“This year Linux became more mainstream and popular, while its
community lost its innocence.”
“The last year of the 20th century certainly had its share of
notable Linux events. Taken as a group, these events indicate that
something greater has happened to the Linux gestalt in the last 12
months than in any year before.”
“This was the year that open source lost its hype and innocence,
coming into its own as a model for software development and
distribution, as well as the social movement envisioned by the GNU
crowd.”
“As the year began, day-traders fired Linux company stocks to
super-heated levels. As it ends, the bust in stock prices is
dramatic — Caldera, which shot up to more than $30 when it opened
in March, looks ready to fall to less than $2 any day now. Other
Linux-related stocks dropped across the board — the LWN index, my
favorite measure of Linux company stocks, hit a high of 199 January
10 but now sits around 34. By mid-year, companies that wanted to go
public, such as Linuxcare, Lineo, and TurboLinux, decided that 2000
wouldn’t be the year to do it.”