and most people can’t tell). The thing about working in IBM is that everyone uses Notes, Sametime, and ODF is even becoming more popular so there’s very little that prevents anyone from using Linux (or a Mac). Heck, many users can probably get away with an iPhone.
IBM also expanded the OCCS platform support with Red Hat EL Desktop and announced more partners around OCCS on Novell’s Suse Linux Enterprise Desktop (SLED).
What makes all this even better? Enterprise applications delivered in a rich client environment. Take for instance SAP, who today announced a joint product set with IBM that will be delivered through Lotus Notes (which we now know runs well on Linux)
The product, codenamed Atlantic, will allow users to access SAP’s Business Suite applications for workflows, reporting and analytics through IBM’s Lotus Notes desktop software.
So the ecosystem and vision is starting to come together. It’s early, but I would be remiss if I didn’t mention again that 2008 will be the year of the enterprise Linux client ;-) How many users will we be saying this for? :-) (Note, I didn’t say ‘desktop’ specifically, and I said ‘enterprise’). As we’ve been saying all along, there are certain segments of users that can easily do their work on a Linux client (many won’t even know it’s not Windows). Those companies who take advantage of user segmentation have a lot to benefit from both on pure cost alone, but also in the next round of negotiations on your non-Linux client systems ;-)
Monday, January 14th, 2008
Microsoft under EU investigation (again) for browser bundling
Could Britney Spears have relevance to Microsoft (e.g. “Oops I did it again”)? Reuters is covering a new investigation by the EC into Microsoft’s possible antitrust violations, this time for Internet Explorer.
The European Commission opened a new antitrust probe against Microsoft on Monday into whether it unfairly tied its Web browser to the Windows operating system and made it harder for rival software to work with Windows.
Thursday, January 10th, 2008
Ubuntu Live 2008 - Call for Papers
Mark Shuttleworth posted on his blog today a call for papers for Ubuntu Live 2008 in Portland (Oregon). You can see his blog here: http://www.markshuttleworth.com/archives/137
O’Reilly, the organisers of Ubuntu Live, have just issued the call for papers for Ubuntu Live 2008. The theme of the event is “Taking it Further”, which I think is perfect for Ubuntu this year!
Friday, January 4th, 2008
AP Interview with Red Hat’s new CEO, Jim Whitehurst
I like Jim already after reading this interview.
“We are working to democratize information,” Whitehurst said. “A lot of people don’t see the importance of that. But, ultimately, it is about information freedom and making sure information’s accessible.
“If we don’t fight those battles now, our entrenched competitors will lock up file formats, force you to use their software or force royalties,” he added. “Then the information stored in those formats will no longer be free.”
Tuesday, December 4th, 2007
Linux continues to evolve adding specialized purpose function into a general purpose OS
The great thing about Linux is that it’s a general purpose operating system that can be molded into a platform for anything from mobile devices, to printer embedded OS functionality to supercomputer and mainframes. Linux can also bring in certain features that may not apply to everyone but which cater to users with very specific needs. Like it or not as a mainstream security feature, SELinux has come quite far as evidenced in the latest RHEL5. SELinux also caters well to specific users with high security requirements. For those users, SELinux is probably easier to use than their other options and it is tailored to the needs they have.
Linux is now heading into another direction focusing on the specific needs for users with very low latency and determinism requirements. This can apply to anything from weapons systems for military applications, to Wall Street customers sell side trading systems, and even to SMS messaging in the telecommunications industry.
And so we’re beginning to see great strides shaping Linux for the needs of these user segments that demand low latency and determinism in both their operating system and applications. Platforms like IBM’s WebSphere Real Time and even Sun’s real time Java are currently running (or in Sun’s case, being ported to run) on a real time Linux operating system. With a real time Java machine, suddenly Java applications can inherit the benefits of a real time system. And so antiquated real time languages are suddenly… antiquated officially because a real time Linux and Java solution can marry a general purpose OS with a general purpose programming language for the best of both worlds. IBM has made great gains in the technology adding both a real time Java garbage collector and Ahead-of-Time compilation to make this a great solution compelling enough for the US Navy’s mission critical weapons systems.
Recently Novell has announced their SLERT product updates with great monitoring tools from Concurrent bundled in (and tighter integration of the kernel community real time patches - now a community standard?). I expect we’ll also soon hear more about Red Hat’s real time plans as well so stay tuned…
Wednesday, November 7th, 2007
Has Desktop Linux reached “The Tipping Point”?
You have to wonder when Malcolm would agree looking back 10 years from now, Linux hit the “Tipping Point”… when I see ordinary Windows users switching (and liking it), I can’t help but think, it might be tipping right now…
Well the Linux desktop is certainly here and I can prove it because as of today I’m officially an Ubuntu user and even though things aren’t perfect, I feel like I’ve finally escaped from jail.
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