[ Thanks to Kelly
McNeill for this link. ]
“We have all heard the adage “mighty oaks from tiny acorns
grow”. The events of recent days have set the mind to wondering if
these sayings are becoming a metaphor for the future of computer
users and developers.”
“A similar metaphor was used by Unix development contributor Bob
Weiner, in an article that appeared on upside.com, Weiner describes
the vision he has of the future of Linux: “The way I see it,
the nucleus has finally come together…All that is missing is a
way to take the remaining porridge of open source technologies,
just like that porridge of organic material that originally covered
the earth and shape them into some sort of living entity.“
“In Weiner’s metaphor, the open systems world of Linux and Unix
is the living nucleus (DNA is my metaphor) of a new life about to
be born into the computer world. To become a “living entity”, many
evolutionary steps must occur in order for the eventual end to be a
viable being. Of the humble beginnings of Linux, Weiner says: “We
think the operating-system space is covered pretty well…Let’s
move on to the next generation: applications, groupware, and
platform integration tools.” To bolster and support this vision,
Weiner has helped to establish BeOpen.com, a web site dedicated to
pair developers with corporations willing to pay for specialized
development.”