Stephen Walli

Yesterday morning saw reports in the Financial Times that "Oracle considers venturing into Linux". This was picked up by CNet (via Reuters) which set up the discussion about Oracle's desire to deliver a entire stack of technology to customers, and then drew attention to the quote that Oracle has even "considered buying Novell." And thus are rumor mills fed. Let's actually look at the discussion in a business context: In an interview with the Financial Times, Larry Ellison said that Oracle wanted to sell a full “stack” of software that, ... included both operating system and applications. “I’d like to have a complete stack,” he said. “We’re missing an operating system. You could argue that it makes a lot of sense for us to look at distributing and supporting Linux.” Not an unreasonable opinion. Go all the way back to Geo... (more)

Open Source Software, Standards, and Java

Sun Microsystems recently announced its intentions of finally publishing Java under an Open Source license. But what does that actually mean? We'll take a quick look at what it means to be "Open Source," how the Java language specification compares to other more formal language standards, and the importance of the brand and certification programs. We'll then look at what benefits Sun may get from distributing Java as Open Source and at some of the problems that will have to be addressed. Open Source Software The Open Source Initiative defines Open Source software and a license mus... (more)

Red Hat-JBoss Analysis: "At the Very High Level, This Looks Good"

"If Red Hat can introduce JBoss technology to a lot of its customers, this could be great for business growth, assuming the packaging works. But the reverse may not be true," muses Stephen Walli (pictured), whom many people still associate most strongly with Microsoft's open source applications FlexWiki and WiX. Here's his analysis in full: At the very high level, this looks good.  Two "open source software" companies, each using free software licenses, each pitching the enterprise and selling support and maintenance subscriptions.  It's certainly a great data point for those tha... (more)

Open Source Software, Standards, and Java

Sun Microsystems recently announced its intentions of finally publishing Java under an Open Source license. But what does that actually mean? We'll take a quick look at what it means to be "Open Source," how the Java language specification compares to other more formal language standards, and the importance of the brand and certification programs. We'll then look at what benefits Sun may get from distributing Java as Open Source and at some of the problems that will have to be addressed. Open Source Software The Open Source Initiative defines Open Source software and a license mus... (more)