451 CAOS Theory 
A blog for the enterprise open source community
OSCON 2008 – Power to the users
Jay Lyman, July 24, 2008 @ 5:50 pm ETGoing to my first OSCON five years ago, it was held at the downtown Portland Marriott, and the halls were more crowded, which was nice. However, OSCON has grown beyond the split-level Marriott, where you would sometimes be swept away from conversation by the cavernous escalators. Now OSCON is at the Portland Convention Center, and while the conference has a different feel, it is still the most unique tech conference with its developer focus, sandals and lack of ties. So while I still enjoy being able to wear shorts to a show and briefings, there have been some significant changes to OSCON in addition to the location move.
One of the big themes that stood out this year and one of the biggest changes at OSCON was the importance and impact of open source software users. Believe me, at OSCON 2004 there was certainly not as much talk, focus and demonstration that was user oriented. In contrast to this week, there seemed generally a lack of concern about what the code meant to the user. This is logical since back then, open source software was far more infrastructure-oriented. However, I think it reflects a maturity of open source that is helping to fuel broader commercial adoption.
Some vendors queried about my sense of how developers view the business end of open source. While we certainly see somewhat negative reactions ranging from resentment to trepidation, we have to remember that we are at an open source software developers conference, where developers can be developers and not worry as much about the business, legal or other ends of commercial open source.
However, when it comes to users, I believe that open source software developers are coming around to not only considering and including users in communities, but to value their contributions. Whether it’s features or code, shaking out bugs or establishing more enterprise use of open source, communities and companies are realizing the imporatnce of users. When Mark Shuttleworth talks about taking Linux desktop past Apple, it shows the user is more intensely involved in the Linux desktop than ever before. Ubuntu has been a big part of the user focus. The debate among Gnome and KDE has also, I believe, showed us that to overlook or underestimate the importance of the user is folly.
Instead, the successful vendors and communities all seem to be embracing users, customers and their input. They generally see value in user contributions, which have often been scoffed at, laughed at or dismissed by developers in open source history. Beyond the large swaths of end users, open source also has much to gain from the biggest open source software users. Consider the importance of large enterprise users that are contributing significant code, features and suggestions to open source software projects and vendors. The two groups seem to be coming closer together, and both have much to gain in doing so.
Comments (8) Categories: Software
[...] for those users and customers, who are playing an increasingly significant role in Linux and open source, there also appears to be less care about whether software is open source. [...]
[...] the Linux Foundation, Canonical is a key member given the popularity, user focus and innovative Linux development that marks Ubuntu. Both the company and the consortium stand to [...]
[...] on hardware vendors, ISVs, SIs, etc. and more open source participation (I just wrote about the significance of customers and end [...]
[...] vendors want to integrate with other third-party monitoring and management products? Because customers are demanding it. Think about it, are CA or IBM better off with a continued strategy that says, [...]
[...] attending OSCON this year, I was struck primarily by the increased significance and role of users and customers at the show, which had historically been more of a developer gathering that focused a lot more on [...]
[...] value, their open source software and development projects and communities, including developers and users, represent potential innovation and opportunity, rather than money in the bank, which at this point [...]
[...] – Comment on OSCON 2008 – Power to the users by 451 CAOS Theory … saved by EugeniaT2008-09-23 – Apparently I’m Allergic to British Columbia saved by [...]
[...] all the community managers gone? Jay Lyman, January 13, 2009 @ 9:55 pm ET Over this summer, at OSCON, LinuxWorld, other events and in briefings and other conversations, I saw and heard a lot about the [...]