News
December 9, 2009. CodePlex Foundation Accepts Second Project for ASP.NET Open Source Gallery
The CodePlex Foundation today accepted the Orchard project into the ASP.NET Open Source Gallery. The second project accepted by the gallery, Orchard was contributed by Microsoft, the Foundation's launch sponsor.
Orchard, an open source, community-focused project, includes an architecture and early-stage, reusable code components to help web application developers build applications on the ASP.NET platform. The initial focus of the Orchard project is to deliver a .NET-based, open source CMS platform that will speed the development of content-driven websites. Orchard's framework also will allow developers to provide functionality through extensions and themes.
"The Orchard project is in its early stages," said Sam Ramji, interim President, CodePlex Foundation. "We're very excited to accept it into the Foundation's process because the open source community will be able to play a significant role in shaping the direction in which the Orchard project evolves."
The Orchard project is licensed under the OSI-approved New BSD license. Miguel de Icaza, a member of the CodePlex Foundation's interim Board of Directors, will serve as project mentor, with Bradley Millington taking the role of project lead. Project sponsor Microsoft has made a three-year resource commitment to Orchard, including a full-time development team. The Orchard project is currently hosted on CodePlex.com. For more information, visit the project page at http://www.orchardproject.net.
November 18, 2009. CodePlex Foundation Announces Creation of First Gallery, Acceptance of First Project
ASP.NET Open Source Gallery, ASP.NET Ajax Library Project first proofs of Foundation model
The CodePlex Foundation today announced the creation of the first Foundation project gallery, the ASP.NET Open Source Gallery, and the acceptance of the first project into that gallery, the ASP.NET Ajax Library project. The gallery and project were evaluated for acceptance using the Foundation's Project Acceptance and Operation Guidelines, first published October 21, 2009. The gallery and project are supported by Microsoft, the Foundation's founding sponsor.
"Bringing the first project gallery and project into the CodePlex Foundation shows significant progress against our 100 day goals," said Sam Ramji, Interim President, CodePlex Foundation. "The ASP.NET Ajax Library project is important for its great value to both the open source and commercial software worlds, and the Foundation is the best forum in which to shepherd its future development."
Gallery and Projects
The ASP.NET Ajax Library consolidates ASP.NET Ajax and the Ajax Control Toolkit into a single open source project. The Ajax Control Toolkit and Ajax Libraries, components of many web development strategies, make it easy for developers to use the Ajax programming model in their websites and web applications.
The ASP.NET Ajax Library project will be released under a BSD license and can be used with many technologies, including, but not limited to ASP.NET, PHP and Ruby on Rails. Future development of the project will be done within the ASP.NET Open Source Gallery under the aegis of the CodePlex Foundation.
The CodePlex Foundation Gallery Model
The CodePlex Foundation in October announced an innovative gallery sponsorship model that uses museums as a design pattern. The organizational structure divides the Foundation into galleries - collections of thematically related projects - which benefit from a common set of services provided by the Foundation.
Galleries may be sponsored by a third-party organization, e.g. a commercial software company, or run by the Foundation. Galleries will rely on Foundation staff and volunteers to provide a set of support services, including administration, security, best practices and marketing.
About the CodePlex Foundation
The CodePlex Foundation is a not-for-profit foundation created as a forum in which open source communities and the software development community can come together with the shared goal of increasing participation in open source community projects. For more information about the CodePlex Foundation contact info@codeplex.org.
October 26, 2009
Sam Ramji, Foundation President, talks about the "state of the state" at the CodePlex Foundation: transcript here.
October 16, 2009
LWN.net: Sam Ramji: On the CodePlex Foundation and more
September 29, 2009
Information Week: Q&A With a Post-Microsoft Sam Ramji
Announcements
Seattle, WA., February 16, 2010. The CodePlex Foundation Accepts MVC Contrib project into ASP.Net Open Source Gallery
First non-Microsoft project proves value of Foundation's legal innovations, flexibility of code contribution assignment process
MVC Contrib, a community project led by Eric Hexter and Jeffrey Palermo of Headspring, has been contributed to the CodePlex Foundation's ASP.NET Open Source Gallery, it was announced today. Designed to add functionality and ease-of-use to Microsoft's ASP.NET MVC Framework, MVC Contrib is useful for developers looking to develop and test UI elements on top of the ASP.NET MVC framework.
MVC Contrib is the first project donated to the CodePlex Foundation by an independent group of developers backed by an independent software development company. Headspring, founded in 2001, is a custom software development and consulting firm based in Austin, Texas. Headspring is a Microsoft Gold Partner that specializes in delivering outsourced custom software and consulting.
"In accepting the MVC Contrib project, the CodePlex Foundation proves the value of its legal and licensing innovations, in particular the code contribution and assignment agreement," said Paula Hunter, Executive Director, CodePlex Foundation. "Our legal documents and processes reduce the risk and complexity for corporations that want to contribute open source projects to the larger community. The Foundation Is acting as a conduit between contributors, companies and the open source community, solving the business issues of participating in open source."
