Open source group's driving force makes way in structural change
Open source group's driving force makes way in structural change
Feb 2, 2005: One of the most influential figures in the open source community has stepped down from his role as president of the Open Source Initiative (OSI) as the organisation looks to expand its activities beyond its stewardship of the open source definition and the certification of open source licenses consistent with that definition.
Eric Raymond, who is also co-founder of the OSI, will continue to do "outreach and ambassadorial work" for the organisation. Raymond has helped open source software gain acceptance as a commercially viable alternative to proprietary applications in the enterprise space, both through his writing and his work with the OSI.
"One of the natural growth passages of a successful institution is outgrowing the need for its founders to be running things," said Raymond. "One of the most important parts of any founder or leader's responsibility is to know when to step aside and let that growth happen."
The OSI intends to broaden its scope of activities to include the establishment of principles of open source development and best practices; the creation of a registry of software projects that adhere to those principles; the definition of open standards that are consistent with open source (licenses, principles, and practices); and inclusion of international perspectives and initiatives related to open source.
"Open source isn't limited to individuals and the hacker community anymore. Organisations of all sizes, state, local, and national governments are embracing free and open source software and are adopting it in record numbers. Stresses on the open source community, including big corporate involvement and the expectations of a growing user community are challenges OSI can help with", said Russ Nelson, who replaces Raymond as president of the OSI.
"We'll be offering initiatives aimed at meeting the needs of what has become a serious and professional software ecosystem."
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