Industry sponsors free software collaborative development
SourceForge hosts over 6,000 software projects.
Mon, 17 Jul 2000 13:08:42 +0200
From Computergram
Sunnyvale, CA -- VA Linux Systems, Inc., a provider of Linux and Open Source
solutions for the Web, announced that
SourceForge, a large Open Source
development center, now hosts over 6,000 software projects and 40,000
registered users, at a current growth rate of 23 percent per month.
Since its official launch on January 4, 2000, SourceForge (sourceforge.net)
has offered programming, project management and communication tools at no cost
to Open Source developers, and serves as a central resource and repository for
Open Source software.
Other recent developments on SourceForge include the availability of the
most up-to-date changes to XFree86, the graphical engine for Linux and UNIX;
hosting development of MySQL, the popular Open Source database; and new
features such as a project document manager.
The XFree86 Project, producers of XFree86 - the graphical framework used by
most user interfaces for Linux and UNIX - has made its development source tree
available via SourceForge. Users now have access to the most up-to-date
enhancements and bug fixes for XFree86. The XFree86 Project released the
long-awaited 4.0 version in March 2000, followed by the release of version
4.0.1 in early July. For information on how to access the XFree86 CVS
repository, see
http://www.xfree86.org .
"By moving the public XFree86 CVS repository to SourceForge, we're making it
possible for anyone to download, track and contribute to XFree86 development
as it progresses," said David Dawes, president of The XFree86 Project. "This
live access to XFree86 development is enabling a broader community of
developers and users to test the software earlier and more often, resulting in
faster bug fixes and accelerated development. It's been a pleasure working
with the SourceForge Team to make this happen."
As announced on June 28, MySQL, a leading Linux database, recently moved
development to SourceForge after re-licensing its database software under the
GNU General Public License (GPL), as part of a broader strategic alliance with
VA Linux Systems. The MySQL database is popular for its speed and extensive
support by many Open Source applications, including Apache and PHP.
"SourceForge has strengthened our worldwide mirroring system for
distribution of the latest MySQL releases. In addition, we have already begun
work on porting MySQL to IA-64 Linux by using SourceForge's Intel Itanium
processor prototype compile farm," said Monty Widenius, project leader on
MySQL. "Through SourceForge, we hope to encourage more developers to
contribute to MySQL and support the new IA-64 architecture from Day One."
The SourceForge DocManager gives project administrators an easy way to
solicit and manage documentation contributed by members of their development
teams or the broader Open Source community - all in a central location. During
its first week of availability, over 60 projects have made use of the
DocManager.
"We are extremely pleased with the continued success and growth of
SourceForge," said John T. Hall, vice president, VA Linux Systems.
"SourceForge demonstrates not only VA Linux Systems' understanding and support
of the Open Source community, but also its ability to design, implement and
manage large-scale ASP infrastructures."
VA Linux Systems is an expert provider of Linux and Open Source solutions
for the Web. Founded in 1993, VA Linux provides a single point of contact for
optimized Linux servers, Open Source software, and world-class professional
services and support. VA Linux is located on the Web at
www.valinux.com.
IBM Bankrolls European Linux to Tune of $200m
Date: Mon, 24 Jul 2000 14:46:40
From Computergram
IBM Bankrolls European Linux to Tune of $200m
IBM Corp has moved to extend its support for Linux by
announcing more than $200m investment in the open source
operating system during the next four years across Europe. IBM
will open a series of European development centers to help ISVs
port their applications to Linux, and the company will provide
Linux-ready servers, storage systems and middleware including
Websphere, Lotus Domino and DB2.
The centers will be located in Paris and Montpellier in France;
Greenock and Hursley in the UK; Boeblingen in Germany; Warsaw
in Poland; and Budapest in Hungary.
Development centers will provide workshops and technical
support services aimed at helping Linux developers design and
code their applications; Linux testing capabilities - using
S/390, RS/6000, NUMA, AS/400 and Netfinity platforms - and
Linux performance tools to evaluate reliability and
performance.
IBM will also deploy 600 specialized Linux consultants,
hardware and software specialists, and services staff, and the
company also announced alliances with Linux-business partners
in distribution and development. IBM will work with value added
reseller Logix which has distribution rights to Red Hat
enterprise products in France and Belgium, while SuSE will work
with IBM to make Linux available on all IBM servers. "We
strongly support Linux, and want to attract more people to it,"
said IBM vice president for technology and strategy Irving
Wadalsky-Berger.
Oracle teams with Collab.Net to court programmers
From: EDUCAUSE
Subject: Edupage, 24 July 2000
ORACLE TEAMS WITH COLLAB.NET TO COURT PROGRAMMERS
Oracle has joined forces with open-source software startup
Collab.Net
to provide an online marketplace for software developers to work with
one another on projects and connect with companies for job
opportunities. The marketplace will be part of Oracle Technology
Network, the company's Web site for software developers. Job
information from Web sites such as
Developers.net,
Niku.com
, and
WorkExchange will be featured on the new marketplace. In addition,
software developers will use the marketplace to share source code with
one another. Oracle aims to ease the shortage of developers needed to
create software for the high-tech industry by providing an online
meeting place, says Oracle's Rene Bonvanie. Oracle has also modified
its Web site to include a section that helps database administrators
learn about Oracle technology and to let visitors buy books on
software development from
ibooks.com. Oracle's efforts to woo
developers follow similar moves by rivals IBM and Microsoft. (CNet,
24 July 2000)