Linux Foundation Makes Open Source Boring 87
superapecommando noted an essay by Glyn Moody where he writes "In the early days of free software, the struggle was just to get companies to try this new and rather unconventional approach, without worrying too much about how that happened. That typically meant programs entering by the back door, surreptitiously installed by in-house engineers who understood the virtues of the stuff — and that it was easier to ask for forgiveness after the event than for permission before.
[The Linux Foundation tries] to take all the fun out of free software. They are about removing the quirkiness and the riskiness that has characterized free software in business for the last decade and a half, and seek to replace it with nice, safe systems that senior management will instantly fall in love with. In a word, they seek to make open source boring for the enterprise. That's not only good news for companies, it's a really important step for the Linux Foundation."
In a decade of working in the software industry (Score:3, Informative)
I'd say my experience has been similar in that we often usezZZZZZzzzzz *snort* zZZZZZzzz......*snore*...zzzZZZZzzzzzz.........
Re:So? (Score:5, Informative)
I think the news part is that the Linux Foundation is apparently releasing tools for dependency mapping and license inspection so that you can actually tell at a glance what licensing requirements you're going to face. Apparently it inspects dynamic and static symbol tables to see what you're linking against and in what way to find out if you're technically a 'derivative work' or not, among other issues.
Open source is boring (Score:2, Informative)
But that's a good thing in my book. Takes a little longer to get things set up and configured, but once you do, it stays working. No Wednesday am WTF?! No panic when the virus of the day rolls around.
It took Microsoft until Windows 7 to produce an OS almost as boring.
Re:Now it is dangerous (Score:3, Informative)
Why would you have to pay any fees for distributing GPL licensed software? All you have to do is provide the source code of your derivation. If you haven't modified the software, even an acknowledging link to http://www.busybox.net/ [busybox.net] is more than enough.