OSDL
Encyclopedia
Open Source Development Labs (OSDL) was a non-profit organization
supported by a global consortium
tasked to "accelerate the deployment of Linux
for enterprise computing." Founded in 2000, its goals included "to be the recognized center-of-gravity for the Linux industry."
On January 22, 2007, OSDL and the Free Standards Group
merged to form The Linux Foundation, narrowing their respective focuses to that of promoting Linux in competition with Microsoft Windows
.
s. It also:
Its employees included Linus Torvalds
, the first OSDL fellow, and Bryce Harrington. In 2005, Andrew "Tridge" Tridgell
was the second OSDL fellow for a year.
It had data centers in Beaverton, Oregon
, United States
and Yokohama
, Japan
.
OSDL had investment backers that included: 7 funders of Computer Associates, Fujitsu
, Hitachi, Ltd.
, Hewlett-Packard
, IBM
, Intel Corporation
, Nippon Electric Corporation, as well as a large collection of independent software vendor
s, end-user companies and educational institutions. A steering committee composed of representatives from the investment backers directed OSDL, which also had a significant staff of its own.
Non-profit organization
Nonprofit organization is neither a legal nor technical definition but generally refers to an organization that uses surplus revenues to achieve its goals, rather than distributing them as profit or dividends...
supported by a global consortium
Consortium
A consortium is an association of two or more individuals, companies, organizations or governments with the objective of participating in a common activity or pooling their resources for achieving a common goal....
tasked to "accelerate the deployment of Linux
Linux
Linux is a Unix-like computer operating system assembled under the model of free and open source software development and distribution. The defining component of any Linux system is the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released October 5, 1991 by Linus Torvalds...
for enterprise computing." Founded in 2000, its goals included "to be the recognized center-of-gravity for the Linux industry."
On January 22, 2007, OSDL and the Free Standards Group
Free Standards Group
The Free Standards Group was an industry non-profit consortium chartered to primarily specify and drive the adoption of open source standards.All standards developed by the Free Standards Group were released under open terms and test suites, sample implementations and other software were released...
merged to form The Linux Foundation, narrowing their respective focuses to that of promoting Linux in competition with Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
.
Activities
OSDL sponsored key industry projects, including industry initiatives to enhance Linux for use in corporate data centers, in telecommunications networks, and on desktop computerDesktop computer
A desktop computer is a personal computer in a form intended for regular use at a single location, as opposed to a mobile laptop or portable computer. Early desktop computers are designed to lay flat on the desk, while modern towers stand upright...
s. It also:
- provided hardware resources to the free software communityFree software communityThe free-software community is an informal term that refers to the users and developers of free software as well as supporters of the free-software movement. The movement is sometimes referred to as the open-source software community or a subset thereof...
and the open source community - tested and reported on open source software.
- employed a number of Linux developers.
Its employees included Linus Torvalds
Linus Torvalds
Linus Benedict Torvalds is a Finnish software engineer and hacker, best known for having initiated the development of the open source Linux kernel. He later became the chief architect of the Linux kernel, and now acts as the project's coordinator...
, the first OSDL fellow, and Bryce Harrington. In 2005, Andrew "Tridge" Tridgell
Andrew Tridgell
Andrew "Tridge" Tridgell is an Australian computer programmer best known as the author of and contributor to the Samba file server, and co-inventor of the rsync algorithm....
was the second OSDL fellow for a year.
It had data centers in Beaverton, Oregon
Beaverton, Oregon
Beaverton is a city in Washington County, Oregon, United States, seven miles west of Portland in the Tualatin River Valley.As of the 2010 census, the population is 90,267. This makes it the second-largest city in the county and Oregon's sixth-largest city...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and Yokohama
Yokohama
is the capital city of Kanagawa Prefecture and the second largest city in Japan by population after Tokyo and most populous municipality of Japan. It lies on Tokyo Bay, south of Tokyo, in the Kantō region of the main island of Honshu...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
.
OSDL had investment backers that included: 7 funders of Computer Associates, Fujitsu
Fujitsu
is a Japanese multinational information technology equipment and services company headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. It is the world's third-largest IT services provider measured by revenues....
, Hitachi, Ltd.
Hitachi, Ltd.
is a Japanese multinational conglomerate headquartered in Marunouchi 1-chome, Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan. The company is the parent of the Hitachi Group as part of the larger DKB Group companies...
, Hewlett-Packard
Hewlett-Packard
Hewlett-Packard Company or HP is an American multinational information technology corporation headquartered in Palo Alto, California, USA that provides products, technologies, softwares, solutions and services to consumers, small- and medium-sized businesses and large enterprises, including...
, IBM
IBM
International Business Machines Corporation or IBM is an American multinational technology and consulting corporation headquartered in Armonk, New York, United States. IBM manufactures and sells computer hardware and software, and it offers infrastructure, hosting and consulting services in areas...
, Intel Corporation
Intel Corporation
Intel Corporation is an American multinational semiconductor chip maker corporation headquartered in Santa Clara, California, United States and the world's largest semiconductor chip maker, based on revenue. It is the inventor of the x86 series of microprocessors, the processors found in most...
, Nippon Electric Corporation, as well as a large collection of independent software vendor
Independent software vendor
Independent software vendor is a business term for companies specializing in making or selling software, designed for mass marketing or for niche markets...
s, end-user companies and educational institutions. A steering committee composed of representatives from the investment backers directed OSDL, which also had a significant staff of its own.
Working Groups
OSDL had established four Working Groups since 2002:- Mobile Linux Initiative (MLI)
- Carrier Grade LinuxCarrier Grade LinuxCarrier Grade Linux is a set of specifications which detail standards of availability, scalability, manageability, and service response characteristics which must be met in order for Linux to be considered "carrier grade"...
(CGL) - Data Center Linux (DCL)
- Desktop LinuxDesktop LinuxDesktop Linux, also called Linux on the desktop, refers to specialized Linux distributions with features designed for desktop personal computer users. These features include a graphical user interface and personal use applications....
(DTL)
See also
- Patent CommonsPatent CommonsThe Patent Commons Project was launched on November 15, 2005 by the Open Source Development Labs . The core of the project is an online patent commons reference library aggregating and documenting information about patent-related pledges and other legal solutions directed at the open-source...
, a project launched in November 2005 by the OSDL