"We believe in the power of open source, and regularly share our code with other developers," said Eric Hexter, Director of Open Source Software Initiatives, Headspring. "By contributing the MVC Contrib project to the CodePlex Foundation, we are stepping up to help bridge the gap between corporations and the open source community. This contribution serves as a great proof point of how corporate developers and community projects can work together in open source to their mutual benefit."
For more information about the MVC Contrib project, visit www.MvcContrib.org or www.codeplex.com.
Seattle, WA., February 3, 2010. Open Source Association Veteran Paula Hunter Named Executive Director of The CodePlex Foundation
Track record in managing and promoting industry organizations brings diversity to open source Foundation
The CodePlex Foundation, a non-profit foundation formed with the mission of enabling the exchange of code and understanding among software companies and open source communities, today announced the appointment of Paula Hunter to the post of Executive Director. Hunter comes to the CodePlex Foundation with more than 15 years experience in high technology marketing, operations and business development, including leadership roles at open source organizations Open Source Development Labs (OSDL) and United Linux.
Hunter is the first full-time staff member to join the CodePlex Foundation. She will be responsible for the Foundation's operations, including personnel, budgets, and programs, with primary responsibility for sponsor development; evangelism for the Foundation and its mission; and outreach to key open source organizations including other foundations.
"The CodePlex Foundation has a unique opportunity to facilitate interaction among corporate software developers interested in participating in open source projects, the open source community, and software companies," said Hunter. "I am looking forward to driving the Foundation's mission of advancing dialog between software companies and open source communities, supporting the Board of Directors, and working with sponsors and key influencers to establish the Foundation as an essential facilitator of community collaboration."
"Paula has a compelling combination of industry insight, executive-level business savvy and experience working with not-for-profits and strong Boards," said Sam Ramji, interim President, CodePlex Foundation Board of Directors. "With this appointment, the Foundation is taking a big step towards a permanent management and governance structure that will aid us in achieving our mission."
Most recently Hunter served as Director of Operations for SEMPO, the Search Engine Marketing Professional Organization, a non-profit professional association working to increase awareness and promote the value of Search Engine Marketing worldwide. Prior to SEMPO, Hunter was director of worldwide marketing and business development for the Open Source Development Labs, where she was instrumental in driving membership growth of industry advocacy group and lead initiatives to increase industry awareness and engage large enterprise IT organizations with OSDL programs. Previously, Hunter was general manager of UnitedLinux, a joint venture formed to create a unified Linux offering. She began her career at Digital Equipment Corporation, where she managed marketing programs for DEC's UNIX Workstation and PC product lines.
Hunter received a BS in Computer Information Systems from Bentley University.
January 5, 2010. The CodePlex Foundation Points to Early Accomplishments, Looks Forward to New Challenges
A software code contribution agreement, new approaches to open source licensing, a project acceptance process, a first technology gallery and donated projects - these are among the early accomplishments of The CodePlex Foundation, the open source foundation publicly launched with support from Microsoft September 10, 2009.
Significant progress has been made against the Foundation's early goals, according to interim President of the Board of Directors Sam Ramji. "Our biggest accomplishment has been the development of a project acceptance process which enabled us to accept a gallery donation and also take on two projects," he said. "In addition, the Project Acceptance Guidelines document released in October set forth very strong guiding principles for the Foundation. A tremendous amount of work was done in a very short time."
Also in progress are changes to the Board of Directors and continuing evolution of the Board of Advisors, all with the intent of bolstering the Foundation's independence and value to commercial software companies, open source projects, and the open source community. "We are very nearly ready to announce a permanent board of five members; three are already in place, and final discussions are taking place with the remaining candidates, who are well-known in the open source community," Ramji said. "Expect to see the full permanent board - with significant changes to participants - announced in mid-January. We feel this is solid progress on a very difficult task."
Recruitment of permanent staff also is well underway, with interviews ongoing for Executive Director and Technical Director positions. "We are seeing top candidates," said Ramji, "People with open source backgrounds, experience in companies and non-profits, and deep ties to the technical community are eager to join us to make the promise of the Foundation reality - enabling the exchange of code and understanding among software companies and open source communities."
Still to be addressed is the creation of a Foundation Charter, a task Ramji and the interim board feel is best left to the soon-to-be-announced permanent Board of Directors and permanent staff.
"The first 100 days have been an incredible ride," said Ramji. "We have learned amazing things, received great advice from the Board of Advisors and, informally, from experts in the worlds of OSS and open standards. It's been a privilege to see people and companies inspired by the Foundation's mission," he added. "Thinking about what we can build with The CodePlex Foundation as we move ahead, I see more opportunity to evolve our mission and to continue our legal innovations, making membership in the Foundation more attractive for more corporate sponsors, and proving our value to community projects."
December 9, 2009. CodePlex Foundation Launches Search for Executive Director, Technical Director
Moving to meet its 100 day goals, the CodePlex Foundation today announced that it has launched a search for a permanent, full-time Executive Director and Technical Director. Individuals chosen for the positions will guide the Foundation in its mission of facilitating the participation of corporate software developers in open source projects while providing a channel of communication from the open source community back to software companies.
The Executive Director will manage the Foundation's day-to-day operations, including personnel, budgets, and programs. In addition to responsibility for sponsor development, the Executive Director will support the Board of Directors, serve as an evangelist for the Foundation and its mission, and manage outreach to key open source organizations, including other foundations. Candidates must have 10 years of experience in open source, five years experience in business development and an understanding of technology markets and software development practices. The Executive Director also will support the activity of the Foundation's Technical Director.
The Technical Director will manage the Foundation's galleries, collections of open source projects organized around a common theme or topic. Responsibilities include coordination with volunteer gallery managers on project management of Foundation projects; mentoring projects; tracking the Foundation's portfolio of projects, including intellectual property assets of those projects; working with sponsors and potential sponsors to identify the best projects and galleries for those sponsors and potential sponsors, and developing standards for security, code provenance, testing and build management.
Candidates should have a minimum of 10 years of software development experience with experience as a lead developer, a minimum of five years of software project management experience, and a minimum of five years experience participating in open source projects and multiple forges.
For more information, or to submit a CV for consideration, visit CareerBuilder for either the Executive Director or Technical Director position.
October 21, 2009
The CodePlex Foundation today announced the availability of the first working draft of its Project Acceptance and Operation Guidelines. The document, available on the Foundation's website, describes the process for contributing open source projects to the Foundation and outlines the organizational operation of the Foundation in the project acceptance process.
Designed to accommodate the needs of corporate project sponsors, individual project contributors, and project adopters, the Project Acceptance and Operation Guidelines draft proposes an innovative gallery sponsorship model that uses museums as a metaphor/design pattern for how Foundation projects will be organized. This structure divides the Foundation into Galleries - collections of thematically related projects - which benefit from a common set of services provided by the Foundation.
Galleries may be sponsored by a third-party organization, e.g. a commercial software company, or run by the Foundation. They will rely on Foundation staff and volunteers to provide a set of services through the Foundation in support of Galleries.
The Project Acceptance Guidelines document builds on the Foundation's mission and vision to set out two guiding principles by which the Foundation can measure its success: commercial friendliness and community viability. Community viability includes the objectives of flexibility, teamwork, mentoring, user choice and best practices; commercial friendly includes licensing, security and vulnerability response, and gallery sponsorship.
The CodePlex Foundation is a not-for-profit foundation created as a forum in which open source communities and the software development community can come together with the shared goal of increasing participation in open source community projects. For more information about the CodePlex Foundation contact info@codeplex.org.
September 10, 2009
The CodePlex Foundation, a non-profit foundation formed with the mission of enabling the exchange of code and understanding among software companies and open source communities, launched today, September 10, 2009.
Incorporated as a 501.c6 non-profit, the CodePlex Foundation was created as a forum in which open source communities and the software development community can come together with the shared goal of increasing participation in open source community projects. The CodePlex Foundation will complement existing open source foundations and organizations, providing a forum in which best practices and shared understanding can be established by a broad group of participants, both software companies and open source communities. Initial funding for the Foundation comes from Microsoft Corporation.
Sam Ramji will serve as interim President of the Foundation. He will be supported by an interim Board of Directors, whose other members are Bill Staples, Stephanie Boesch, Miguel de Icaza, Britt Johnston, and Shaun Walker. Mr. Ramji and the interim Board will immediately begin a search for a permanent Executive Director, who will manage the day-today operations of the Foundation, as well as a permanent Board of Directors and a Board of Advisors.
There are a number of ways for individuals and companies to participate in the Foundation - via sponsorship, or by becoming a member of the Board of Directors or Board of Advisors. To explore participation or propose a candidate for the Board of Directors or Board of Advisors, visit the Participate section of the Foundation website. Over the coming months, the Board will determine how projects are accepted as it defines project governance, which will provide clarity on how individuals or companies can contribute projects.
The Foundation's bylaws can be viewed here. Biographies of Mr. Ramji and the interim Board of Directors can be viewed here. For more information about the CodePlex Foundation, please review our FAQs here, or call 206-839-8521.
Blogs
Podcasts and Videos
Sam Ramji and Mark Stone talk about the CodePlex Foundation's Project Acceptance and Operations Guidelines: CodePlex Foundation YouTube Channel
The CodePlex Foundation's interim President, Sam Ramji, held a press conference to announce the Foundation. You can now listen to that press conference:
Sam Ramji, Foundation President, talks about launching the CodePlex Foundation: